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JOCKOLOGY

Time to reconsider your stretching routine

ALEX HUTCHINSON

From Friday's Globe and Mail

Latest comment posted at 6:46 PM EDT 25/04/08

This is one of those rare cases where doing as the pros do may not be the best approach ...Read the full article

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  1. Josh Taylor from St. John's, Canada writes: Stretching is important to wake up your muscles. The key is not to be too rigid. I read recently that you must be a little aerobic in your stretching. Starting weight lifting with low weights is important. You must also be sure to use a full range of motion.
  2. M Spiker from Ottawa, Canada writes: I never stretch before a workout and have followed the recommended procedure at the end of the article for years without a problem. I didn't realize there was any scientific evidence to support my approach - I just didn't find pre-workout stretching worth the effort.

    The trick is to give yourself enough time to warm-up before going all out (for me it is 10-20 minutes). Going for a run - walk, fast walk, half-run, then run.
  3. Kim Philby from Ottawa, Canada writes: I don't stretch before my kicking practice sessions. I figure if I ever get in a scrap and want to deliver a roundhouse kick to the person who's mugging me or just looking for a fight, there's not much point in asking him to wait a few seconds while I warm up. So, I also try to make my first kick the hardest.

    That's when I practice at home. At the dojo I do tend to stretch first - mainly because it's the tradition there.
  4. Neon Cab from Canada writes: The third point is that regular stretching achieves the desired goal. So go ahead and stretch as part of your workout or before your NHL game as long as you are working out or playing regularly. If you're only at the gym or on the ice once a week or at absolutely random intervals, maybe you should be stretching even when you're just in your living room (or, if not, then abandon the practice altogether).
  5. Lee Turner from Canada writes: Likewise in our Dojo, Kim, we have a formalized stretching routine, not only to act as a warm up, but to train the body to sychronize movements so that arms, legs and body move as one. I had pretty bad flexibility when I was younger, and my flexibility has improved by leaps and bounds since starting regular, almost daily stretching. It's allowed me to absorb joint locks and controls a lot more easily. For my purposes and goals, I think stetching is pretty important, but may not be so necessary for everyone. I don't think stretching has negatively impacted my performance, as least I don't notice if it has.
  6. My sentiments exactly from Canada writes: Man, I love this column. So much food for thought. Thanks, Mr. Hamilton, and thanks, whoever decided to give him some space in the G&M.
  7. Sue City from Ottawa, Canada writes: Oh man, I've been doing a half-hour of major stretching after every workout. Hmph, wasted time! ha Though, doesn't flexibility prevent injury? I always thought so. And, it does make my hips and back feel better... why?
  8. Dan Radu from Calgary, Canada writes: I'm not buying it. I can personally attest to getting injured as a direct result of not stretching.

    I think they also need to consider 'regular' people vs. pro athletes whose muscles are so accustomed to performing the specific sports' movements. I can easily see a world track sprinter losing 3% (or 3/100's of a second) by loosening his muscles.

    However, me running a 100 sprint after stretching probably improves my time by half a second since I haven't done it in 10 years. My chance of injury probably goes way down.
  9. karen baird from edmonton, Canada writes: In 15 years of weightlifting, I've rarely stretched before or after a workout, although I stretch at other times of the day. Mind you, I've never had a problem with not warming up or cooling down either, which every trainer preaches. Agree with Sue City that stretching feels good - I've taken some yoga classes that concentrate on that and I leave feeling as though I've had an incredibly luxurious treatment.
  10. Albin Forone from Canada writes: It's odd to read about this result without reference to the test group or time of day. Experientially over too many years, for an hour of run / gym three days a week, I have a much higher risk of injury in the early morning than in the late afternoon, and I've adjusted workouts to that. After a day of ordinary moving around I'm much more limber than right out of bed, and at 6:00 a.m. I'm as likely to throw my back out "stretching" as doing anything strenuous. Best to read the paper over a coffee.
  11. David Parkinson from Toronto, writes: Dan Radu of Calgary, I think you've hit the nail on the head. The column takes data from high-level athletes and uses it to generalize over an entire population of recreational exercisers of various ages and fitness levels. I simply can't believe that as a 43-year-old who spends all week sitting behind a desk, it's a BAD idea for me to stretch some key muscles before a hockey or squash game.
  12. Alex Hutchinson from Canada writes: "The column takes data from high-level athletes and uses it to generalize over an entire population of recreational exercisers of various ages and fitness levels."

    David, that's simply not correct. The CDC review alluded to in the article examined the results of 361 different stretching studies, including both sedentary and active people. Many other reviews have looked at similarly wide swaths of the population.

    "I simply can't believe that as a 43-year-old who spends all week sitting behind a desk, it's a BAD idea for me to stretch some key muscles before a hockey or squash game."

    You're not alone -- most people, including NHL players, believe the same. There just doesn't happen to be any evidence supporting that idea, and plenty of evidence supporting the opposite point of view. Have you thought about WHY you're so convinced it's a good idea, other than that it seems intuitively obvious?
  13. L T from Canada writes: Dan Radu, David Parkinson, I agree with you both 100%. This article is too specific about the type of athletes that they tested - your average desk-jockey is not a high-performance athlete who trains every day.

    I have chronic IT band issues so I need to warm-up prior to my mountain / road biking, squash, tennis and running. My stretching routine usually includes 30 min of light to moderate stretching, yoga poses, then some dynamic stretches to further warm-up the muscles - following my work-out, I'm just a little sore for 2 days instead of 3 and there is less tightness and all-round fatigue.

    I think the real issue with stretching is that when you are not a high-performance athlete, you shouldn't over-stretch and you should focus more on technique and gradually warming-up your muscles.
  14. Dick Nails from Canada writes: Stretching is for wimps. Jump right in and don't worry, you'll still be better off than spending even 10 seconds even thinking about it. I know, I asked my dad and he said he never, ever ever stretched except once in the late 80s.
  15. Ed Long from white Rock, Canada writes: Depends on the activity and the person.

    Don't warm up and don't stretch then do a sprint or intervals .... kaboom, Don Radu is right. I've torn hamstrings twice doing the above.

    But I have, as my physio. says, long ligaments and short muscle bodies so I tear my own muscle doing things like yoga ... torn calf muscle.

    I warm up usually power walking, pumping arms, up a ravine, do my work-out, run, weights, whatever, and then cool down with the power walk and stretch. Works for me.

    Strongly recommend Dr. Steve Stark's The Stark Reality of Stretching. Five stretches, that's it.
  16. Nathan Weatherdon from Canada writes: I can only speak for myself here, but I definitely doubt what this guy is talking about.

    The first time I severely strained a muscle was when I arrived late for a stair run during my long-distance training days and skipped the warm-up and stretch. I couldn't walk the next day and didn't run for months. Despite physio at the time, I still feel it to this day (more than 10 years later) when I go for a long bike ride. That is, if I don't stretch.

    If I don't stretch my legs before a swim, my calves seize up in minutes and I have to stop swimming.

    More research clearly needs to be done to figure out what the deal is with who needs to stretch and who doesn't. I'd suggest that the opposite is bad science, bad medicine, and.... maybe even not the greatest media, but I think people are generally smart enough to question the immediate legitimacy of the science that filters through to the media.
  17. Alex Hutchinson from Canada writes: "The first time I severely strained a muscle was when I arrived late for a stair run during my long-distance training days and skipped the warm-up and stretch."

    Nathan: you bring up a very important point. "Stretching" and "warming up" are two very different things, but people tend to confuse them. You skipped the warm-up and stretch, and you blame the injury on your lack of stretching. Even if your sample size was greater than N=1, that's still not very good science.
  18. David C from Canada writes: It seems like most of us at least agree on the fact that warming up is pretty essential before strenuous activity. After numerous injuries I can attest to the fact.

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