You know how there are things in life that
people say so often we just accept them as truth by default?
Things like “It takes seven years for chewing gum to digest” and “Lightning never strikes the same place twice.”
Well, those exist in fitness too.
Here’s one I run into a lot out here in the fitness coaching wild: “You need to stretch before you lift weights.”
I’ll bet several of you just read that and were like “Well, yeah, I do.”
No, you don’t.
Let me get a quick little distinction out of the way before we move on.
When we talk stretching, there are two main types, static and dynamic.
Static stretching is when you get into a stretch and hold it there. Think of a traditional shoulder or hamstring stretch.
Dynamic stretching is when you go through a range of motion but don’t hold the muscle in place. Think swinging your leg or throwing your arms back and forth in a “hugger” type motion.
When most people think of stretching, they think of static stretching, so that’s what I’m addressing in this post. Dynamic stretching can be helpful before a workout at times, although not necessary.
I want you to understand why static stretching before you lift, or engage in any resistance training, for that matter, even bodyweight, is a bad idea.
Think of your muscles as a rubber band. What happens if you put the rubber band in the freezer for a few hours, get it out, and try to stretch it to the max? It’s likely to pop and break.
When you walk into a gym or set up to do a workout and your muscles are cold, you're actually doing the opposite of what you probably think you're doing. You're risking injury.
Now, here’s why, if you’re going to do some static stretching in the same workout session as your resistance training, I advocate doing it at the end.
When a rubber band is warm, it’s stretchy. It’s pliable. It may even stretch a bit further. Your muscles are the same.
Not only will you reduce risk of injury stretching with warm muscles, you’ll probably improve your flexibility as well.
In addition to this injury risk factor, you want your muscles to be tight for strength training, not all loose and floppy. What does a better job of pulling a car out of a ditch? A tight chain, or a loose one with a lot of slack in it?
Yep.
If you want to do static stretching, do it at the end and be happier.
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