This is also critical in order to avoid direct injury from trying new stretches that you are unfamiliar with. The following article by my fellow sports physiotherapist Chris Mallac does just that. Ulrik Larsen. What is the science behind flexibility? Most coaches, athletes and sports medicine personnel use stretching methods as part of the training routine for athletes. Many would agree that it forms an integral part of training and preparation. However, most of the theoretical and practical factors in stretching are often incorrectly applied.
The purpose of this article is primarily to provide an overview on the theoretical basis of stretching routines. What is flexibility? De Vries defines it as the range of motion available in a joint, such as the hip, or series of joints such as the spine.
This encompassing definition takes into account a number of important aspects about flexibility. That is, it deals with a joint or series of joints used to produce a particular movement, and it considers that flexibility is both static and dynamic in nature.
It is important to highlight some points regarding flexibility. First, flexibility is joint specific. That is, you cannot say someone is flexible just because they can touch their toes. Second, flexibility is sport specific. You would not expect a front row rugby forward to have the same flexibility as an Olympic gymnast, because it is not required for his sport. In fact, in a contact sport like rugby, being that flexible would be detrimental to his body.
Components of flexibility Flexibility has two important components: static and dynamic flexibility. Static flexibility describes range of motion without a consideration for speed of movement.
This is the maximum range a muscle can achieve with an external force such as gravity or manual assistance. For example, holding a hamstring stretch at an end-of-range position. Dynamic flexibility describes the use of the desired range of motion at a desired velocity usually quickly.
The relationship between stretching and injury prevention is indeed obscure.. If you do stretch, consider using both static and dynamic stretches. Static stretches involve holding a single position for about 30 seconds.
At the end of the day, stretching might not be more than a fun habit. If it works for you, makes you feel limber and boosts your warmup comfort—then stretch away! This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
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The Benefits of Stretching Many sports trainers, sports medicine practitioners and fitness organizations promote stretching, and for different reasons.
Increased Range of Motion By stretching, you can directly improve your performance. By , Lauersen et al performed an enormous review of studies on stretching and injury prevention.
They evaluated the results of 26, people who between them had experienced 3, injuries. There is no definitive answer to whether stretching is good for you or not. Regular stretching will improve your flexibility and this may be of benefit, especially if you participate in a sport that requires a large range of movement such as gymnastics or dance.
Its also been shown that stretching can reduce the amount of soreness an exerciser feels after activity Herbert, But most important of all, a significant number of people simply feel better and report less pain from a number of conditions if they stretch regularly.
As mentioned above, some sports require a large amount of flexibility. In those sports, stretching helps achieve optimum performance. Rubini et al also noted that stretching for several weeks improved muscular strength despite no dedicated strength training being performed.
However, in the majority of studies, stretching immediately before exercise particularly stretching the same muscle group for more than seconds in total reduces the maximum amount of power that muscles can generate and can be detrimental to athletic performance. If we look at the mechanism of the commonest injuries out there it will help explain why flexibility and stretching do not protect against most injuries.
Is flexibility important? Should therapists, coaches, and trainers prescribe stretching? Every kid growing up in organized sports has experienced lining up and running through the series of stretches comprising the majority of a warm-up.
Each generation passes down the tradition of stretching before activity. It spreads beyond organized sports as well. Running groups everywhere start their morning runs with a stretch of the quadriceps, hamstrings, adductions, and gastrocnemius.
Yet, it is likely they were not reducing their risk for injury or physically preparing for the run. Stretching and mobility exercises in isolation do not reduce the risk of injury.
Studies that do show a potential protective effect are multi-modal , meaning the stretching is combined with an active warmup and other exercises. Stretching may or may not be the cause. Overall, the research is clear that injury prevention cannot be isolated to a single factor. Among the factors assessed , stretching likely does not need to be considered. Like stretching before every soccer and football practice, physical therapists have been prescribing warm-ups prior to the start of their session for decades.
You could argue a warm-up has many of the same goals I listed for stretching: injury prevention, improving mobility, pain reduction and pleasure, compounding strength, and performance gains. When assessing the research, warm-ups appear to be effective in many different areas. The goal of a warm-up is to increase muscle temperature and prepare the body for activity.
Static stretching does not accomplish these goals. Furthermore, sport or activity specific activity appears to be necessary to maximize the effects on performance and injury prevention.
Stretching does not facilitate healing. You will have to find some other means of decreasing the post-leg-day waddle.
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