Injury Breakdown: Stretching... the Truth: Part I
by Abby Sims
In the old days, at least until a year or two ago, the password was stretch, stretch, stretch. We were taught that stretching before activity helped to prevent injury; that it warmed up the body and prepared the muscles for play. However, more recent research has shown that stretching before participating in sport does not significantly reduce the incidence of injury.
Articles have been written to this effect and splashed throughout health & fitness sections of newspapers and magazines. They have questioned whether stretching is worthwhile in a very black or white way – as though the warm-up stretch was the only reason to stretch in the first place. The implication? That now, with the benefits called into question, why bother stretching at all?This approach is shortsighted at best and dangerous at worst. There is a bigger picture to understand here.
Recognizing the value of having normal flexibility is the key to understanding the benefits of A muscle's flexibility is its ability to distend (or stretch) across all the joints it stretching.crosses, from its origin to its insertion. Since muscles attach (via tendons) to bones, it therefore follows that tight muscles pull on their attachments, creating uneven stresses and strains. Such tightness, or lack of flexibility, can alter posture and alignment and is likely to lessen the shock absorbency of the muscle-tendon units (thereby transmitting greater forces to the joints). In addition, tight muscles place more demand on other structures connected in the chain – for instance, tight calves pull on their bony attachment at the heel and also create strain on the fascia at the bottom of the foot. It becomes clear, that for all of these reasons, muscle tightness can predispose us to injury.
The antidote? Stretching. There are several ways in which to stretch and each has its advocates. Whichever option you choose, consistency is the key to carryover. Your goal is not simply to warm up or cool down, it is to become more flexible. That takes patience and persistence.
Stretching Basics
1. One of the first rules is to avoid stretching when your muscles are cold. You will get the most out of the time you put in if you warm up a bit first. You might do that simply by walking to the gym or jumping on a stationary bike for five minutes. Even better, focus on your stretching program after completing the rest of your workout. Then you can work toward increasing your flexibility while possibly lessening the likelihood of suffering from post-exercise muscle soreness.
2. Avoid bouncing. Bouncing into a stretch will likely set off a stretch reflex that will cause your muscle to contract rather than relax. This is not only counterproductive, but could result in injury. Though there are those who promote ballistic stretching, which entails rapid movement to the end of one's available flexibility (or into a stretch beyond that limit), this method entails high risk and low reward. This is particularly so for most recreational athletes and those who are not already very flexible.
3. The most commonly performed stretches should be done statically – they should be held for a period of about 30 seconds and repeated about four times. With each repetition you should find that you're able to ease into the end of the available motion with slightly greater flexibility.
4. Stretching should not cause pain and your perception of stretch should be mild, not intense. Stretching too aggressively can cause injury.
5. Stretches should be felt only in the belly of the muscles you are addressing. If you don't know the anatomy, just remember that you should never feel a stretch at your joints, just somewhere in between.
6. Restricted range of motion of a joint will prevent full access to the flexibility of the muscles that cross that joint. For example, if your ankle has limited movement into dorsiflexion (movement of the foot upward), no matter how much you try to stretch your calf (gastroc), you will not make headway. Instead, the position for calf stretching will cause you to feel a pinching in the front of your ankle rather than a stretch in the muscle. Motion must be restored to the ankle before you can effectively and safely stretch the calf.
7. Flexibility exercises may be performed as often as desired if done correctly (unlike strengthening, which should not be done more than on alternate days). With stretching there is a direct correlation between frequency and improvement.
Part II of the series on flexibility will focus on various methods of stretching. Not all are recommended nor are they equally effective.
