Stretching- Good or Bad?

Spring is just around the corner and that means its time to get outside and enjoy the great playground we live in here in Utah. Whatever spring/summer activities you enjoy be it golf, hiking, biking, running, climbing, or any other physical activity it is important to start the season out in such away that you re-acclimate to your sport without injuring yourself. One of the frequent questions I get as a chiropractor in Salt Lake City is “Should I be stretch

before beginning a work out?” The answer to that question is complicated. For a long time it was generally accepted that stretching before working out was a good idea. The thought was it could help reduce injury and increase performance. This is a challenging concept to test, however recent studies indicate that stretching prior to working out may actually have the opposite effect. Depending on the activity and type of stretching it could lead to decreased performance and may even be more likely to cause injury.

I am not advocating that people do not stretch at all, however there are things to consider when deciding what and how to stretching. The first thing to consider is, what your fitness goal is. Does your activity involve

more endurance, strength, flexibility, or speed? What muscles will you be using? Is your body conditioned to the activity? These questions all determine what type of stretching you should or shouldn't do. If you are not sure where to start, we here at The Joint in Sugar House are happy to do an evaluation and give some suggestions.

As a general rule my advice on stretching is to focus pre-workout stretching in the areas you will be using most and to do more dynamic stretching prior to working out and save the static stretches for post workout. A dynamic stretch is one that involves and active range of motion throughout the stretch. For example rolling your head side to side to stretch your neck. A static stretch is holding a postion for a set length of time without motion. In addition to proper stretching, a regular chiropractic adjustment in Salt Lake City goes a long way towards preventing injury and improving performance.

~Dr. Sean Smith