stretching

Today I am going to attempt to play the role of "pendulum stopper" or the "baby in the bathwater". In other words, I am going to take a look at a few aspects of the exercise and nutrition world that have taken some heat for being any combination of useless, counter-productive or unhealthy. I am here to offer up some context and perhaps make the argument that there is some use for said "evils".

Stretching is usually done in one of three ways: 1 - In a Yoga session, where it is performed with precision and purpose; 2 - Before and/or after a workout, when it is done as more of an afterthought; or 3 - Not at all. Save for the first way mentioned, stretching is something most people kind of do (or don't do) because they think they're supposed to. It loosens you up before exercising and it helps ease muscle tension caused by a workout. But does it really do those things?

When it comes to flexibility, it used to be the more, the better. Emerging research however is challenging what many of us thought we knew about stretching and flexibility. Here are some point form nuggets about stretching and flexibility based on recent research;