Warm-up better than a stretch

You can lower the risk of injury by doing a warm up instead of a stretch, according to new research by Canadian doctors.

 

Reporting their findings in the August 2000 issue of The Physician and Sportsmedicine, the research team assessed three common stretches, concluding that their benefits to performance were cancelled out by increased risk of injury.

 

"Stretching recommendations are clouded by misconceptions and conflicting research reports," Doctors Ian Shrier and Kav Gossal reported.

 

"Despite limited evidence, stretching has been promoted for years as an integral part of fitness programs to decrease the risk of injury, relieve pain associated with stiffness and improve sport performance.

 

"If injury prevention is the primary objective and the range of motion necessary for an activity is not extreme, the evidence suggests that athletes should drop the stretching before exercise and increase warm up."

 

The doctors reported that the warm up and the stretch only improved range of motion when practised in tandem, but only warm up was likely to prevent injury.

 

For healthy people, a single static stretch lasting 15 to 30 seconds was usually enough to improve range of motion in most muscle groups, the doctors found.

 

The most effective stretch for range of motion was called proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching, which involved stretching the muscle, contracting it against resistance, and stretching it again.

 

The doctors found that during the PNF stretch the muscle underwent an eccentric contraction which increased analgesia, and as a result increased the risk of injury at the same time that it aided performance.

 

Ballistic or "bounce" stretching, which involved a rapid contraction of one muscle group, thereby forcing another group to stretch (eg, kicking a soccer ball, throwing a baseball), was considered the most dangerous, especially when practised by a non-professional athlete.