Basic methods of flexibility training

At present, the core methods of flexibility training recognized in the sports medicine and fitness fields can be summarized into four categories: static stretching, dynamic stretching, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF), and soft tissue release. There is no "best plan" that applies to all people, and it needs to be flexibly combined according to the training stage, sports events, and individual body tolerance.

Two years ago, I took care of a child who was preparing for the physical examination for the high school entrance examination. I practiced seated forward bending at home for half a year. Every time I cried, I was still 3 centimeters short of the standard. I asked me if I was born hard and there was nothing I could do about it. I watched his training videos. Every time he started, he would press his feet for 3 minutes. My whole body was shaking with pain. In fact, he was practicing in the wrong direction.

You usually watch professional games such as the CBA and Chinese Super League. Before the game, players do lunges around the field, raise their legs high, turn their hips, and circle their arms in large circles. In fact, it is dynamic stretching - this thing is specially used before exercise. It does not need to stretch to the limit of soreness. It means repeatedly moving joints, stretching muscles, and opening up sticky soft tissues within your current range of motion. This can not only avoid sports strains, but also won't lose strength like long-term static stretching. If you press your legs for a long time as soon as you start exercising and then feel weak after running and jumping, then you have done the wrong thing.

Speaking of this, some people may ask, what if I usually press my legs at home or lean on a pillar to pull my shoulders after practicing in the gym? That is the static stretching that everyone is most familiar with. Just pull it to a position where there is obvious soreness but no pain, stop and hold it. It is suitable for relaxing after exercise, or specifically targeting a certain muscle to improve flexibility. This is actually quite controversial in the industry: In the early years, the American Strength and Conditioning Association's guidelines stated that static stretching must be held for more than 30 seconds each time to be effective. Clinical studies in the past two years also mentioned that 15-20 seconds each time is enough for ordinary fitness people. If you stretch for more than 30 seconds, your subsequent strength training performance will drop by 5%-10%. To put it bluntly, there is no right or wrong. If you specialize in yoga, martial arts and other sports that require extremely high flexibility, you can maintain it for 30-60 seconds. If you just relax after fitness, a dozen seconds is enough, and you don't have to endure the pain for a long time.

Oh, by the way, if you want to quickly increase the activity of a certain muscle, such as practicing Sanda and moving your back legs, then PNF stretching is much more efficient than pure static stretching. I used to do crotch release for the members of the provincial Sanda team. I did 3 sets of PNF before each practice. On the spot, I could open the cross by 2 centimeters more. This method is simple to say. For example, you need to stretch the hamstring muscles on the back of the thigh. Lie down and let your partner lift your leg to a position where you feel soreness. You first press down hard to resist the partner's strength for 6 seconds. After completely relaxing, the partner lifts your leg up a little and pauses for 20 seconds. Repeat 3 times. However, it is best for novices not to practice blindly on their own. Many people relax their muscles after a confrontation and directly strain the muscle without controlling the amplitude. They must either find an experienced person to assist, or use walls or door frames as support for the confrontation, which is much more stable. Of course, there are many coaches who are against ordinary people using PNF, thinking that the risks are higher than the benefits. My personal experience is that as long as you control the strength of the confrontation and don't pursue the extreme range, it is still very useful for people who have clear needs for flexibility improvement.

Some people may ask, what are foam rollers and fascia guns? In the past, traditional training systems did not include soft tissue release in flexibility training, thinking that it was just for relaxation. However, studies on sports rehabilitation in recent years have found that many people's poor flexibility is not caused by short muscles at all, but by fascial adhesion that blocks mobility. For example, for people who sit in the office every day, most of the time they cannot squat due to adhesion between the iliopsoas muscle and the fascia on the front of the thigh. If you ask him to do static exercises for half an hour, it is better to roll a foam roller for 10 minutes first, and the squat range will increase a lot on the spot. Nowadays, in the warm-up process of many professional teams, the foam roller is released at the front, and then dynamic stretching is done after rolling. This can greatly increase the efficiency of the warm-up. Of course, there are also many traditional coaches who don’t agree with this and think that “foam rolling is laziness and it’s better to do leg presses”. It depends on your own feelings. Anyway, for ordinary fitness people, the method that allows you to move freely without injury is a good method.

I practiced Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for the past two years, and my shoulder flexibility was poor. I couldn't reach my opponent's wrist when doing crossbars. I used to do static shoulder pulls for 20 minutes every night, but I didn't see much improvement after practicing for a month. Later, the plan was adjusted: before each training session, roll a fascial ball on the adhesion points on the shoulder and back for 5 minutes, then do 10 minutes of dynamic stretching with arm circles and shoulder rotations. After training, ask teammates to help do 2 sets of PNF shoulder pulls, and finally add 10 minutes of static stretching. Within a month, the cross-bar movements were smooth.

Oh, by the way, don’t worry too much about which category a certain movement belongs to. For example, for many movements in yoga, static holding is static stretching, and flowing in series is dynamic stretching. There is no use in trying to classify them. Just do what suits you. In the final analysis, the core bottom line of flexibility training is "no soreness and pain". Don't compete with others on how much you can lower the crossbar or how much you can push forward while sitting. We practice flexibility so that we can move more comfortably and avoid injuries, not to compete with others, right?