July 2004 | Living Healthy
Natural Athlete
Stretching...the Truth
by Bob Condor
There was serious snickering from couch potatoes and some hard-core athletes earlier this year when federal researchers announced: nope, stretching regularly does not prevent injuries.
“We could not find a benefit,” says Stephen B. Thacker, a researcher at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta (CDC). “Athletes shouldn’t count on stretching to keep them healthy.”
Thacker and four CDC colleagues found people who stretch before workouts fared no better in protecting against injuries than, say, runners who simply lace up their shoes and head out the door.
But it doesn’t mean we should stop stretching. Other studies show pre-activity stretches help increase blood flow to the muscles, which helps the body perform better.
Jerri Layman, a Seattle-based sports massage therapist who works with professional basketball and baseball players, says stretching helps increase our range of motion. You will feel more capable and less sore when you play hard — in a sports league, with the kids, hiking with old college pals, whatever your fancy. “That’s always a good thing,” says Layman. Research shows the best method for increasing your range of motion (a real plus in yoga, adult ballet class or competing in a retro Twister game) is gentle, purposeful stretching after your workout when you are warmest and most pliable.
Probably most overlooked, and hardest to prove, is how stretching makes us feel more vibrant and more open to life’s possibilities. Don’t believe it? Then try a simple stretching routine every morning for three to five minutes, preferably in the sunlight or facing the window in your home with the most incoming morning light (to kick-start your circadian rhythms cycle). You will be a different person in a week.
Best of all, stretching can relieve the by-products of stress: stiff backs and necks and tight shoulders. Here are three stretches endorsed by the American Physical Therapy Association to get you started and keep you going:
Quick-relief lower back stretch: You can do this move as many times as you like during the day, but get up to walk around first. Start by sitting all the way back in a sturdy, armless chair. Put your arms at your sides and keep the shoulders down and relaxed. With your stomach in, gently press the small of your back against the chair. Look straight ahead. Inhale, then bend your trunk down, allowing your hands to reach the floor and your head to rest on the knees. Don’t force it. Stop if you feel any significant pain. Exhale as you stretch down. Hold the stretch for five to 30 seconds, breathing evenly.
Seated neck nod: This exercise targets the muscles in the front and back of the neck, which can get tense from, say, long sessions at the computer. Assume a similar start position to the backstretch described above. Inhale, then flex or nod your head forward, slowly bringing your chin down toward your chest and exhaling as you nod. Gently stretch and hold it for five to 30 seconds. Inhale and slowly bring your head back to the start position. Next, extend your neck by moving your head backward to look at the ceiling, exhaling as you go. Return slowly to the starting position.
Shoulder roll: Lots of us hold our stress in our shoulders and upper back. Shoulder rolls can ease the tightness. Start in the same position as the back and neck stretches above. Inhale, then roll your shoulders backward by lifting your shoulders up toward your ears. Next, roll them back down as you pinch your shoulder blades together. Exhale as you roll your shoulders backward. Pause and then reverse the direction of the roll.
Bob Condor is editor of Evergreen Monthly, a Dragonfly Media publication based in Seattle.
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