When your muscles are not used regularly, they become tight and lose the ability to perform their intended role, which is to carry your legs, arms and torso through wide and varied ranges of motion. In fact, as you age your muscles will tighten, if they are not stretched on a regular basis, and loss of range of motion will become a reality. Stretching is simply the act of extending to full length the body or simply a part of it. Do not concentrate only on building strength and endurance; you must remember that flexibility is also one of the main components of a truly fit body. The purpose of stretching is to increase flexibility; improving your flexibility will automatically increase your range of motion, which in turn will allow your joints and limbs to move further.
Benefits of stretching include:
• Increased range of motion.
• It signals the muscles that they are about to be used, eg before a sporting activity like karate or soccer.
• It prevents muscle injury.
• It is a great stress reliever.
• It feels good
How to stretch
Never stretch a cold muscle. Stretching and warming up are not one and the same. Stretching forms part of a warm-up, but it does not constitute the entire warm-up process. As a matter of fact, you should literally heat up your muscles before you begin to stretch them. This can be done by performing small rotary movements with your arms and legs while standing in a fixed position. Performing such movements will gradually elevate your heart rate and will also serve to warm up your muscles before you begin your stretching routine.
Different stretching techniques
There are a variety of methods you can employ to stretch:
• Static Stretching-This is a safe, effective way to stretch. Begin to stretch the relative muscle group without utilising any bouncing movement. Move the specific body part into a position where the stretched muscle begins to feel mildly uncomfortable. Hold that position for 30 seconds, but do not hold your breath; you must breathe into the stretch as this will help to relax you. After the 30 second count, gently push a bit further into the stretch, but do not bounce. This type of stretching can also be done with a partner.
• Ballistic Stretching-I do not recommend this type of stretching, although it is sometimes used by some highly trained athletes. Basically, in this type of stretch you utilise your body weight to bounce the muscle that is to be stretched; but bouncing could activate the stretch-reflex mechanism in your body. The stretch reflex is a defense mechanism activated by the body that causes a muscle to contract instead of elongate, which will defeat the objective that you are trying to achieve.
• PNF stretching-proprioceptive Neuromusclar Facillilation is an advanced and effective method of stretching; it is sometimes called the hold-relax method. You can write me for further details on this method of stretching, as it requires quite a bit of explaining. Keep training