Archive for the 'Performance Stretching' Category
This is one of the most common bad habits of gym enthusiasts! You finally committed yourself to a fitness routine, and you don’t want to waste any valuable time. Often individuals jump right into exercising without considering warming up or stretching because it seems meaningless and a waste of time.
Warming up and stretching should be the foundation of your exercise. They should be viewed as a transition into exercise, allowing your body and mind to prepare for strength training, running, endurance, etc. This is your reward from a proper warm-up/stretch and cool-down/stretch:
- Improved coordination
- Your muscles and connective tissue loosen to prepare for the stress of exercise
- Oxygen and blood flow to your muscles and connective tissue increases, providing fuel for better muscular performance
- Tension in your body decreases
- Breathing patterns establish, helping relax the body during exercise
- Joints are lubricated to allow for better performance
- Muscle soreness is prevented and/or reduced during and after your workout
- Quicker reaction time
- Improved posture
You’ve probably exercised without warming up, your stretching is non-existent, and maybe nothing horrible happened. It may seem unnecessary, but consistently skipping it will limit your results and put yourself at risk for injury. You could even be injured without even knowing it since you may not feel any pain right away.
The knee is the most susceptible to injury of any joint in the body. Nearly 50 million Americans have knee problems, either from athletic injuries or simple everyday wear and tear. For those who already have knee problems, exercising the area surrounding the joint will help make it stronger and less susceptible to injury. Here are some exercises you can do to stretch the knee area:
Chair knee extension: Sitting in a chair, rest your foot on another chair so that the knee is slightly raised. Gently push the raised knee toward the floor using only leg muscles. Hold the stretch for 5 to 10 seconds, and release. Repeat this stretch 5 times on each leg.
Heel slide knee extension: Lie on your back, with the left knee bent and the left foot flat on floor. Slowly slide the left heel away from your body so that both legs are parallel. Hold the stretch for 5 to 10 seconds, and return to starting position. Repeat this stretch 5 times on each leg.
Knee flexion: Sitting in a chair, loop a long towel under your foot (which is resting on the floor). Gently pull on the towel with both hands to bend the knee, raising your foot 4 or 5 inches off the floor. Hold for 5 to 10 seconds, then release. Repeat this stretch 5 times on each leg.
Stretching your ankles, hip flexors, and adductors for 22 seconds before a heavy squat, lunge, or power lift will allow you to lift heavier. Mobilizing the ankle joints allows you sit deeper in the bottom of the squat or the pull from the floor.
If your stretching your hip flexors (the muscles above your thigh) it will help to prevent them from inhibiting the glutes. The glutes is where all your power comes from, since it is the largest muscle in your body.
When stretching, just get into any position in which you feel a pull on the muscle, hold it for at least 22 seconds. This will ensure that the tissue being stretched, will elongate over the long term.
As you improve your flexibility, the stretch won’t feel as intense, and then you can gradually increase the range of motion.
Listed below is some information relating to this topic, and refer to myFitness Products – Store and Fitness Products – Deals for more savings on all things fitness!
Dynamic Warm-Up is a series of calisthenics and movement drills that prepare your body for the work load ahead. Dynamic Warm-Ups will increase your:
- Heart Rate
- Core Body Temperature
- Muscle and Joint Pliability
- Nerve and Muscle Response Time
You can essentially do Dynamic Warm-Ups before any fitness or sport activity, and in particular those that involve power and strength. Tons of NFL players, Mixed Martial Art Fighters (UFC), or any other elite conditioning program will involve Dynamic Warm-Ups.
A Dynamic Warm-Up will prevent the loss of power that can occur when static stretching. An example of static stretching is what your P.E. teacher teaches you in High School (etc. stretch your arms, chest, hamstrings) The Dynamic Warm-Up should be specific to your workout of the day. You want to mimic the movements your about to perform by using high repetitions and no body weight. The best example I can give is prior to a leg workout do some:
- Walking Lunges Back and Forth
- High Knee Raises
- Half-Squats
- Prisoner Squats
Make sure to do this all without weight and start out slow with lower ranges of motion and then gradually increasing the pace. Also, keep your intensity low to a moderate level to prevent fatigue. This will lead to better performance and results in the gym.Here is some additional resources and information that I recommend to performing a Dynamic Warm-Up.
Here is some additional information and resources that I recommend to performing a Dynamic Warm-Up.
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Power Systems Dynamic Stretching Strap Resistance Band 10520
Performing self-myofascial release should be performed by using a foam roller and with your own body weight as the pressure to the corresponding adhesion. The pressure should be continuous on the sensitive area until the discomfort is reduced by at least 75%.The stretch should take a minimum of 18-22 seconds, or possibly longer due to the individuals ability to relax.
Once you feel the knot has broken, or has become relaxed, then proceed to another tender area and simply repeat the process. Make sure to foam roll all the major muscle groups of the body as it also helps to alleviate back pain, and migraines.
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This type of stretching focuses on the body’s fascial system. By applying force to the adhesion or the “knot in the muscle, ” the elastic collagenous fibers are smoothed out into an alignment that is more parallel with the direction of the muscle or fascia.
The reason why this is important is because it allows you to have more function from your muscle groups. The adhesion’s are like road bumps in your muscle which prevent the entire use of the targeted area. We can use this type of stretching prior and/or after the workout.
In my opinion I prefer the stretching before the workout because it releases the stress locked up in the muscle fibers and it causes better performance from the muscle.
The best way to utilize the foam roller is this sequence.-2-3 sets of holding and not moving for 18-22 seconds on the adhesion-Progress every 2-3 weeks to more sensitive areas.
Modality progressions are as follows:
- Tennis Ball
- Foam Roll
- Medicine Ball
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