Stretching is widely used by many people to improve flexibility, increase circulation to muscles, prevent injury, and to just loosen up a bit. There are different forms of stretching such as: ballistic, dynamic, self-myofascial release, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, and active isolating stretching just to name a few. All of these stretches are beneficial in their own way, but the stretch that is most widely use with athletes and non-athletes is static stretching. According to the National Academy of Sports Medicine, static stretching is “the process of passively taking a muscle to the point of tension and holding the stretch for a minimum of 20 seconds” (Clark, Luccett, Corn, 2008, p. 153). In the past, static stretching has been widely used as a warm-up by athletes to help them loosen up before a game or an event. What those athletes did not realize was their pre-game static stretch warm-up was inhibiting their ability to perform at their peak performance.
For instance, the ability to run faster than your than your opponent in a game or event is one of the most important keys to success in sport. Speed is the ability to move the body in one direction as fast as possible and it is the product of stride rate and stride length (Clark, Lucceet, Corn, 2008, p. 260). According to Baechle and Earle (1994), sprinting is broken down into three main goals:
1. Braking forces at ground contact should be should be minimized by planting the foot directly beneath the athlete’s center of gravity and by maximizing the backward velocity of the lower leg and foot at touchdown.
2. Brief ground support times must be emphasized as a means of achieving rapid stride rate. This requires a high level of speed-strength.
3. Eccentric knee flexor strength is the most important determinant of recovery as the leg swings forward (p. 480).
Some factors that might prevent an athlete from achieving these goals maybe be from poor running mechanics, lack of fast-twitch muscle fibers, footwear, lack of recovery, and most importantly, incorporating static stretching into a warm-up. Recent studies have shown that static stretching impairs sprint performance and more of a dynamic or ballistic type of stretching is more beneficial to achieve maximum speed for athletes. Three separate studies that consisted of a track and field team, women’s soccer, and men’s rugby investigated the effects of static stretch warm-ups on the performance of sprinting. All three studies had different sprint distances that range from 20meters-40meters, concluded that static stretching reduced the stiffness of the musculotendious unit, which in turn decreased the sprint performance.
For example, a recent study was performed on the Louisiana State University track and field team. In this study, eleven males and eleven female athletes performed a dynamic warm-up followed by either a static stretch routine or a rest. The group of athletes then went on to perform three 40 m sprints to investigate the effects of static stretching on sprint performance when preceded by a dynamic warm-up (Winchester, Nelson, Landin, young, Schexnayder, 2008). There were four passive static stretches that were performed on the stretch group done by fellow teammates. Those stretches were supine hamstring, triceps surae (calf), gluteus, and prone quad. The stretch was maintained for 30 seconds. The cycle of stretches were done three times with a 20-30 second rest in between each cycle. After the stretch or rest period, the athletes then went on to run three 40 m sprints with a five minute minimum rest period (Winchester et al. 2008). The results showed that there was a 3% decrease in sprint performance for the athletes that incorporated the static stretch routine immediately after their dynamic warm-up. According to Winchester et al. (2008) he states, “Consequently, an acute bout of passive muscle stretching might compromise the effect of the stretch-shortening cycle by decreasing active musculotendinous stiffness, thereby reducing the amount of elastic energy that can be stored and re-utilized” (16). This shows that the power of the muscles was reduced because the elastic energy was too relaxed. Performing a dynamic warm-up keeps the musculotendinous unit at adequate stiffness.
Furthermore, a similar study showed that static stretching inhibits sprint performance in elite soccer players. In this study, twenty elite female soccer players were randomly assigned to a stretch or no stretch group. However, both groups performed the same standard warm-up protocol which consists of an 800m jog, forward skips (4 x 30m), side shuffles (4 x 30m), and backward skips (4 x 30m). After the standard warm up, the no-stretch group performed three 30m sprints while the stretch group performed their static stretches. The stretch group performed 30 second static stretches of the hamstrings, calf, and quadriceps. They repeated this cycle of static stretches for a total of three sets and then proceeded to run their sprints. The mean and standard deviations were the only numbers recorded in this study. The numbers showed that, the group that performed the static stretches before running a 30 m sprint, resulted in a significant increase in time to complete, compared to the group that did not perform static stretches. The surprising difference in overall sprint performance between the stretch and no-stretch group was 0.39 seconds, and the mean difference was 0.1 seconds.
In addition, in 2004 a study was performed to analyze different warm-up stretch protocols on a 20 meter sprint performance of rugby players. In this study, 97 male rugby players were separated into four groups: passive static stretch, active dynamic stretch, active static stretch, and static dynamic. All of the participants started off with a 10 minute jog and then ran two 20 meter sprints. Then, they separated into their assigned groups to perform their stretch protocols. The passive static stretch group stretched the glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, adductors, hip flexors, and calf for 20 second per muscle. The active dynamic stretch group performed exercises such as: high knees, butt kicks, hip rolls, running cycles, and straight leg skips. The active static stretch group performed the same stretches as the passive static stretch group but contracted the agonist muscle to its full inner range, while stretching the antagonist’s outer range. The static dynamic group did all the same exercises as the active dynamic group but in a stationary position for 20 reps per leg (Fletcher, Jones, 2004). After all participants completed their stretch routine, they ran two more 20 meter sprints. Fletcher and Jones took the mean sprint times pre- and post stretch, and the mean difference in sprint times for each group. They found out that the passive static stretch group and the active static stretch group increased in sprint time after they stretched. The active dynamic group showed a decrease in sprint time while the static dynamic group showed no significant difference in sprint time. The clearly showed that static stretching impairs sprint performance.
In conclusion, to achieve top sprint performance, warm-ups should not incorporate any type static stretching. As clearly shown by the numbers static stretching inhibits sprint performance in athletes. I believe that static stretching makes the serial elastic component of the muscle too loose, which in turn decrease the power out-put of the muscles. According to Fletcher and Jones (2004) the reduction of the musculortendious unit stiffness leads to neural inhibition and a decrease in the neural drive to the muscles, resulting in a reduction of power. Research shows that, performing a general warm-up and a dynamic warm-up before any activity that requires power of the muscles should be implemented before competition and exercising. I think that static stretching should only be used in a cool down or rehab tool to help the athlete recover.
References
1. Clark, M. A., Corn, R. J., & Lucett, S.C. (2008). Nasm essentials of: Personal fitness training. Baltimore, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
2. Baechle, T.R., Earle, R.W. (1994). Essentials of strength training and conditioning. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
3. Winchester, J.B., Nelson, A.G., Landin, D., Young, & Schexnayder, I.C. (2008 January). Static stretching impairs sprint performance in collegiate track and field athletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 22(1), 13-18. Retrieved October 18, 2008, from NSCA database.
4. Sayers, A.L., Farley, R.S., Fuller, D.K., Jubenville, C.B., & Caputo, J.L. (2008 September). The effect of static stretching on phases of sprint performance in elite soccer players. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 22(5), 1416-1421. Retrieved October 18, 2008, from NSCA database.
5. Bethan, J., & Fletcher I.M. (2004). The effect of different warm-up stretch protocols on 20 meter sprint performance in trained rugby union players. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 18(4), 885-888. Retrieved October 18, 2008, from NSCA database.
