Often times the flexibility component, in an otherwise excellent training program, is overlooked and sometimes understated. A tensile muscle is a healthy muscle and keeping up with a program that includes flexibility training is difficult yet rewarding. In the past many educators and trainers alike had it all wrong when it was advocated that you should stretch prior to any exercise or physical event. Perhaps many injuries could have been prevented in the past as this old school theory of stretching proved to be nothing more than bad advice. Make no mistake, stretching for better flexibility is essential for a stronger healthier body, but how and when you stretch is the key to improving your body and setting yourself up for physical success.
What types of stretching are there?
Basically speaking, there are three different types of stretching you can engage in to prepare yourself physical activity. They are: static stretching, ballistic stretching and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching. All have their positives and negatives but each holds a place in a well constructed training program.
Static Stretching: This involves gradually lengthening a muscle to a point in which the pain felt in the muscle gets to be uncomfortable and then you hold this position for at least a count of 15 seconds. During these 15 seconds the muscle fibers are lengthening past the point of their normal capacity and they are forced to open up even further to allow for more blood flow to occur. This was the common old school method to prepare athletes for whatever it was they were doing. The problem here was that many athletes actually injured themselves during this. The muscles were cold and they were asked to work harder than they were prepared to do and tears and strains became the norm. Think of a cold muscle like cold caramel, if you try to bend or stretch it, it breaks. Muscles are no different.
Ballistic Stretching: This is an advanced type of stretching that involves using quick forceful movements to lengthen and stretch the muscle in a violent type of fashion. The stretch comes in the form of a fast motion that is designed to quickly release muscle fibers and loosen up the area. Bouncing and swinging are common forms of ballistic stretching and are in fact quite dangerous to perform. My advice would be for only those who are completely in tune with their body try this method as the chance of injury is very high. If you do choose to use ballistic stretching be sure you are thoroughly warmed up and you are performing this during a dynamic workout.
PNF Stretching: Quite possibly the most interesting (at least in my opinion) form of stretching, PNF will take your body past its limits and give you a greater range of motion than if you were to employ one or even both of the methods mentioned above. To do this, you should make use of a partner or someone you trust. The idea is to stretch the muscle in the same fashion as you would during static stretching. Once you find yourself in that uncomfortable position, push back against whatever resistance brought you to that point. Do this for a 10 second count, relax and then have your partner stretch you again. You will notice that you are able to go past the initial point at which you started therefore instantly and dramatically increasing your range of motion. This is a highly advanced stretching technique but highly effective.
When should you stretch?
This is a great question and the answers will vary depending on the reason for stretching. If you are banging away at the weights in the gym, you should employ stretching in between sets for increased blood flow and then again following the workout. If you are involved in a sport you should engage in some sort of warm up that gets blood flowing to your muscles, “warming them up” and then pursue your stretching routine. Keep the caramel anecdote in mind always. Then as a part of your cool down, you may want to work on stretching again especially in any areas that feel tight and tense.
When shouldn’t you stretch?
If strength is a priority for you and you are about to attempt a personal best on any given lift, or your sport requires a tremendous amount of strength in one full exertion, avoid stretching at all costs. Research has shown that a stretched muscle and stretched joint is a weaker one and shortened, more tense muscles and joints are more capable of producing a greater amount of power. Other than that, there is no reason to avoid stretching.
This isn’t a stretch . . .
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Improved flexibility will only further your progress in the gym and keep you in the correct anatomical position. Poor posture, limited range of motion and a build-up of scar tissue in the muscle stems from tight muscles. Work on it just the same as you would building bigger biceps, stick with AST Sports Science for all your performance enhancing needs and be a better version of you!
