Discover the difference between active and passive stretching, the importance of mobility training, and how to safely enhance your flexibility. Learn the science behind muscle function and the potential risks of passive stretching. Find out how mobility training bridges the gap between strength and flexibility. Unlock your body's full potential!
Stretching and Mobility
When it comes to writing articles, I always begin by gathering source materials. I hope that this adds extra value for you, and perhaps I, as a trainer, will also learn something new :) In addition to numerous textbooks from universities and scientific articles on the subject, I also read texts posted on the internet out of curiosity. Imagine my surprise when I read that stretching exercises should last a maximum of 15 seconds. That's it – done! A strange idea, isn't it?
In the following post, you will read about stretching and flexibility training. I will try to shed light on:
1. The difference between active and passive stretching.
2. The necessity of mobility.
3. How to stretch safely for better health.
How muscles work and why passive stretching may not be the best approach.
Stretching is a unique form of training because understanding how muscles work is essential for selecting the right training method. During my training sessions, I often get asked, "Why does stretching hurt?" I then explain that the sensation of pain is a result of muscle fibers tearing. Usually, this revelation is met with surprise, and I will now clarify what tearing means. Due to their structure, muscles have the ability to contract. They are composed of small muscle fibers that can be likened to threads.
Muscles can be divided into two types based on their fibers:
1. Type I - known as "slow-twitch" muscles - contract slowly and are more fatigue-resistant.
2. Type II - known as "fast-twitch" muscles - contract quickly but also fatigue more rapidly.
During physical exertion, slow-twitch muscles are the first to engage, followed by the fast-twitch muscles. Whether it's stretching, mobility training, or your level of physical fitness, slow-twitch muscles always engage first. Why is this information important? To stretch safely, you must understand how muscles work. All the muscles in the human body have the ability to contract and, in turn, stretch in various ways. Technically, muscle contractions are called dynamic contractions, which fall into five categories.
Dynamic Contractions:
1. Concentric: Muscles "shorten" to produce movement. Example: The bicep muscle shortening when preparing to jump.
2. Eccentric: Muscles "lengthen." Example: The bicep muscle lengthening when slowly extending for a split.
3. Isometric: Also known as static contractions. Muscles tense up but do not move. Example: Squeezing and relaxing the glutes while sitting in a split.
4. Isotonic: Any contraction where the muscle length changes. This category includes both concentric and eccentric contractions. An isometric contraction is the opposite of an isotonic contraction.
5. Acustonic: Contractions that exhibit characteristics of both isotonic and isometric contractions. This means that both types of muscle tension occur during an activity. Example: Running and walking.
That was quite a bit of theoretical knowledge. Now, let's delve into practice. Utilizing muscle contractility is crucial in flexibility training. Unfortunately, passive stretching, where we mainly sit in a specific position for a set time or are pulled by a trainer while in a split, is still one of the most popular methods of stretching. However, caution is required. Passive stretching relies on eccentric muscle contractions, i.e., muscle lengthening. Based on current knowledge, this may not be the best way to increase your range of motion, especially when done in isolation without the other types of muscle tension.
In passive stretching:
1. We reach our maximum range and wait for a set time.
2. Someone pulls us, but we do not exert any muscular force.
3. Consequently, the muscle lengthens (eccentric contraction), and muscle fibers gradually "tear."
Fear not, tearing is not inherently bad. Muscle tissue has regenerative capabilities. As a result of this tearing, the tissue rebuilds in a way that increases its quality and length. The same process occurs during strength training! Does this mean that professional weightlifters are incredibly flexible at the same time? Well, it's not quite that simple ;)
Let's return to the types of muscle contractions. During passive stretching, when we cause muscle fibers to tear, we are primarily dealing with eccentric contractions. Our goal is to stretch, for example, a leg by lengthening the muscle, rather than increasing its strength through hypertrophy. An illustrative example would be the slender legs of artistic gymnasts, especially those from Russia and Ukraine. They often have an extremely petite and flexible build, a result of primarily using passive stretching, sometimes forcibly.
Why Passive Stretching Can Be Harmful:
1. We do not enter the maximum range of motion ourselves. If someone else, like a trainer, is responsible for this, our body may not be prepared.
2. The muscle is stretched, but no active muscle work is performed. We only widen the passive range in which we have no strength. Often, it turns out that in moves where we do not press against the pole, hoop, or silks - we cannot even do a full split, even though we can perform one on the floor with four points of contact.
3. We lose the ability to maintain muscle tension at the maximum range of motion, leading to increased flexibility but decreased stability.
4. By exclusively passive stretching, we fail to stimulate our nervous system to work. Regularly numbing the pain associated with passive stretching through this method can lead to a lack of proprioception and muscle strain.
So, is passive stretching bad, and should it be avoided? No, passive stretching can be harmful if it is not balanced with other types of training. It is valuable to supplement it with mobility exercises, which involve the use of muscle force during stretching and work at maximum range of motion. This applies in the opposite direction as well – purely focusing on mobility training without passive stretching will not yield as good results.
So, what is the difference between mobility and stretching?
You can see this difference beautifully on the Instagram profile @robinmartinyoga. Robin is a world-class yogi, and her entire profile is dedicated to highlighting the differences between passive (stretch-based) and active (mobility-based) poses.
What is Mobility?
Mobility involves using strength at the maximum range of motion. Whenever I introduce this term, I tell my students: "If we can do a split, we should be able to hold it - standing up, without using our hands. Similarly, we should be able to use our strength to open our legs and rise from a split." That's what it's all about. Mobility is the missing link between strength training and flexibility training, and unfortunately, it is still not talked about enough. Remember that mobility training is often closely related to stabilization training (another underestimated aspect of aerial training). The latter is crucial for our health and overall condition, especially in the perspective of the next few years or the end of our careers. However, keep in mind that mobility training does not completely align with stretching training in its principles. Ultimately, they have slightly different objectives, and the truth is that the best results are achieved by using both techniques: effectively "strengthening" our acquired ranges and gradually deepening them through passive stretching, as well as strength training using our body weight or external resistance.
I receive many questions: "Why am I not seeing progress despite stretching every day?" Let's be clear: everyone is different. There are people who, after one flexibility training session, achieve better results than others in six months of work. There are also those who become stronger after just five push-ups than I do after two strength training sessions. Our biological conditions vary. If a particular training technique does not yield results, we should look for a more effective one. A word of warning! If you have only done flexibility training without mobility elements so far, your stretching may decrease in favor of strength. Conversely, if you start stretching, your strength may decrease. Therefore, it is crucial to find your own golden mean between mobility training and training based on passive stretching.
By the way, I know someone who has been stretching for two years without ever sitting in a split. And you know what? You can't do a split without actually sitting in one ;) Similarly, solely focusing on mobility is not the ideal solution. Remember, finding the golden mean is the key to success