Stretches to improve flexibility are the major for your health and fitness.
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The best stretches to improve flexibility |
Stretches to improve flexibility is a training routine that is an interesting exercise for the body for both athletes and sedentary people. That's right, starting or ending the day with warm-up exercises for the joints and gentle stretching is good for health and is especially beneficial to avoid the appearance of pain related to inactivity or spending long hours in the same position sitting at a computer screen.
For athletes:
It is also essential to acquire good stretching habits in order to avoid injuries and improve your flexibility. However, in these cases, in addition to executing the exercises well, you have to choose the right time. The latest studies seem to show that stretching before playing sports can be counterproductive since cold stretching before training creates small injuries causing the muscle to lose tension to make the subsequent contraction.
According to a study conducted on athletes who stretched before training, all decreased their performance significantly regardless of their age, gender or level. The estimate is that the strength of the stretched muscles decreased by just over 5% and the explosive strength by about 3%. Stretching does not involve only the muscles but the entire structures together with the muscles stress the joints, fasciae, and nerves. That is why it is so important to execute them meticulously, paying attention to the movements that must be performed slowly and smoothly accompanied by deep breaths, without rebounding and without pain, although with tension, holding the posture for 15 to 30 seconds.
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The best stretches to improve flexibility |
Types of stretching:
In addition, there are different types of stretches from which to choose the most appropriate for each person and for their physical needs to stretches to improve flexibility.
1. Static stretching
2. Dynamic stretching
3. Passive stretching
4. Active stretch
5. Isometric stretch
Stretching is usually part of the warm-up and cool-down for exercisers. Stretching can increase speed, flexibility, range of motion and success in all your exercises. Different types of exercises require different types of stretching. So, let's look at different types of stretches to suit your body fitness program below.
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The best stretches to improve flexibility |
1. Static stretching:
This is a type of stretch that is done in a position that is quite challenging, but comfortable for a certain amount of time, usually between 10-30 seconds. Static stretching is the most common form of stretching found in general fitness exercises and is considered effective for increasing overall flexibility. Also, many experts believe that static stretching is more effective than dynamic stretching for increasing range of motion in functional movements, including sports and activities in everyday life.
2. Dynamic stretching:
This is a stretch that is challenging to move through, but comfortable to move repeatedly, usually up to 10-12 times. Although dynamic, this stretch requires higher coordination than static stretches. This stretch is very popular with athletes, coaches, trainers, and physical therapists because of its benefits in increasing functional range of motion and motion in sports and everyday life.
3. Passive stretching:
The passive here is the point where you use some sort of outside aid to help with the stretching. This support can be our body weight, ropes, gravity, other people or stretching devices. With passive stretching, you relax your muscles and try to stretch, relying on an external force to hold you back. You don't have to work hard on this stretch, but there's always the risk that an external force will be stronger than you, which could cause injury.
4. Active stretching:
This is a muscle stretch that involves contracting the muscle that is opposite to the one you are stretching. You should not use the body, straps, gravity, other people, or stretching devices such as passive stretching. With active stretching, relax the muscles you are going to stretch and rely on other muscles to initiate the stretch. Active stretching can be very challenging, as muscle power is required to produce the stretch, but it is less of a risk, as you rely on your own strength rather than external forces.
5. Isometric Stretch:
In isometric stretching, you resist stretching by pulling the muscle into position. For example, your partner holds your legs up as you try to pull your legs in the opposite direction. It is the safest and most effective method of extending joint range of motion, while also strengthening tendons and ligaments while maintaining their flexibility.
The best known is static, which consists of stretching at rest and holding the posture for a few seconds, and its dynamic variation includes impulse without exceeding the limits of comfort. To these must be added the isometric stretching in which the muscles make force against the stretching, the active one, which is another type of static stretching consisting of stretching using the antagonist muscle without external assistance, and the passive, in which there is a force external on the limb to be stretched.
The list is completed by ballistic, which is like dynamic, although muscular limits are forced by rebounding, and PNF (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation), which is a combination of static and isometric.
Benefits: Stretches to improve flexibility. Decreased pain.
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