Stretching

[Cthulhu]

What do you think is the most beneficial way of stretching, providing the most benefit with least risk of injury?

I think it's best to first warm the legs up, either by doing low- to mid-level kicks, running in place, jumping jacks, or some other sort of exercise to get blood flowing in them. Then do solo stretching for a bit, followed by partner stretching if possible. Then continue with the rest of the class.

One style if stretching that I think is rather effective is called PNF stretching, which stands for proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation. This is basically a combination of passive and active stretches. For example:

The Hold-Relax Stretch
Assume a passive stretching position for about 20 seconds then relax for about 5 seconds. Then, isometrically contract the muscle being stretched for 7-15 seconds (for example: if you're doing a hamstring stretch on the floor, imagine pushing your heel through the floor with your hamstring). Let the muscle relax for 2-3 seconds and follow it up with another passive stretch for 10-15 seconds. You should be able to go further than the first passive stretch. Relax the muscle for about 20 seconds and follow up with another PNF stretch.

I don't do these stretches on a regular basis, but when I do them, they really feel like they work very well.

Cthulhu

[meni]

can you help me to find the right book/web site for streachig?

thank you

[tunetigress]

I find Yoga stretches to be a great pre-training warm-up. There are plenty of books out there on Yoga stretching exercises and routines. _(_)_ Tune

[Ty K. Doe]

I found a real good site for stretching techinques. I can't remember the web address, but I'll do my best to find it and post it here.

[tunetigress]

Ty I would very much appreciate it if you did post that site on stretching! :)

[Ty K. Doe]

Whew! I finally found it again. Here's that web site:

http://web.mit.edu/tkd/html/stretching_toc.html

It's a lengthy one, but I hope you enjoy it.

It doesn't go into great detail about specific stretches but it has a lot of good information on techniques, including PNF.

[Cthulhu]

Also, click on the 'Library' button in the upper right hand corner of the board.

Cthulhu

[Ty K. Doe]

Well looky there! I can't believe I did all that searching and it was right here all this time. Anyway, hope it's what your looking for.

[Zujitsuka]

I've heard a lot of good things about a book etitled SCIENTIFIC STRETCHING, by Tom Kurz, so I borrowed it from the library. I am pretty flexible, but I've never been able to achieve the side split. To realize one's full stretching potential, he suggests that a martial arts workout go like this:

1) Joint rotations

2) Cardiovascular

3) *Dynamic Stretches

4) Your martial arts workout

5) *Isometric Stretches

6) *Relaxed Stretches

7) Skip rope/March in place

I just started following this routine so let's see what happens.

*Refer to the site or book for Tom Kurz's definition of these types of stretches. The sites address is http://www.stadion.com/

I hope this helps.

All the best,

Tyrone Turner
"Zujituska"

[tunetigress]

Originally posted by Ty K. Doe

Well looky there! I can't believe I did all that searching and it was right here all this time. Anyway, hope it's what your looking for.

:) Ty, thanks so much for that post. That site is absolutely fascinating! Everything you could possibly want to know about muscle function is in there. It is well worth a look by any M A junkie. :D

[Zujitsuka]

No problem TuneTigress. I glad that you found the site useful.

Happy training,

[DJDragon]

Always important to warm up the body before strectching. Try jogging for about 2min, until you break a light sweat. Then go into your stretching routine. I usually stretch my legs first as well. I hold each stretch for around 20-30seconds. Don't be afraid to stretch for 20-30mins. After this, you feel great and really loose.

After that, I'll go into some kicks. Roundhouses, low, mid, high. Then spinning kicks. Etc.

[theneuhauser]

it seems that one of the most common mistakes that people make is to overstretch before a workout, whether it be for martial arts, sports, excercise. This can actually lead to injury. general warm up with static, followed by dynamic movements that mimic your actual excercise is a good way to start, then finishing with passive or isometric stretching has increased my own flexibility and resiliency to hard training.
i like kurz for a stretching authority, he keeps it simple and effective.