Query
06-16-2009, 05:38 PM
Do selective warm-ups make sense for stretching?
Specifically, I want to only warm up the muscles I seek to stretch, so as to avoid accidentally stretching the things that should not stretch.
Background
I’ve tried to stretch for over 20 years with very limited success. I have substantially less flexibility than most people, in attempts to touch my toes, to bend forward and back and sideways, to do torso twists, to do splits, and to increase hip turn-out. (Also to flex my ankles forward and back, but I used to have a lot of ankle sprains, so that may be hopeless.) This has included standard gym and aerobics class exercises, yoga, PNF (tiring out the muscles used by the somewhat counterproductive “stretch reflex” which unconsciously contracts muscles you try to stretch - not all that safe), and complete relaxation (suppressing the stretch reflex – really not safe).
With bent knees, I can stretch further on all the mentioned things except torso twists. I do not believe external (near-skin) muscles are pressing down on too much on the other layers when they contract, limiting motion by increasing friction, a problem ballet dancers are taught to worry about, because I have tried relaxing everything, without much effect. A sports Physical Therapist [PT] /Certified Physical Trainer [PTC] said I do not have arthritis, which limits some other people’s stretches.
As near as I can tell by what muscles are placed under tension by stretches, and by where I do not feel pressure, my forward bend, straight leg split stretches and hip turn-out are all limited by psoas muscle lengths, my torso twists by the obliques, and my backward bends are possibly limited by my gluts (have trouble feeling it – may be the deeper muscles). I don’t believe my current limits are imposed by ligaments, joint capsules or bones, because of those tensions, and because of the effect of bending my knees, though I understand many people have motion limited by those things.
That which limits each type of flexibility varies substantially from individual to individual! Don’t assume you have my specific problems. You should pay close attention to what tensions and pressures limit motion, and get help from a well trained and recommended pro.
The PT/PTC may have provided a partial reason for my failures, while diagnosing something else: I mostly do not use many of the muscles around my hips and gluts. Instead I use my quads and a little bit of my hamstrings in weight support and motion.
(This problem isn’t entirely uncommon, but you probably should not self-diagnose yourself without the help of a suitable pro, as it is quite difficult to figure out what safely can and should be stretched.)
The PT/PTC verified that warming up a muscle, ligament, or joint capsule prepares it to stretch, because the stuff that they are made of alters it's shape (I think by letting fibers slide against each other) most easily when it is warm. It seems likely I have been unsuccessful because the muscles whose length currently limits my range of motion do not get warm enough to stretch much.
What I have been previously taught is that one should do a general physiological warm-up before stretching. The idea is to prepare potentially arthritic tissue for less fricative motion, by warming it up, oxygenating it, and gently lubricating it. Of course, my general warm-up unintentially excluded the muscles I needed to stretch, so it was ineffective.
I’ve been taught that the amount that ligaments and joint capsules can stretch is quite limited for physiological reasons, and it isn't a very good idea to over-stretch them, because that makes joints unstable. Therefore many people advocate avoiding ligament and joint capsule stretches, by only doing short static (non-bouncy) stretches, advice I haven’t always known about or followed. In addition, on joints which tend to be unstable anyway on a particular individual, one is supposed to strengthen instead of stretch the relevant muscles, so the muscles will help limit disluctions and dislocations.
What I propose to do instead of a general warm-up and short stretches is to selectively warm-up the muscles (posas, obliques or gluts) I wish to stretch in a given session, then do long stretches on those muscles. My idea is that warming up a muscle mostly warms up the contractile portion of that muscle, and to some extant tissues that are near it. I presume it is better not to stretch other nearby muscles, because corresponding ligaments and joint capsules may have been warmed-up by proximity to the contractile portions of the muscles one has warmed up.
I hope this procedure will make it safer to do the long time stretches needed to create sufficient change.
Does this make sense?
Specifically, I want to only warm up the muscles I seek to stretch, so as to avoid accidentally stretching the things that should not stretch.
Background
I’ve tried to stretch for over 20 years with very limited success. I have substantially less flexibility than most people, in attempts to touch my toes, to bend forward and back and sideways, to do torso twists, to do splits, and to increase hip turn-out. (Also to flex my ankles forward and back, but I used to have a lot of ankle sprains, so that may be hopeless.) This has included standard gym and aerobics class exercises, yoga, PNF (tiring out the muscles used by the somewhat counterproductive “stretch reflex” which unconsciously contracts muscles you try to stretch - not all that safe), and complete relaxation (suppressing the stretch reflex – really not safe).
With bent knees, I can stretch further on all the mentioned things except torso twists. I do not believe external (near-skin) muscles are pressing down on too much on the other layers when they contract, limiting motion by increasing friction, a problem ballet dancers are taught to worry about, because I have tried relaxing everything, without much effect. A sports Physical Therapist [PT] /Certified Physical Trainer [PTC] said I do not have arthritis, which limits some other people’s stretches.
As near as I can tell by what muscles are placed under tension by stretches, and by where I do not feel pressure, my forward bend, straight leg split stretches and hip turn-out are all limited by psoas muscle lengths, my torso twists by the obliques, and my backward bends are possibly limited by my gluts (have trouble feeling it – may be the deeper muscles). I don’t believe my current limits are imposed by ligaments, joint capsules or bones, because of those tensions, and because of the effect of bending my knees, though I understand many people have motion limited by those things.
That which limits each type of flexibility varies substantially from individual to individual! Don’t assume you have my specific problems. You should pay close attention to what tensions and pressures limit motion, and get help from a well trained and recommended pro.
The PT/PTC may have provided a partial reason for my failures, while diagnosing something else: I mostly do not use many of the muscles around my hips and gluts. Instead I use my quads and a little bit of my hamstrings in weight support and motion.
(This problem isn’t entirely uncommon, but you probably should not self-diagnose yourself without the help of a suitable pro, as it is quite difficult to figure out what safely can and should be stretched.)
The PT/PTC verified that warming up a muscle, ligament, or joint capsule prepares it to stretch, because the stuff that they are made of alters it's shape (I think by letting fibers slide against each other) most easily when it is warm. It seems likely I have been unsuccessful because the muscles whose length currently limits my range of motion do not get warm enough to stretch much.
What I have been previously taught is that one should do a general physiological warm-up before stretching. The idea is to prepare potentially arthritic tissue for less fricative motion, by warming it up, oxygenating it, and gently lubricating it. Of course, my general warm-up unintentially excluded the muscles I needed to stretch, so it was ineffective.
I’ve been taught that the amount that ligaments and joint capsules can stretch is quite limited for physiological reasons, and it isn't a very good idea to over-stretch them, because that makes joints unstable. Therefore many people advocate avoiding ligament and joint capsule stretches, by only doing short static (non-bouncy) stretches, advice I haven’t always known about or followed. In addition, on joints which tend to be unstable anyway on a particular individual, one is supposed to strengthen instead of stretch the relevant muscles, so the muscles will help limit disluctions and dislocations.
What I propose to do instead of a general warm-up and short stretches is to selectively warm-up the muscles (posas, obliques or gluts) I wish to stretch in a given session, then do long stretches on those muscles. My idea is that warming up a muscle mostly warms up the contractile portion of that muscle, and to some extant tissues that are near it. I presume it is better not to stretch other nearby muscles, because corresponding ligaments and joint capsules may have been warmed-up by proximity to the contractile portions of the muscles one has warmed up.
I hope this procedure will make it safer to do the long time stretches needed to create sufficient change.
Does this make sense?