Stretches: Helpful component to a good workout
kvmoore6344
Posts: 6 Member
I use to be an athletic trainer at my high school and I learned that hardest thing to convince people to do was to stretch. I notice that not very many talk about stretches during a workout. Stretches are super important; they help to prevent injury, they keep you limber, and they help with bulking up muscles. Muscles get bigger when the muscle fibers brake and rebuild themselves (one reason you shouldn't over do your workout). Stretching helps this process and will keep muscles from getting too sore. Warm up before a workout and make sure to stretch AFTER each workout. Don't forget rest periods between workouts. Hope this helps!
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Replies
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Static stretching before a workout is actually not a good idea. Following a workout, yes it is.3
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rileysowner wrote: »Static stretching before a workout is actually not a good idea. Following a workout, yes it is.
Should I maybe mention just light stretching? its more of a warm up type thing. Should I just edit my post to say warm up before work and stretch after the workout?0 -
I warm up doing something like walking for 10 minutes. Then I stretch. Then I lift. It works for me. Going straight into light reps and ramping up does not. I wouldn't stretch before doing some sort of general moving around first but I don't need to wait until the end of my workout to do it.1
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What is "light stretching" compared to "medium" or "heavy" stretching? Isn't all stretching supposed to be "light"? (Just a pet peeve of word usage.)1
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I perform a light stretch pre workout. Nothing too fancy. Just unwinding from the drive to the gym. After that I walk at pace on the treadmill then I'm g2g. To wind down I deep stretch with a foam roller for 15 mins.0
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Actually there are no studies showing that stretching does help to prevent injury. Because most injuries are sudden and forceful, even the best limbered athletes still get injured. And they DON'T help with bulking up muscles. Muscle "bulk" up based on progressive overload resistance and surplus of calories.kvmoore6344 wrote: »I use to be an athletic trainer at my high school and I learned that hardest thing to convince people to do was to stretch. I notice that not very many talk about stretches during a workout. Stretches are super important; they help to prevent injury, they keep you limber, and they help with bulking up muscles. Muscles get bigger when the muscle fibers brake and rebuild themselves (one reason you shouldn't over do your workout). Stretching helps this process and will keep muscles from getting too sore. Warm up before a workout and make sure to stretch AFTER each workout. Don't forget rest periods between workouts. Hope this helps!
Not trying to dissuade stretching here, but misinformation shouldn't be used as a reason to do it.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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So what does stretching do, particularly deep/"heavy?" stretching? I'm guilty of neglecting stretches after strength workouts. I'll do dynamic stretching beforehand; arm circles, leg swings, that sort of thing, but I thought that was more to get blood flowing. I usually static stretch after cardio cause it feels great. It seems like it helps with DOMS, but could just be in my head.0
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So what does stretching do, particularly deep/"heavy?" stretching? I'm guilty of neglecting stretches after strength workouts. I'll do dynamic stretching beforehand; arm circles, leg swings, that sort of thing, but I thought that was more to get blood flowing. I usually static stretch after cardio cause it feels great. It seems like it helps with DOMS, but could just be in my head.
I don't really know what people mean by light vs heavy stretching. I just stretch. I mean, I'm not doing a long and drawn out routine but the stretching makes me feel more flexible and ready to go. I do a bit more now than I did previously due to a bout with tendinitis, which I don't want to have problems with again. But that's for lower body. For upper body I do band pull aparts while walking on the treadmill for a few minutes and then I do two very fast stretches and off I go.0 -
So what does stretching do, particularly deep/"heavy?" stretching? I'm guilty of neglecting stretches after strength workouts. I'll do dynamic stretching beforehand; arm circles, leg swings, that sort of thing, but I thought that was more to get blood flowing. I usually static stretch after cardio cause it feels great. It seems like it helps with DOMS, but could just be in my head.
Helps with gaining and maintaining flexibility and mobility.
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The only things a stretch on a regular basis are hip flexors and hamstrings. Only just enough to keep enough movement to hit depth on squats.
Being hypermobile, one of the worst things I can do is stretch and destabilize my joints1 -
I do dynamic stretches before my workout and in between sets. I also like foam rolling. It hurts so good.1
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Actually there are no studies showing that stretching does help to prevent injury. Because most injuries are sudden and forceful, even the best limbered athletes still get injured. And they DON'T help with bulking up muscles. Muscle "bulk" up based on progressive overload resistance and surplus of calories.kvmoore6344 wrote: »I use to be an athletic trainer at my high school and I learned that hardest thing to convince people to do was to stretch. I notice that not very many talk about stretches during a workout. Stretches are super important; they help to prevent injury, they keep you limber, and they help with bulking up muscles. Muscles get bigger when the muscle fibers brake and rebuild themselves (one reason you shouldn't over do your workout). Stretching helps this process and will keep muscles from getting too sore. Warm up before a workout and make sure to stretch AFTER each workout. Don't forget rest periods between workouts. Hope this helps!
Not trying to dissuade stretching here, but misinformation shouldn't be used as a reason to do it.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Could be misinformation that I was given by a high school teacher lol. Thanks for the insite.0 -
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So what does stretching do, particularly deep/"heavy?" stretching? I'm guilty of neglecting stretches after strength workouts. I'll do dynamic stretching beforehand; arm circles, leg swings, that sort of thing, but I thought that was more to get blood flowing. I usually static stretch after cardio cause it feels great. It seems like it helps with DOMS, but could just be in my head.
I don't really know what people mean by light vs heavy stretching. I just stretch. I mean, I'm not doing a long and drawn out routine but the stretching makes me feel more flexible and ready to go. I do a bit more now than I did previously due to a bout with tendinitis, which I don't want to have problems with again. But that's for lower body. For upper body I do band pull aparts while walking on the treadmill for a few minutes and then I do two very fast stretches and off I go.
Usually depends on intensity and duration of strertching.0 -
Thank you everyone for your comments. I obviously don't know everything, no one does lol. This is what I love about the discussion board. My main point of this post was to inform people that stretching is important.1
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The boards here are filled with great information from minds who have been in the fitness business or are well educated in it, so don't be afraid to research it here. If you're green you're learning, if you're ripe you only get rotten.kvmoore6344 wrote: »
Actually there are no studies showing that stretching does help to prevent injury. Because most injuries are sudden and forceful, even the best limbered athletes still get injured. And they DON'T help with bulking up muscles. Muscle "bulk" up based on progressive overload resistance and surplus of calories.kvmoore6344 wrote: »I use to be an athletic trainer at my high school and I learned that hardest thing to convince people to do was to stretch. I notice that not very many talk about stretches during a workout. Stretches are super important; they help to prevent injury, they keep you limber, and they help with bulking up muscles. Muscles get bigger when the muscle fibers brake and rebuild themselves (one reason you shouldn't over do your workout). Stretching helps this process and will keep muscles from getting too sore. Warm up before a workout and make sure to stretch AFTER each workout. Don't forget rest periods between workouts. Hope this helps!
Not trying to dissuade stretching here, but misinformation shouldn't be used as a reason to do it.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Could be misinformation that I was given by a high school teacher lol. Thanks for the insite.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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I hated stretching in PE. I STILL hate stretching! So I dont do it. When I do stretch, I am too tired to do the actual workout. I have never gotten injured from not doing them. Closest thing to stretches I have ever done was pilates and even then I fast forward past the exhausting stretching portion and go straight to the work out. I have noticed a pattern with me that has been apart of my life since I was a fit teen. If I stretch.. im done. I will go no further.
But then I also like to think about things rationally and OUTSIDE of the box. Like, when did stretching before working out become a "thing"? Did people stretch before going to work in the ancient days when they laid brick and built homes from scratch? When they ran after buffalo or deer? I can imagine how funny that would look seeing a bunch of native americans stretching their calves and doing yoga before a good hunt. Or the amish getting in a good pilates before raising a barn. I really dont think all that is necessary.0 -
Add foam rolling before stretching and you have yourself a winning formula! Ideally, you would foam roll and then stretch muscles that don't already have optimal ROM that are indicated as being shortened during a movement assessment. There's really no big need to static stretch muscles that already have optimal ROM (but it does feel good to do it)
Follow the foam rolling and static stretching with some dynamic stretches that will closely mimic the activity you are about to perform. For instance a hockey player may do a lunge with twist.
Most of the research now shows that static stretching before a workout will have no ill effects as long as you don't hold the stretch for too long. Most research uses static stretching times of up to 60 seconds and it had no detrimental effects on activities that require power of explosiveness.2 -
I used to work in an extreme environment where employee injuries were high. The company put some research into the the situation to save money and reduce workers' comp claims. They created a MANDATORY 15 minute stretch period at least an hour into the workday. Injuries dropped. Then they hired additional physical therapists and the the claims dropped again. My team dealt with inflammation and numbness from overuse (we worked long shifts). While many of us still had to ice our limbs, take ibuprofen, or do more, the routine stretching felt good, reduced the pain of work overall, and reduced the number of lost productivity hours due to physical injury (unable to grasp with your hands, etc.) I know there is a lot of data out there that says there is no benefit to stretching, but my old employer has research to contradict that.1
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I used to work in an extreme environment where employee injuries were high. The company put some research into the the situation to save money and reduce workers' comp claims. They created a MANDATORY 15 minute stretch period at least an hour into the workday. Injuries dropped. Then they hired additional physical therapists and the the claims dropped again. My team dealt with inflammation and numbness from overuse (we worked long shifts). While many of us still had to ice our limbs, take ibuprofen, or do more, the routine stretching felt good, reduced the pain of work overall, and reduced the number of lost productivity hours due to physical injury (unable to grasp with your hands, etc.) I know there is a lot of data out there that says there is no benefit to stretching, but my old employer has research to contradict that.
I wish more workplaces would bring in a program like that. It;s not just the physical benefits but it relieves stress, gets your blood flowing and clears your mind...and it just feels so darn good!0 -
I think it's important for people to have adequate range of motion to perform daily tasks of living and from an exercise standpoint it's important to have enough mobility to perform exercises properly.
Stretching is one way to assist with some of that, however I don't think it's arbitrarily important unless you're using it to accomplish a specific task (of course, if someone enjoys how it makes them feel, great!).
I'm not aware of any mechanism by which stretching contributes to muscle growth, however.
Just anecdote but I've seen this with multiple people -- my mobility and ROM at various joints has improved A LOT by lifting weights without any stretching at all.0 -
I'm not aware of any mechanism by which stretching contributes to muscle growth, however.
Just anecdote but I've seen this with multiple people -- my mobility and ROM at various joints has improved A LOT by lifting weights without any stretching at all.
I was curious and google led me here: http://www.somastruct.com/stretching-a-form-of-strengthening/
I'm not familiar with the author, but its well-researched. Apparently, static stretches and resistance training are similar in that they produce tension on the muscle, which signals hypertrophy. Resistance training improving flexibility is touched on as well. Most relevant study: Resistance training vs. static stretching: effects on flexibility and strength.
I'm also curious about how stretching is therapeutic. Like jemhh mentioned, I found it essential when I had tendinitis problems, but I don't understand how it helps or why it felt so much better! I suppose its similar to foam rolling where you're breaking up 'adhesions' (which I also don't understand)?0 -
I do not stretch. Only dynamic stretching and myofascial release. Static stretching almost always feels dumb.0
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I'm not aware of any mechanism by which stretching contributes to muscle growth, however.
Just anecdote but I've seen this with multiple people -- my mobility and ROM at various joints has improved A LOT by lifting weights without any stretching at all.
I was curious and google led me here: http://www.somastruct.com/stretching-a-form-of-strengthening/
I'm not familiar with the author, but its well-researched. Apparently, static stretches and resistance training are similar in that they produce tension on the muscle, which signals hypertrophy. Resistance training improving flexibility is touched on as well. Most relevant study: Resistance training vs. static stretching: effects on flexibility and strength.
Thanks! This is definitely interesting, although I don't think this addresses the idea that stretching is beneficial in people who are lifting, meaning that I don't think we can use this as evidence to suggest that stretching benefits hypertrophy in people who are training for hypertrophy. It's definitely new info to me though, I haven't seen the studies he's referencing.I'm also curious about how stretching is therapeutic. Like jemhh mentioned, I found it essential when I had tendinitis problems, but I don't understand how it helps or why it felt so much better! I suppose its similar to foam rolling where you're breaking up 'adhesions' (which I also don't understand)?
I'm also not sure on the mechanism, but the most recent things I've read about foam rolling and other forms of self myofascial release are that it doesn't actually do anything to physically remodel fascia.
Here's a good resource (IMO) if you're interested:
https://www.painscience.com/articles/does-fascia-matter.php#sec_tough
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