Stretching has been well anchored into our training habits for a long time, yet the topic still raises controversy. Should we stretch before or after our activities, or avoid it altogether? Many people claim to stretch ‘to prevent muscle soreness and help recovery’ or ‘to become more flexible’, however, the literature says otherwise. Here are some general guidelines to follow:
To warm up & cool down
There is no miracle recipe to prepare your body for physical activities. The important thing is to gradually increase the heart rate and to activate the muscles required for the activity, and gradually increase the intensity. It is also important to actively move the joints in the whole range of motion required for the sport. The specific warm-up exercises will therefore be different from one person to another, depending on the demands of the physical activity. For example, a gymnast will work on her flexibility before training since she will have to perform splits with large amplitude during her routines. However, a runner should make running movements such as running with high knees, dynamic impulses and acceleration in order to prepare his body for action!
To increase muscular flexibility
It used to be believed that stretching was the main method to improve flexibility (length of a muscle). It should be noted that this is different than mobility (range of motion of a joint). Passively stretching lengthens the muscle fibers during the stretch, but does not improve muscular length in the long term. It has even been shown that excessive stretching before a performance could reduce muscle power and increase the risk of injury. It would therefore be inadvisable for a runner to stretch in splits positions before training. So, how do we lengthen muscles? Eccentric training, which is strengthening a muscle in a lengthened position, has been shown to be the most effective. Eccentric strengthening creates new muscle units in series, similar to a train linking up and getting longer.
In conclusion, stretching is not the best idea for the purposes of warming up before a sport. It will not drastically affect performance if done after an activity. The main positive benefits of stretching are the sensation of relaxation and well-being for many.
