Activities of Daily Living
The other day I read an article that said “experts recommend static stretching to prevent injury.” Some of you are thinking, “Yea, so?” While others are thinking what I’m thinking: either someone is misquoting an expert or someone shouldn’t be calling themselves an expert. In fact, many studies have proven the opposite. You would have to read a dozen articles to get to the truth. Who wants to do that? Well, I did and this is what you need to know about stretching:

The purpose of stretching is to increase the range of motion around a joint; which is important for fitness training. Imagine trying to run but unable to bend at the knee. Actually, stretching and flexibility is important to everyone. What if you tried to get out of bed or cook a meal but can’t move your joints more than few millimeters? Life would be a chore. The simplest everyday activities would take so much energy. Would you even want to get out of bed?

Now that you know what stretching means to the body, here’s what you need to know about the act of stretching.

There is more than one type of stretching, these different types of stretching should be performed at particular times, and some that shouldn’t be performed at all.

Ballistic Stretching

Do you remember those old workout videos where everyone wore technicolor clothing, tight spandex tights with head bands and leg warmers? Do you remember the kind of stretching they would do on the videos? Maybe you’re too young, but what those instructors were doing, was ballistic stretching. These are performed doing rapid, bouncing motions in attempt to stretch the body part beyond its natural resting length. This type of stretching is not recommended for anyone at any time. Ballistic stretching has proven to cause more injury than prevent and really doesn’t help with flexibility or joint strength.

Static Stretching

This could be considered the more widely known stretch. This is where you hold a stretch beyond that comfortable resting length of the muscle but not to where you’re in pain. Typically, this stretch is held anywhere from ten seconds to a minute. This form of stretching is good for after a workout and can improve flexibility. However, what the experts really have to say about this stretching is that it SHOULD NOT be performed prior to bout of exercise. It’s been proven to decrease power output and speed and does not prevent injury.

Dynamic Stretching

Dynamic stretching uses sports specific movements that take the muscle beyond their resting muscle length while in motion. For example, football players might do walking lunges and twist their torso to the side as they’re lower to the ground to imitate movements they may perform on the field. Dynamic stretching helps raise core temperatures and increase the temperature of the muscles, especially the ones that will be used during activity. Before a workout, this is the preferred stretching that is advised by fitness professionals and experts.

Before you engage in any stretching, remember it’s important to warm up those muscles before you start. Doing a few minutes of cardio is sufficient (spend a few minutes doing sit ups, pushups, jumping jacks, dancing, running, or anything of the like). To maintain flexibility, stretch all the major muscle groups for 20 to 30 minutes three to four days a week. To improve flexibility, stretch all the major muscle groups for 20 to 30 minutes a day five to seven days a week. REMEMBER: stay hydrated!!

Healthy Recipe

Easy Italian Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

½ lb penne pasta

3 medium tomatoes, chopped

1 cup Kraft Natural Italian Cheese Crumbles

½ cup Kraft Zesty Italian dressing

¼ cup fresh basil, chopped

¼ tsp ground black pepper

Directions:

Cook the pasta. Mix tomatoes and fresh basil in a medium sized bowl. Add pepper, dressing, and cheese. Mix with the cooked pasta. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate. Makes 8 servings.

Per serving: 140 calories, 7g fat,  12g carbohydrates, 1g fiber, 6g protein