Chapter 5 Developing Flexibility

1. Chapter 5Developing Flexibility A Wellness Way of Life Ninth Edition Robbins/Powers/Burgess © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

2. Chapter 5 Objectives After reading this chapter, you will be able to: • Identify benefits of and five cautions for stretching. • Identify factors affecting flexibility. • Define two types of flexibility. • Identify four types of stretching. • Identify guidelines for flexibility development. • Define five principles of flexibility development. • List five flexibility exercises for basic fitness. • Differentiate between safe and contraindicated exercises. • Identify general guidelines for identifying exercises which increase risk of injury. • Explain how flexibility and muscular fitness contribute to wellness. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

3. Flexibility • The ability of a joint to move freely through its full range of motion. • Flexibility tends to decrease with age, disuse, injury, excessive body fat, and muscle imbalances. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

4. Benefits of Flexibility • Decreased aches and pains. • Enhanced ability to move freely and easily. • Possible decreased risk of injury. • Recovery from injury. • Enhanced athletic performance. • Reversal of age-related decline in flexibility. • Improved posture and appearance. • Decreased muscle soreness after exercise. • It feels good. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

5. Factors Affecting Flexibility • Joint Structure • Soft Tissues • Inactivity • Muscle Temperature • Increased Age • Genetics • Gender • Obesity • Injury and Scar Tissue • Neural Factors © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

6. Types of Flexibility • Static • Range of motion that is achieved through slow controlled stretching. • Most commonly used and recommended type. • Dynamic • Range of motion that is achieved through moving a limb to its limits in a ballistic fashion. • Associated with increased muscle soreness and the stretch reflex. • Used more in athletic competition. Not recommended for personal fitness programs due to risk of injury. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

7. Active vs. Passive • Active stretching uses your own muscle forces to stretch yourself. • Passive stretching uses someone or something else to assist with a stretch (body weight, gravity, strap or leverage). © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

8. Guidelines of Flexibility Development • Frequency – 2 to 3 days a week (up to 7 days if possible). • Intensity – slightly beyond the normal range of motion to the point of tension. • Time – 10 to 30 second static hold. • Repetitions – at least 4 sustained stretches for each muscle group. • Guidelines – warm-up first, stretch to prepare for activity, cool-down stretch is most beneficial, stop at the point of discomfort, DON’T bounce, strive for muscular balance. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

9. Principles for Flexibility Development • Progressive overload • Improvement in joint range of motion occurs when sustained stretching produces elastic and plastic elongation. • Specificity • Flexibility is specific to each joint, i.e., an individual could do the splits but have poor shoulder range of motion. • Reversibility • If a persons stops stretching, over time, range of motion will decrease. • Balance • Muscles can be tighter on one side of the body. Pay attention to flexibility differences and work to improve them. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

10. Tips for Developing Flexibility • Warm up before stretching • After warm-up, stretch to prepare for activity • Stretch for flexibility during cool-down • Stop at the point of tension, not pain • Stretch slowly and evenly • Try to consciously relax • Maintain regular breathing • Don’t bounce • Incorporate 8-12 stretches into your program • Strive for muscle balance. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

11. Common Flexibility Exercises • Hamstring stretch • Lower back/hip flexor stretch • Spinal twist • Quadriceps stretch • Calf/Achilles stretch • Iliotibial band stretch • Deltoid stretch • Pectoral stretch • Triceps stretch © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

12. Flexibility Exercises Figure 5-1 © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

13. PNF Partner-Assisted Stretches • Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) uses the nervous and muscular systems to facilitate stretching. • PNF utilizes the inverse stretch relax to relax the target muscle. • PNF stretch: perform a 10-30 second static stretch, then contract the muscle for 6 seconds to produce fatigue, and then relax while a partner stretches your limb for 10-30 seconds. • For safety be sensitive to your partner’s needs and flexibility level. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

14. Contraindicated Exercises • Do not hyperflex or hyperextend the knee, neck, or lower back. • Do not twist the knee. • Avoid holding your breath. • Avoid stretching long weak muscles (abdominals) and shortening short/strong muscles (hip flexors). • Avoid stretching to the point of pain. • Be especially careful when using passive stretches with another person. • Avoid movements that place acute compressional force on spinal discs. • Avoid movements that cause joint impingements or cartilage damage. • If your sport requires the violation of good mechanics make certain the muscles are as strong as possible. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

15. Exercises to Avoid Avoid the following exercises: • Yoga plow, knee tuck to chest, head roll, hurdler stretch, full squat, standing toe touch, ballet bar leg stretch, windmill toe touches, straight-leg sit-up, double-leg lift, swan arch, donkey kicks Do the following: • Single-knee tuck to chest (hugging thigh), half-head rolls, alternative hurdler stretch, half-knee bend, lying hamstring stretch, sitting hamstring stretch, oblique abdominal curls, bent-knee ab curls, single arm/leg raises, modified donkey kicks. • There are some exceptions to these guidelines for those who are well conditioned and can minimize risk. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

16. Rx for Flexibility • 2-3 days per week • Stretch slightly beyond the normal range of motion • Repeat each exercise at least 3-4 times and hold for at least 10-30 seconds • Static stretches to include every major joint of the body (8 to 12 stretches) © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

17. Rx for Action • While studying or reading the morning paper, sit on the floor and stretch hamstrings. • While on the phone, do calf and quadriceps stretches. • If you have a desk job, take a 5-minute stretch break every hour – do ankle circles, half-head rolls, and shoulder stretches. • After every hour of computer use, stretch wrists, back, and shoulders. • While watching TV, stretch during commercials. © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

18. What Do You Think? • Which of the factors affecting flexibility best apply to you? • Which of the benefits of flexibility are most important to you? • How important is stretching to your training program? • Do you stretch before and/or after physical activity? If not, why not? • What safe flexibility exercises are you willing to perform? © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

19. Questions? © 2011 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.