For many people of a certain age, high school gymnastics classes started with reaching for their toes. So over the years, we’ve been told that it’s best to stretch after exercise.
It turns out that both things may be true, but the differing advice has created some confusion.
Stretching can help make you more flexible, improve range of motion in your joints – and feel great. David Behm, who researches human kinetics at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s, Canada, offers this advice on when to stretch and how to do it safely:
It’s almost always good to stretch, but it’s best if you warm up first, said Behm, author of “The Science and Physiology of Flexibility and Stretching.” He recommends light aerobic activity, such as running, walking or cycling for five or 10 minutes.
Then do some static stretches, the traditional way of achieving and maintaining a position (think of that gym class). You can then do activity-specific dynamic stretches, in which you warm up your muscles with repetitive movements, such as leg lifts.
Behm says one minute is “the magic number” for how long to do static stretching per muscle group without fatigue.
Should you always stretch before exercising? If it’s traditional stretching, not necessarily.
The better question, says Behm, is: “Should people increase their range of motion? Should people have better flexibility? And yes, that’s because it helps prevent injuries. Helps with health. But you don’t have to work hard to achieve this.”
Resistance training, for example, can be an effective way to stretch, he said. Doing a chest press increases the range of motion in the deltoids and pectorals, whether with barbells, dumbbells or machines, so there’s no need to stretch beforehand. Just be sure to start with a small amount of weight to warm up and then add more to train.
“You probably don’t need to do extra stretching unless you’re a gymnast, a figure skater or even a golfer who needs a large range of motion during that swing,” Behm said.
You don’t even need to stretch first if you’re going for an easy run. Just start with a slow jog to warm up and then increase the pace.
After exercise, “light stretching is fine as long as you don’t get to a point where you feel pain,” Behm said. Since your muscles will be warmed up by this point, overdoing it makes you more likely to injure yourself.
Foam rollers can help with muscle recovery and have been shown to increase range of motion as well as stretch.
If you play a sport, Behm said, prior static stretching helps reduce muscle and tendon injuries.
“If you’re going to do an explosive movement, change of direction, agility, sprint, any of these explosive activities that involve muscles and tendons,” he said, “you’re going to get stronger if you do static stretching. ”
People can have problems especially when they return to a sport they used to play, be it tennis, surfing or any type of team activity.
Also, stretch both sides equally. Lack of flexibility on one side can also cause injury.
Different studies over the years have either encouraged or discouraged stretching before exercise. Behm says this in part because some studies did not reflect real-life conditions or were designed with elite athletes in mind rather than ordinary people.
“If you’re Usain Bolt, that makes a difference,” Behm said. Not so much for the rest of us.
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Albert Stumm writes about food, travel and well-being. Find his work at
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