• Flexibility workshop
  • Part 1 - Learning about flexibility and stretching
  • Part 2 - Why does it seem so hard to stretch?
  • Part 3 - Preparing to stretch
  • Part 4 - The fundamentals of flexibility training
  • Part 5 - Your first 3 basic stretches
  • Part 6 - Your next 2 stretches with variations
  • Part 7 - Understanding injuries
  • Part 8 - More stretches to add to your collection
  • Part 9 - High performance stretching with PNF
  • Part 10 - What to do if you can't even get into the starting position.
• Fighting fit

Part 4 - The fundamentals of flexibility training

Having completed a good warm-up you are ready to engage in some flexibility training. In this article we take a look at some fundamental aspects of stretching such as body positioning and breathing.

Before you get stuck in to this article please read the disclaimer.

What constitutes a good stretch?

An effective stretching exercise can be characterised by 3 things:

• Isolation
• Leverage
• Risk

When we are refer to isolation we are referring to how we target only the muscle we are trying to stretch. This is important because if we use generalised stretches we will be working more than one muscle at the same time. Remember the stretch reflex? The more muscles we stretch simultaniously the greater the stretch reflex will be. By sufficiently isolating the area we are trying to stretch we will have greater control over the intensity of the stretch. A good way to achieve a high level of isolation with lower biody stretches is to do exercises that target each leg individually.

Having good leverage implies we can easily control the level of intensity in a stretch and moderate the speed at which the level of intensity changes. It also implies finding exercises that give us a good degree of mechanical advantage. I must say that in my experience one of the problems faced by people just starting out is that they can't even put themselves in a good position to achieve any degree of leverage. This problem is discussed in the section on body positioning below.

The risk factor in stretching is the risk of injury. Each stretching exercise will have a level of risk associated with it. Some exercises may put such a high degree of stress on joints, ligaments, tendons or muscle tissue that we should avoid their use altogether, even if they offer good leverage and isolation.

Risk of injury and pain while stretching

There are a number of factors that can affect your risk of injury. Genetic endowment is one. Your genetic makeup will determine the shape and geometry of your body which in turn will have an effect on the level of risk associated with some stretches. Listen to what your body is telling you when you stretch and see what works for you.

Injuries generally occur in two ways:

• Traumatic injury
• Overuse

Traumatic injuries are caused by factors such as blows, falls, twists etc. In the case of stretching you can induce traumatic injuries by failing to warm-up or being too aggressive (this is why ballistic stretches are bad). Injury through overuse is something I am guilty of. Vary your stretching routine so that you exercise a variety of muscle groups and maintain good balanced muscular development and flexibility.

It is also worth pointing out that there is a trade off between flexibility and stability in your joints. In itself excessive flexibility can lead to problems. You must be careful to compliment your stretching routine with one that strengthens the muscles and keeps your joints stable. Note that if you have stretched a muscle as much as possible the associated ligaments will start to stretch but they will only be able to to do so for 6% of their length before incurring injury.

So how do you know when the pain or discomfort you are feeling I a stretch is to be expected or is indicative of injury? The pain caused when injuries are occurring tends to be very localised. It is frequently an intense burning pain that can occur deep in the tissues or near the surface of the skin. If you feel this kind of pain discontinue stretching immediately and seek professional advice if you think you need it. The normal type of pain associated with stretching will be more generalised - a kind of dull aching pain. Once your levels of flexibility start to increase you will find that the pain is not at all bad and is almost comfortable; it's just your body saying "I'm being stretched".

Body positioning

Let's go back and look at leverage again. One thing I have noticed is that beginners have so little basic flexibility they can't get into a position that offers any leverage at all. Take a look at the picture below. This is an example of how NOT to do stretch. I am trying to do a seated hamstring stretch which should be isolating the hamstrings in my left leg. Notice that I am sat back on my buttocks with my pelvis tilted backwards. This means that I have next to no leverage on the targeted muscles.

The WRONG way to stretch. Notice my pelvis
is tilted backwards (indicated by the red line).

Now look at the next picture. Notice I have tilted my hips forwards and have been able to straighten my back. Leverage is greatly increased and I am ready to stretch.

I have achieved better leverage
by pulling my hips forwards.

This is what you should be aiming for. You will do better in the early days by concentrating on this type of body positioning rather than in trying to get your head to your knees. Try to sit up on the points of the bones in your backside before you stretch forwards. Straighten your back and lift the top of your head up towards the ceiling. Only when you have acheived this starting position can you start to stretch forwards.

I maintain leverage as I start to stretch.

Duration

How long you should stay in a stretch for is one of those questions that has no single answer. Opinions differ greatly from 10 seconds or so up to 2 minutes. I have always tended to opt for longer durations. In fact in the very early days I used to hold stretches for 2 minutes. In my opinion holding stretches for longer allows the stretch reflex to be overcome and for stress relaxation to occur. This is the gradual relaxation of the muscle that occurs in a stretch. When this happens there is lengthening of the muscle and an increase in flexibility. This is called 'creep'.

Breathing

Relaxation is paramount to effective stretching. One way of relaxing is through effective breathing. Do not hold your breath while stretching; maintain a slow but continuous rate of breathing. A good example of this is yoga practice where breathing is an integral part of the asanas (postures).

What next?

We have covered quite a bit in this article. In the next we get down to our first stretching exercises.

 

 
Author: Andy French