Your “stretching routine” isn’t doing what you think it is…

Thank you to Zach Wear, our previous physio student, for contributing this to our blog!

Your “stretching routine” isn’t necessarily doing what you think it is…
 
How often have you heard or been told to “stretch” after sports to recover and prevent injuries?
 
Flexibility and Mobility are the same thing… right?
Is your stretching routine actually helping you prevent injuries?
 
If you have asked one or all of the above questions, keep reading. As we progress, we will discuss the difference between flexibility and mobility and ultimately leave you with a choice … stay tuned.

But first!
 
What is flexibility?
 
Flexibility refers to the length of muscles and their ability to stretch. It's about how far you can passively stretch a muscle without any resistance. Stretching exercises, like yoga and traditional static stretching, primarily target flexibility.
 
What is mobility?
 
Mobility refers to the ability of a joint to move actively through a range of motion. It involves not just the muscles but also the surrounding structures like ligaments, tendons, and even the joint capsule itself. Think of mobility as your body's capacity to perform functional movements comfortably and efficiently.
 
Flexibility and mobility are similar in that they each relate to a range of motion; however, where they differ is how that range of motion is achieved.

Take a look at the image below. Notice how the individual is able to “passively” pull his foot further towards his head, that he is “actively” able to lift it without assistance. In this example, he only has strength through a portion of his range of motion - the zone of resilience. What do you think could happen if a sudden force was applied to his leg PAST the active range. Spoiler alert…  Injuries.

Image sourced from: http://www.warneryoga.com/flexibility-vs-mobility.html

So…

Is flexibility training actually helping me prevent injuries?
 
Simply put, yes and no. Often times, injuries occur when a “load” is applied at the “end range of motion” or the limit to which our muscles and joints can move.
 
On one hand, passive stretching can increase muscle length which may be required for some sporting activities (I’m looking at you hockey goalies and gymnasts). On the other hand, an increased muscle length does not help prevent injuries as you may believe.  To effectively prevent injuries, tissues such as muscles, ligaments, and tendons must have resilience… I know, fancy word, right? With respect to injury prevention, tissue resilience can be developed by strength training or creating “tension” against a loaded resistance. Therefore, we should not expect that just by increasing our muscle length that we will develop any sort of resilience or resistive properties of our tissues.
 
If stretching isn’t the answer, what should I do?
 
I’m glad you asked! Instead of “stretching” we want to add “mobility” work to our exercise routine by moving through a certain joint’s range of motion while adding tension (muscle contraction). This focus will begin to develop resilience at our end ranges of motion and ultimately prevent injuries from occurring.
 
 If you have made it this far you should have a firm grasp on the concept of stretching and flexibility training. We should also now be familiar with mobility.
 
 
I’ll leave you with a final question: what do you choose? Stretching? Or Mobility training? Do you choose to be active or passive in your approach to injury prevention? The choice is yours.

-Zach Wear