Stretching Myths Busted

 

If you played any sports as a kid, I’m sure you’ve heard that you have heard a ton of so called “tips” about how to stretch.

Here are the top 8 stretching myths busted!

1. You don’t need to stretch before you exercise
   • stretching before a run makes you less efficient, and may make you more prone to injury. Instead of stretching, try a warm up that includes some dynamic motions, like jumping jacks and burpees, to warm up your muscles and get you ready to work
2. You can “bounce” while you stretch
   • Now I was always told that this was cheating, but it turns out that sometimes muscles can benifit from not forcing a static stretch. For muscles that tend to be very tight bouncing may be just the trick to get them to losen up! 
3. Don’t hold your stretch for too long
   • Stretching for a long time may strain your muscle and cause more damage than good. Try holding stretches for only about 30 seconds, and do them several times spread out throught the day!
4. You can bend your knees!
   • This isn’t cheating either!
5. Don’t skip foam rolling and stretching post-workout!  
   • Stretching is most effective after muscles have been worked up, so post-work out you may feel tired but its critical to strech out those muscles to prevent tightness and injury!.
6. The muscle that’s in pain is not always the problem!
   • Sometimes the actual issue is tension within a adjacent muscle. If you feel tight, try stretching some of the surrounding conncted muscles as well!
7. Even Flexible people need to stretch!
   • Stretching regularly can help maintain flexibility and improve your range of motion!
8. Stretching doesn’t need to be painful!
   • Stretching should reduce the chance of injury not cause it! Don’t push yourself too hard, there is a difference between stretching and putting ypurself in physical pain.

More Stretching tips!