A Diferent View on How to Stretch
Stretching for years is considered an essential part of the training process.
Advocates of stretching claim that it helps reduce injury, improve performance, and aid recovery. However, a number of studies have shown that stretching doesn’t actually produce all the positive physiological effects that were once thought to be true.
My idea is not to get involved in the endless discussion of whether stretching makes sense or not, instead, I want to give another view on post-workout or post-training approach routine.
To start with I’ll use an example of the training approach it was used (and unfortunately still is used by some “specialists” in our industry) back during 80 and 90-ties of the last century.
It was the era of Arnold Schwarzenegger and the bodybuilding style of training approach for almost all athletes in the western hemisphere. Bodybuilding training is characterized by dividing body parts and muscles based on structural anatomy and training them in isolation to benefit muscle hypertrophy. Today in the modern, performance-based strength and conditioning approach, we know that this is a detour and not the shortest and most efficient way to improve an athlete’s performance.
But somehow the same “body parts or muscle isolated” style of stretching remained until today and still is in use even from the experts who change their approach to athletic development and train their athletes with functionally recognized advanced principles. Just to be clear I’m talking about isolated stretching of individual muscles, calves, quads, hamstrings, pecs…
Today is worldwide acceptable that if we train in isolation our calves-quads-hammies-gluteus, we will NOT have more efficient and stronger fundamental movement of squat or lunge. On the other hand, we continue to stretch in the same way, muscle by muscle and expect improvement in joint range of motion, overall flexibility and mobility, and ultimately in recovery.
A DIFFERENT VIEW ON HOW TO STRETCH
Proper stretching and cool-down must accomplish 3 important tasks:
1) Must create a shift from SNS to PNS state dominant
2) Dominantly must be done on the ground/floor
3) Should be based on myofascial lines and meridians
1) SNS > PNS
During training and competition, we depend on our sympathetic drive to be able to tap into energy stores and to be ready to “fight or flight”, to increase heart rate, more adrenalin in the system…
But when training/competition is over we need to shift into parasympathetic nervous system domination ASAP, which is completely opposite to the actions of SNS.
THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT BENEFIT OF THE POST-WORKOUT STRETCHING
Just by simply paying attention to breathing and staying longer in the exhale during stretching, we can shift our body towards a recovery state. If after the post-workout stretches your athlete is informing you that he/she is sleepy and with a mouth full of saliva, you will know that he/she is entered in “rest and digest” mode and that there is a far better chance for a proper recovery before next training session.
2) Dominantly must be done on the ground/floor
The first benefit when we are on the floor is reduced gravity, and by this automatic “relaxation” of 2 important systems – musculoskeletal and cardiovascular. Moreover, by reducing the impact of gravity there is a decrease in the sympathetic drive.
Phillip Beach in his book “Muscles and Meridians” writes:
“Lying and sitting on the floor have preceded human movement throughout our evolutionary development. Our bodies are profoundly configured to rest, to be at ease, on the floor.”
“Archetypal rest postures are simple postures and are essential after exercises. These postures re-establish fundamental relationships between muscle compartments as they cool and set.”
Phillip Beach under archetypal rest postures considers full squat, toe sitting, kneeling posture, cowboy posture, drinking posture, the long sitting posture, the cross-legged posture, the side-saddle posture, and the tailor’s posture.
The combination of all of these exercises or maybe it’s better to call them postures represents a so-called self-tuning mechanism of our musculoskeletal system.
In the modern fitness era, self-tuning means “self-corrective”.
3) Should be based on myofascial lines and meridians
Thomas Myers in his Anatomy Trains has explained how the body moves as a whole-body myofascial tensegrity system rather than a system of individual muscles and levers.
Myofascial meridians are lines of pull that transmit force and affect the structure and function of the body. As we all know there are 12 specific myofascial lines running through our body. So if our body moves by using myofascial-connected muscles why do we continue to stretch isolated muscles?
The next 4 images – postures, represent how we can progressively enter in a position wherewith one exercises we stretch so many tissues connected together from myofascial meridians standpoint. If you focus on the bottom right photo we have a great stretch of posterior oblique sling plus right TFL, QL, rhomboids, lower trapezius, posterior cuff, and deltoid muscle. And we are on the ground with proper breathing we have the perfect scenario for adequate post-workout relaxation.
An example of a tennis stretching routine could be:
1) Supine leg stretch with a band = superficial backline
2) Bretzel 2.0 = posterior oblique sling / hips add-abd.-ext-int.rotation
4) Bretzel = myofascial spiral line and front functional line
5) The side saddle posture = abductors + hip external rotators/adductors + hip internal rotators/
Thoracolumbar fascia
6) Modified “drinking posture” = latissimus / QL /deep backline / quadriceps /plantar fascia
7) Half kneeling hip flexor stretch
8) Deep squat with TRX = pelvic alignment-hip extensor / latissimus dorsai
9) Standing lateral stretch = myofascial lateral line
10) Standing doorway stretch or kneeling stretch on 2 fit balls (bench) + arm extended stretch
= arm lines
11) Static Wall = whole-body relaxation / pelvic alignment
When incorporating stretching in someone’s post-training routine asks yourself a few questions like:
- Where this athlete is missing movement variability?
- What regions of the body are most influenced when playing tennis or other sport?
- Check athlete’s mobility before and after training?
- Is this athlete hypermobile and if yes, where precisely is hypermobile?
- What is the nature of the athlete’s behavior, is it always “turned on” or is it a calm type of person?
Based on the answers to the above questions make not only exercises selection but also a kind of approach to post-workout or post-match recovery in general.