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Your muscles ache from a good stretch. This is quite normal and is part of
the process. Stretching has seemingly been with us and particular with athletes
since the beginning of time.
A very key point to good stretching is to hold the stretch for at least
seventeen seconds. This is a pearl of wisdom gleaned from a ballet teacher a few
years back. She said that any stretch under 17 seconds was just not
effective.
The 17 second rule is exceeded in the high intensity Bikram's yoga where
stretches are held for about 30 seconds. Don't forget the high level of heat
that is used in Bikram's to extract that last little bit of stretch out of your
muscles. An interesting twist that is not necessary to gain benefits from
stretching. But, it can't hurt, right?
So what kind of benefits can you expect from stretching? That's an easy one.
Have you ever seen the movie, Blood Sport? Did you know that Frank Dux could
truly stretch his body to the extreme. The actor that played him was quite
elastic as well.
Great elasticity is also something you might see in well trained
Spetsnaz(Russian)agents. They often work out with Russian kettlebells too. They
are for superior strength gains and the ability to withstand ballistic
shocks.
Why are stretching and flexibility considered important to these people?
Stretching gives one the ability to have explosive power available at one's
fingertips without the need to warm up. Of course most of us are not martial
artists or agents. But, you'll be happy to know there are plenty of other
benefits.
Let me give you an example. After learning to sit in the full lotus position
for long periods of time, my ankles became very flexible. One day I was walking
along and my left foot fell into a pothole. This mishap pushed my ankle sideways
to about 90 degrees from it's normal position.
Amazingly, this didn't even hurt, not one bit. If my ankle hadn't been so
flexible, I may have suffered a sprained ankle. At the very least, it would have
hurt for days.
Key point: stretching helps us to avoid injuries. Not only that but if you do
have a muscle, tendon or ligament injury it should heal faster, theoretically
speaking.
Stretching actually grows the ligaments, tendons and muscles being stretched.
They really grow longer over time.
Check with your physician before undertaking any type of exercise, including
stretching.
Dave Snape writes for To Be Informed - http://tobeinformed.com and All Things
Pondered - http://allthingspondered.com
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