3 TYPES OF STRETCHES

You’re probably wondering, “how many different ways are there to touch your toes?” Well, several, but today we’re going to focus on three types of stretches that can improve your flexibility, prevent injury, and prepare you to move.

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Static Stretching

Static stretching is what most people think of when they think of stretching: touching your toes, opening up your chest, etc. It’s stretching into a certain position and holding still. Ideally, you should hold your stretch between 30 seconds and one minute. This is the optimal time for your muscle to relax and gain some length. Don’t forget to breathe; your muscles need oxygen. Never stretch to the point of pain. If it begins to hurt, stop immediately. Stretching should only ever feel like a mild discomfort. If you’re an athlete or warming up for a workout, you don’t want to do static stretching for too long as studies have shown that it can slow performance.

Sometimes we have the tendency to bounce when we get to the end of a stretch to get just a little bit farther. This is called ballistic stretching. Although it might feel like we are making small gains, it can actually be dangerous. If you stretch too much, too far, too soon, you could experience a muscle injury. Refrain from bouncing when you stretch to make sure you keep your body safe and less prone to injury.

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Dynamic Stretching

This is the type of stretching you will see athletes doing before the big game on the field. They’re warming up their muscles by mimicking the moves their body will be performing. Likewise, you should be doing dynamic stretching before you begin any workout. Dynamic stretching is essentially static stretching on the move. Instead of bending over to touch your toes and staying down, dynamic stretching requires you to reach your max stretching point and then immediately come back up, then repeat for a several repetitions. It gets the blood flowing to all the right places and preps the body for movement. It requires you to take your joints through their entire range of motion and back in one graceful movement, over and over again. So, before you start dropping it low on the squat rack, be sure to do some full-range body-weight squats.

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Neuromuscular Stretching

This one sounds complicated, but actually feels like a body hack. Neuromuscular stretching is a combination of both static and dynamic. You hold a stretch for 30-60 seconds; then, immediately flex whatever muscle you were stretching for 5-10 seconds. This essentially stretches the muscle on the opposite side of the body. After you flex the muscle for a few seconds, start stretching it out again… but this time you should be able to stretch just a little bit farther than you could initially. Pretty cool, huh?

For example, if you’re stretching your calve muscle before a run, stretch it for 30-60 seconds. Then flex your calve by pointing your toes downward for 5-10 seconds, essentially stretching your shin muscle. After, return to stretching the calve as before, and you should be able to stretch it a tad bit farther. Give it a try and see how much you can improve your flexibility in just a few seconds.