How To Stretch Properly: The
Do's And Don'ts Of Stretching
Maintaining flexible joints will help any lifter
improve his or her health and fitness. Learn how
to stretch your gains with this complete guide to
stretching!
Like driving, stretching, has its own set of rules for the road. Follow them
closely and you'll get to your destination safe, sound, and in good shape.
Neglect them, and you're on your own. Here are 18 most important tips—
and what to avoid—when it comes to stretching.
The Do's
"Even doing a few static stretches at the end of a single workout will help
with next-day muscle soreness so you won't be moving like a corpse."
DO use static stretching to maintain flexibility, but do it after your
workout, not before. Even doing a few static stretches at the end of a single
workout will help with next-day muscle soreness so you won't be moving
like a corpse.
DO stretch tight muscles when training a favorite or strong body part. For
instance, if your chest is strong and your calves are tight—a common
scenario—stretch your calves between sets of bench presses. In order to
truly increase your flexibility with stretching, you must do it often. This is
one way to increase the frequency of stretching without making it a boring
chore.
DO use traction when stretching to increase range of motion and reduce
compression or impingement of a joint. This can be done in the gym by
pulling on a resistance band attached to an immovable object like a power
cage or chin-up bar. Either grab on to the band with your hand for various
upper-body stretches, or hook it on to your foot or ankle for a number of
lower-body options.
DO control which area of the muscle is being stretched. To stretch the
hamstrings, for example, you target the muscle belly when bending the
knee, rounding the back, or plantar-flexing the ankle (i.e., pointing the foot
away). If you lock your knee, keep your back straight, or dorsi-flex the
ankle (i.e., flex the foot toward the shin), the target instead is the fascia, the
sheath that covers the muscle.
DO stretch if you have poor posture. Muscles shorten over time and can
contribute to poor posture, which can also be caused by consistently
training over a limited range of motion (not doing full-range reps). For
example:
Wearing high heels causes shortening of the calves because the calves
are constantly in a state of nearly full contraction.
Look at your fingers: They're always in flexion from typing, writing,
eating, driving, training, etc., and tend to curl.
Your hip flexors are considered the tightest muscle in the human
body. Let's face it: The average person spends up to 40 percent of his
or her life in a seated position!
DO stretch the spinal column between sets of compressive exercises such
as squats and overhead presses. It's not unusual for someone to lose 20-40
millimeters of height following a weight-training session! Hanging from a
chin-up bar can help a great deal with spinal decompression.
DO scan your body for tight muscles, then attack the target area by
stretching. Always stretch tight muscles first as they can inhibit your ability
to do full-range exercises. (Note: This is a case when dynamic stretching is
done before your actual training.) During your warm-up, use general
movement of all body parts to scan for tightness. Once found, use the
appropriate stretching techniques to release it.
DO favor closed-chain over open-chain stretches. Most people stretch
their hamstrings by throwing their heel on a bench and reaching forward
to their toes, which is an open-chain stretch. Research shows closed-chain
stretching results in a 5-degree increase in flexibility. Any form of
stretching that exerts pressure on the soles of the feet or the palms of the
hands (which closes the chain) will produce strong reflex extension, and
greater range. Toe-touching stretches done in standing versus seated
positions are actually different procedures to your nervous system.
DO use gentle motion for rehabilitation, but don't push the end range. For
instance, the popular "mad cat" and "camel" stretches that you see people
do on their hands and knees are useful for neural flossing of the spine (by
getting nerves to move, they can create their own space). If you experience
back pain, 5-6 cycles of these stretches prior to training may help.
DO stretch surrounding muscles to liberate greater range of motion
(ROM). For instance, the iliotibial (IT) band is a dense, fibrous band of
connective tissue that runs along the outside of your thighs and is very
resistant to stretch. To really get at this tissue, you need to address the
muscles on either side of the IT band, such as the quadriceps and
hamstrings. Rolling on a foam roller can help.
The Don'ts
DON'T hold an intense stretch for longer than 15 seconds because of
muscle hypoxia. Lack of oxygen to the muscles develops under a high
degree of force/tension and can increase the development of connective
tissue, which decreases strength and may actually promote inflexibility. It's
better to use multiple angles for a short duration with static stretching
rather than holding one angle for a long period of time. The rule is that the
more intensive the stretching, the shorter its application.
DON'T skip strength-training exercises that promote passive stretching.
These movements will result in an increase in flexibility, assuming you
train using a full range of motion. Here's a list of the best choices, by body
part:
Hamstrings: Stiff-legged deadlift or good morning
Pectorals: Flat bench dumbbell fly
Triceps: Seated overhead triceps extension
Biceps: Incline bench dumbbell curl
Latissimus dorsi: Lying dumbbell pull-over
Mid-back: Seated cable row
Abdominals: Stability ball crunch
Deltoids: One-arm cable lateral raise
Gastrocnemius: Standing calf raise
Soleus: Seated calf raise
DON'T stretch first thing in the morning, especially if you have a low back
injury. Wait at least one hour after awakening. While you sleep, your spine
swells with fluid, and the risk of injury is heightened if you stretch right
after you wake up.
DON'T negate a stretch by contracting that muscle immediately afterward.
For instance, if you grab on to an overhead bar in a power cage with one
hand and sink down as far as you can by bending your knees, you'll
experience a great lat stretch. But if you pull yourself back up using the
same muscles you just stretched, you'll defeat the purpose. Use your legs
instead to come back out of the stretch.
DON'T use static stretching on the muscles you're about to train. As I
discuss in my "Warm-Up to Strength Training" DVD, this practice tends to
sedate the muscles, and research shows it will decrease strength and
power. Also, static stretching prior to activity may actually cause injuries,
not prevent them. Although some exceptions apply for very tight muscles,
for the most part you should perform static stretching after activity or
exercise.
DON'T hold your breath during a stretch, as this will tense your muscles.
Instead, you need to relax by exhaling longer than inhaling. Keep in mind
that the opposite&mdash (hyperventilation) will excite the system. That
may help before a heavy set of deadlifts, but not while you're stretching!
"Weightlifters can often squat deeper than other athletes, dispelling the
myth that strength training and large muscles decrease flexibility!"
DON'T believe the myth that weight training will make you inflexible!
John Grimek, a weightlifter and world-champion bodybuilder in the 1930s
and 1940s, would perform back flips and splits during his posing routines.
Tom Platz, a world champion bodybuilder from the 1970s and 1980s, also
displayed extraordinary flexibility, considering he had arguably the bestbuilt legs in all of bodybuilding. Platz would perform full, deep squats in
training, and he was notorious for being able to not only touch his toes, but
kiss his knees! That's how flexible his hamstrings were, so don't believe the
hype!
Weight training will improve flexibility if you balance agonists and
antagonists, and train through full range of motion. In fact, full ROM
exercise tends to increase both active and passive flexibility. Flexibility is at
least average or above in strength athletes such as throwers, weightlifters,
gymnasts and wrestlers, which refutes the concept of being muscle-bound.
Furthermore, weightlifters can often squat deeper than other athletes,
dispelling the myth that strength training and large muscles decrease
flexibility! There's plenty of research to back this up.
DON'T stretch if you're already very flexible! There's really no point. If
you want to relax, try a warm bath and some classical music. There's
actually an inverse relationship between mobility and stability. Being
extremely stiff is one thing, but going too far to the other extreme can
promote joint laxity and isn't desirable. Optimal—not maximal—static and
dynamic flexibility is required for each joint.
Stretch Your Growth
There's a time and place for everything, and stretching is no exception. If
you follow these basic rules, you'll get the most out of your stretching
effort!
John Paul Catanzaro is one of Canada's leading health and fitness
authorities. He is a CSEP Certified Exercise Physiologist.