Is flexibility training the same as stretching?

Of course it's different. Stretching can only be regarded as a basic method in flexibility training, and the two cannot be equated at all.

Many friends who are new to sports have always heard people say, "If your flexibility is low, stretch more." They often think of the two as the same thing, and they usually use them interchangeably. In fact, the difference is quite big when you really need to pay attention to it. Let me just say that I have met a little girl who studied classical dance before. When she was a child, she was forced to do a one-piece horse, and she could hit the ground with just one split. However, the teacher asked her to control her legs to 180 degrees, and she couldn't hold it for even 10 seconds. She always sprained her feet when she landed on the ground while doing the dance. The essence is that I have only done passive stretching exercises before, and have not completed complete flexibility training at all - real flexibility training requires you to be able to control the force exerted throughout the entire range of motion of the joints, not just to be pressed to the maximum angle.

Of course, some people think it is not necessary to make such a clear distinction. Ordinary people do not engage in professional sports. They usually have sore shoulders after sitting for a long time, and their legs are swollen and compressed after running. It is enough to maintain the flexibility needed in daily life, and no matter what you call it, it will not affect the effect. This actually makes sense. After all, for people who don’t have special needs, what is used is the most basic stretching part of flexibility training. There is nothing wrong with it.

But if you really have sports goals, such as wanting to practice weightlifting, do parkour, or even just want to run a full marathon without injury, then you have to separate the two. I used to have a runner in a running group who always felt that his hamstrings were tight after running for half a year. He would press his legs for 10 minutes after each run. After two months of stressing, the pain still started to hurt when he ran fast, and he even strained it once. Later, he adjusted the plan. In addition to regular static stretching, he also added After practicing terminal resistance exercises for the hamstring muscles, such as bending forward and touching the toes, holding a small dumbbell for 30 seconds, and deadlifting one leg to the lowest position and stopping for 2 seconds, he said that the pulling feeling was basically gone after less than a month of practice, and his pace increased by half a minute.

To put it bluntly, stretching is like when you buy a new cabinet and first open the cabinet door to its maximum opening and closing degree, and complete flexibility training is to install a high-quality hinge for the cabinet door. It can open to the maximum, stop at any angle without shaking, and will not fall off after being used twice. Do you think these two are the same thing?~