Stretching

During every karate class that I teach, it is customary for me to lead the class through a series of stretching exercises, as part of the warm up.  This short stretching session, while an excellent way to warm up the muscles and loosen the joints, will never be sufficient for your karate or general sporting needs.  In order to develop the joint flexibility and muscular elasticity required to minimise injury and maximise your performance, you will need to work consistently, every day, at your stretching exercises.  This aspect of your training should become part of your daily routine.

Exercise philosophies have changed over the years and this is very true of stretching philosophies.  Forty years ago, before scientific advancements had helped us measure cause and effect more accurately, it was customary for all athletes to use ‘ballistic’ stretching exercises.  A ballistic stretch is performed when the muscle is taken to the point of discomfort and then a bouncing action is employed to stretch the muscle.  Studies have proven this method to be not only ineffective but, the cause of many muscular and tendon injuries such as tears.

These same studies have shown that static and assisted stretching are both effective at lengthening the muscle and minimising injury.  Examples of both forms of stretching are provided later.

Flexibility

Flexibility is not only the easiest element of fitness to develop but is also extremely important, particularly so for the mature athlete.  Without flexibility, you simply will not be able to perform at your best and will become more susceptible to injury.  Notwithstanding the particular needs of the athlete, failing to stretch, or a lack of flexibility can cause a range of problems like:

• Stiff muscles that are subjected to sudden elongation during exercise or sports activities can more easily be torn or strained.
• Tightness in muscles can cause pain elsewhere in the body or, create structural problems such as pelvic rotation or vertebral subluxations.
• Lack of flexibility can cause muscular imbalances.  A tight hamstring, for example, can make the thigh work harder at keeping the body properly aligned, which may cause knee pain.

Beyond the obvious issues, feeling stiff makes you slow down, move more carefully, act more tentatively, it’s the first way a young man starts to feel like an old one.  Some tightness results from a loss of elasticity with age, but for most people, it’s simply because they are inactive.  It is not inevitable that you will become stiff and inflexible in old age, people who work at staying flexible, can stay that way well into old age.

Requirements for Resilience

Working at improving your flexibility takes more than exercise alone.  You need to stretch, regularly.  As with other types of training, improvement in flexibility depends on subjecting muscles to more than they are accustomed, by making muscles work through a range of motion in a controlled and systematic way.

Soften up.  When muscles are cold, they are stiffer.  Light exercise before stretching warms muscles and makes them more pliable, improving the stretch and reducing the risk of muscle strain.

Stretch, but don’t strain.  You want to extend the muscle far enough to make a difference, but not so far that you cause muscle fibres to tear.  Stretch until you feel a slight tug, but don’t push beyond that point.

Put muscles on hold.  Hold each stretch for 30 seconds.  Researchers have found that how long you hold a stretch has a direct bearing on improved flexibility.  Holding for 15 seconds is no better for elasticity than not stretching at all.  Holding for 30 seconds has significant benefit, with measurable weekly improvements.  Holding for 60 seconds, however, provides no greater benefit than 30 seconds.

Banish bouncing.  As I stated earlier, ballistic stretching is a practice you should banish forever.  Stretches should be slow and steady, not fast and jerky.  Some athletes such as gymnasts do use bounce stretches, but only because their bodies are already extremely elastic.  Ballistic stretches pose a particular potential for injury because when you lengthen a muscle, electrical impulses involuntarily signal the muscle to snap back in a contraction.  The body actively resists overstretching.  Stretching too far, too fast, puts excessive strain on muscles and their connective tissues, i.e. ligaments and tendons.  Slow, steady stretching over time make muscles adapt to ever greater lengthening.

Six to Remember

There are plenty of useful stretches you can do, as any yoga class will demonstrate.  But a basic overall stretching program need only hit several major muscle groups, particularly in the lower body, where the vast majority of flexibility related problems occur.  Here are some good basic moves that will hit all of the right spots.

Shoulders

Lie on your back on the floor and point your toes.  Extend your arms straight above your face, interlocking your fingers, with your palms pointing toward the ceiling.  Keeping your arms straight, slowly lower your hands until they rest on the floor behind the crown of your head.  Hold for 30 seconds and slowly return to the starting position.

Hips

Lie on your back with your legs straight.  Interlacing your hands behind your right upper thigh, pull you right knee toward your chest and hold for 30 seconds.  Return to the starting position and repeat with your left leg.

Lower Back

Get on your hands and knees, with your hands directly under your shoulders.  While keeping your hands in place, sit back onto your heels, feeling a stretch along your back.  Your arms will be outstretched.  Hold for 30 seconds.

Hamstrings

Sit on the edge of a bed or bench with your right leg extended on the bench and your left foot on the floor.  Rest your right hand on your right knee, then slowly slide your fingers to your toes, reaching as far as is comfortable.  Hold for 30 seconds.  Repeat with your right leg on the floor and your left leg on the bench.

Calves

Stand on a step with the heel of your right foot protruding over the edge of the step.  Drop your right heel below the level of the step until you feel a tug.  Hold for 30 seconds, and then repeat with your left heel.

Groin

To do a butterfly stretch, sit on the floor with your legs bent frog-style, the soles of your feet pressed together.  Gently press your knees toward the floor with your hands or elbows.  Hold for 30 seconds.

Injury Prevention: how do you do it?  Check in for the answers next week.