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Back to Basics: Stretching

January 2023
Back to Basics: Stretching


"What day was it that I could no longer touch my toes?"


The quick answer is that it happens gradually. 


We intuitively know that stretching could prevent this from happening and we've all been told how stretching is good for us.  Some of us like how it feels, some of us deplore how inflexible we are, and some of us might even experience both situations!


The good news is that it doesn't take a lot, just a little every week, to benefit from the cumulative effect of stretching.   


As for all new physical activity, prior to starting a regular stretching routine, speak with your doctor.  You would also want to consult with a trained professional for proper stretching techniques, to avoid possible injury.  Each person's ability and situation is specific to their age, medical history, fitness level, lifestyle, goals, etc.   (Just as an example, isometric stretching and PNF stretching are not recommended for kids whose bones are still growing.)

FUN FACT:

The human body has approximately 600 muscles!

What is stretching and which muscles do we need to stretch?


To grossly simplify, when we stretch, we're increasing the ability of our muscles to lengthen.  We work on pulling the muscle fibers to their full length, and then we engage the surrounding collagen fibers and connective tissue to align in the same direction of force.  This realignment is what helps to rehabilitate scar tissue back to health. 


When a muscle is stretched, some of its fibers lengthen and some remain at rest, so not necessarily all muscle fibers in a muscle are stretched.  Incidentally, a fiber can either lengthen completely or not lengthen at all (it stretches all the way or it doesn't, it's all or nothing).  The more fibers that are stretched, the greater length developed by the muscle.  When we stretch, we train the muscles to become more accustomed to the new length.  This in turn helps with flexibility and range of motion.


For those of you interested in the detailed physiology of it, please refer to the first two bullet points in the Resources and Reference section below.  It's a fascinating process, from the message sent by the brain to the muscles, to the self-protective mechanisms (such as the Stretch Reflex and the Lengthening Reaction) that help to prevent injury.


For those of you who like shortcuts, here's one -- we don't need to stretch all 600 of our muscles!  Just working on the major areas is helpful:

  • lower body - calves, hamstrings, hip flexors, quadriceps
  • core - lower back, hips
  • upper body - shoulders, neck


FUN FACT:

Our tendons and ligaments are protected by a function of the gogli tendon organ (GTO), which is located where a muscle is attached to the tendon (tendons connect muscle to bone).  The GTO records the change in tension when a muscle contracts.  When the tension exceeds a certain threshhold, the GTO inhibits the muscle from contracting further and instead causes it to relax!

What to watch out for


  • Don't overstretch or stretch too often - over doing it can cause injury.  Don't stretch past your comfort level or where it starts to hurt.  When stretching, expect to feel tension but not pain.  Stretching too often can also put undue stress on the affected muscles.  Start slow and with the guidance of a trainer or physical therapist.

  • Warm up before stretching - the idea is to get blood circulating in your muscles before stretching so that they are warm.  10-15 minutes of walking or going up and down stairs slowly or another warm-up that's accessible before stretching will help to prevent injury.

  • Choose your stretches - based on your goals, activities, capability, etc. to maximize the time you spend on stretching.  Consider:
  • which muscle groups you'd like to stretch
  • what type of stretch is most suitable - for details about static, passive, dynamic, isometric, and PNF stretching, the 3rd bullet point in the Resources and References section below defines them clearly and includes some examples (they note that PNF stretching is currently generally considered the fastest and most effective way to increase flexibility)
  • varying your stretching regimen so that you alternate muscle groups each time



FUN FACT:

When we contract a muscle, not all fibers in that muscle contract.  Thus, we can vary the strength of our muscle contraction (from strong to weak) depending on the number of muscle fibers that are recruited to contract.  For example, you may have experienced lifting something more quickly or higher than expected because your brain thought it was heavier than it is and it told your body to recruit more muscle fibres to contract than necessary.

The benefits of stretching


Stretching can help improve flexibility which in turn can:


  • Lower your risk of injuries, including muscle strain
  • Boost your performance in physical activities
  • Help to increase range of motion in  your joints
  • Increase blood flow and nutrient flow to your muscles, helping them to work more effectively


Overall, stretching regularly can provide daily benefits, from improving posture to making it easier to perform daily tasks, to doing better in sports or getting better physical training results.



FUN FACT:

To help increase underwater dive time, approximately 50% of a beluga whale's total body oxygen store is found in its skeletal muscle.  In contrast, humans only store 15% of our oxygen reserves in our skeletal muscle (muscles that we control, for example, our leg muscles).


BONUS FUN FACT:

We couldn't resist including one more fun fact, this time about chimpanzees.

Why are chimpanzees stronger than humans?

Because they have more fast-twitch muscles than humans do!



Resources and References:


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