What are the precautions for flexibility training?

The most important thing to note when it comes to flexibility training is, to put it bluntly, don’t be quick or forceful. All movement ranges and training volumes must be adapted to your own physical foundation and exercise needs. Don’t blindly follow Internet celebrity tutorials to compare who is softer. I met a friend who ran a marathon a while ago. In order to improve his stride, he pressed the crossbar every time he warmed up. He was so painful that he was sweating and gritted his teeth to persist. As a result, he strained his iliopsoas muscle in half a month and stopped training for two months. All the training status he had saved before was lost.

Many people think that flexibility must be as good as possible. In fact, there are always different voices in the industry: If you practice yoga, rhythmic gymnastics, etc., of course you need a higher range of motion, but if you mainly practice powerlifting, weightlifting and other projects that require joint stability, excessive pursuit of flexibility will reduce joint support, and you are more likely to get injured when exerting heavy weight. In the past, some powerlifting enthusiasts blindly practiced shoulder opening, and the rotator cuff was not stable when bench pressing, which directly strained it. It took more than half a year before they dared to return to training.

In fact, flexibility training for us ordinary people is enough as long as it can meet our daily activities and does not affect the performance of our regular sports. There is no need to compare with people who are naturally soft. Just like the rubber bands we played with when we were children, they are bound to break easily when pulled hard when frozen. You have to rub them to warm them up and pull them slowly before you can stretch them long without damaging the elasticity. Flexibility training is also the same. Don't press hard when you get up and your body is stiff. It is best to do an aerobic warm-up for about 10 minutes first, such as aerobics in place or jogging for two laps. You can practice it again after your body feels warm and your muscles are no longer tight. The effect will be good and you will not be easily injured.

Many people still debate whether static stretching or dynamic stretching is better. In fact, it is not so absolute: it is more appropriate to use dynamic stretching during warm-up, such as doing a few sets of side lunges and arm wraps to slowly open up the range of motion, which will not affect subsequent sports performance.； If you want to relax after training or before going to bed, use static stretching. Just hold each movement for 15 to 30 seconds. A slight stretching feeling is enough. Stop immediately if it hurts. Don't believe the old saying that "pain is effective", it is all outdated and wrong experience.

There is another small detail that many people don't pay attention to. Don't hold your breath when practicing flexibility. Just breathe at a normal and steady speed. When you hold your breath, your muscles will subconsciously tighten. Not only will the stretching effect be poor, but you may also feel dizzy due to insufficient blood supply to the brain. Don’t just practice stretching without strengthening the surrounding muscles. I once taught a novice student. In order to improve the ankle compression during running, I practiced ankle flexibility for a week without adding any strength around the ankle. As a result, I sprained my foot when I stepped downstairs. The swelling took almost a week to go away. To put it bluntly, the stretching range of motion must be supported by sufficient muscle strength, otherwise the joint will be loose and more likely to be injured.