When is static stretching most effective?

Question

Matt Eiden · Answer

I'm glad you asked about static stretching because static stretching gets a bad rap. Sometimes it is very effective as long as you use it appropriately. You're not going to use that expression before you're going to lift, heavy weights, or before you're going to go do something explosive. But I'm, I'm all for doing some foam rolling before you work out doing some static stretching after your foam rolling and then doing some activations to turn that tissue on to activate it. NN ranges and to get it firing. Once you've lengthened it so static stretching can be good before a workout. If you turn it on afterwards and if you do a warm-up and then get into whatever it is, you're trying to achieve that day. But static stretching can also be very effective at the end of your workout when you're trying to restore length. When you're trying to promote recovery, it can be very good on a recovery day two, we could ride the bike, get some blood flow, to a bunch of static stretching, maybe do some core work and it can Be a good recovery tool and then it's also really good right before bed, again, to create length to kind of calm down your nervous system and to help promote recovery right before you're going to go to sleep and length and relax tissues. So, those are some ways that I think static stretching is most effective.

Paul Edmondson · Answer

Hey Carlos when is static stretching most effective. Now I find this effective into environments. Number one I find static stretching most effective after a training session, bringing heart rate down and relaxing into postures. So as part of a cool down stretch sequence, that's probably best utilized. I think it really has a profound impact when you're lookin to actively change and alter The length of connective tissue. So for example, if your pectoral muscles have adaptively shortened, not the muscles, it's the connective tissue. That shortened, the connective tissue has actually actively shortened because of seated, Hunchback posture environment, over a period of time, then static stretching can be used as a way to plastically, deform that tissue back to its optimal length. So if I hold this position and rest in a posture where I'm actively putting length into those connective tissues, then the fibroblast in that tissue will start to alter the length of those collagen bonds. But here's the kicker, it takes a minimum two minutes for those fibroblast to even begin to listen to the input that you're sending. So to stretch for upwards of two minutes, most research says Four minutes to plastically, alter connective tissue. So if you have adaptive shortening in the connective tissue is never muscle, then you need to rest in that posture for a significant time, length upwards of two minutes, looking at potentially four minutes. So, they're the two places that I would actively encourage, static stretching. Otherwise, more Dynamic stretching is more proprioceptive more. Probe acceptably beneficial and more functional mobility utilization so hope that helps buddy.

Bart Green, DC, MSEd, PhD · Answer

So question here from Carlos when is static stretching most effective, thank you very much for asking the question. And this is a really good question and it, when is it most effective? I think we need to look at whether we're comparing it to other types of stretching or if somebody just isn't doing stretching. So, I'm going to answer that one first, if someone's not stretching, almost any kind of stretching, is going to be helpful periodically to promote Mobility. So, I have patients who aren't doing any stretching and they come in and go, well, you know, what should I do this kind of this kind of, this kind of, I'm just going to give them the simplest thing I can and get them sort of hooked on the fact that they feel better when they're moving better. And usually I'll start with something simple like a static stretch. When was it most effective? What kind of stretches even most effective? We're not exactly sure. Most of us who do a lot of rehab do like a more Dynamic Mobility type of exercise program for mobility and stretching. But again, I think when it's most effective is when people just haven't been stretching themselves and we can get them started on some easy static stretching, I hope this helps answer your question.

Joshua Watson · Answer

When is static stretching most effective? Well, to my knowledge, static stretching is only effective post-training. I didn't know this when I was competing and there was one particular stretch that I did in tandem with my coach and a physio that I did some work with. And I did it before races and I didn't realize the damage it was doing to my muscle fibers, literally stretching them or stressing them past the point where they could respond quickly to a signal. And so when I learned that, then I started to do static stretching after training. Essentially what you're doing in static stretching is you're stressing the muscle to where it micro tears, it bleeds, and that starts a lymphatic situation where that bleeding is bringing in fresh, oxygenated, nutrient-rich blood, and then your lymphatic system is taking out the toxins that you've acquired from training or from racing. So it's very, very important to understand dynamic stretching before training, static stretching after training, and also understanding how much is enough stress, how long, certainly no longer than 30 seconds. But yeah, I wish I had have known that because I didn't know the damage that I was doing before exercise.

Gina Grain · Answer

When is static stretching most effective? I prefer to include static stretching after a workout or after a training session for a cool down and it is a great time to include a stretching routine into into your training program. After after your workouts, another really effective time to do static stretching is, for example, during the day, if you are holding, if you're in front of the computer all day and holding holding holding a static posture all day or standing all day, day to take some time to lengthen, help to lengthen the the tissue, whether it be muscular tissue and and, and connective tissue throughout the day. So that was so that your muscles won't get a chance to, to, to continually tighten over time to get these postures that we so, so, so frequently. See? So, with the static stretching, let's remember that you need some time to do it. It generally takes between two to two. Four minutes. So long long holds not bring your you're not bringing yourself to a point of massive pain or else you're going to be. Actually I'm reversing the effects of stretching but a nice gentle kind of five out of Ten kind of feeling so that you're not pushing too hard. So the whole I hope that helps

Dr. Brian Cunningham · Answer

Static stretching is most effective when you're trying to increase the range of motion. Probably at the end of a workout, near the end of your day, so you're not going to perform some other activities. But it requires anywhere between 30 to nearly 2 minutes of static stretching. And you should avoid any pain, but make sure that you're breathing and smiling through the movements. However, a lot of people, when they do static stretching, they stretch their hamstrings and they don't hold it for a long enough time. And also, they keep on stretching and thinking that the range of motion isn't increasing. And if that's the case, then the underlying problem is they lack some strength. So rarely does your hamstrings lack a lot of mobility. It's in my profession, or what I see on a regular basis, is they lack control or stability or strength in that area. So hopefully that helps, Carlos. Nice question.

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"When is static stretching most effective?"