Muscle Medicine: The Revolutionary Approach to Maintaining, Strengthening, and Repairing Your Muscles and Joints by Rob Destefano, Joseph Hooper Page A
Authors: Rob Destefano, Joseph Hooper
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relief between sessions.
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and their own explanations for how and why they work. Some of them talk about manually breaking up microscopic scar tissue or “adhesions” (ART) or nodules of painfully contracted muscle (Trigger Point Therapy). But broadly considered, they’re all trying to do pretty much the same thing: relax tight muscles, relieve pressure on the joints and nerves, and, in most general terms, bring movement (and with it, blood flow and oxygen) to a musculoskeletal system that may have grown restricted and stagnant.
STRETCHING
As discussed, stretching has generated a lot of skepticism in the sports medicine world. Study after study has failed to find much benefit from it: it does not improve athletic performances nor reduce injury rates. But here’s the catch. The research has only looked at the traditional “static” form of stretching where you hold the stretch. (Picture a jogger with his leg up on the park bench and bending at the waist, reaching for his toes.)
The stretches we think are most generally valuable are “dynamic.” They incorporate movement, and the stretch is never held for more than a couple of seconds, if at all. So is static stretching bad? No. Static stretching has its uses, as do all the stretching styles. Once again, it’s a question of matching the right solution with the right problem. Here’s a quick and simple look at what’s available.
• Static stretching is the conventional and probably still the most popular way to stretch. The static stretcher typically brings the muscle right to the end of its range of motion and holds it there for twenty or thirty seconds. Over time, the muscles, tendons, and ligaments can lengthen, which increases flexibility, but flexible tendons and ligaments are not generally a good thing. Gymnasts, dancers, and martial artists benefit from this improvement in “end range,” but most athletes, recreational or elite, play sports that don’t need any special flexibility (distance running, cycling, etc.), so for them the argument in favor of static stretching isn’t strong. In fact, static stretching, rather than preparing the body for a workout, may weaken the muscle for a time, making it the worst possible pre-workout choice. Furthermore, even if an area of the body has been properly warmed up beforehand, a static stretch can trigger a muscle reflex that actually tightens the muscle, which may lead to irritation of the tendon/muscle area. In postsurgicalrehab, static stretching can be effective for breaking down or preventing the formation of scar tissue in order to bring a joint back to a normal range of movement.
• Dynamic stretches incorporate movement, usually emphasizing continuous, rhythmic motion (see the stretch exercises on page 53) that brings blood to the area, loosening and warming up muscles and tendons and preparing them for the increased effort of a workout. They also provide a safe way to relax muscles that have been stressed and shortened during a workout, for example, a run or weight-lifting session. They’re equally good for the nonathlete moving through the middle or senior years, as a way to counteract the tightening and stiffening of the connective tissue that occurs with age.
• Active-isolated stretching is a specific type of dynamic stretching (see the stretches at the end of the “hot-spot” chapters). The motion is rhythmic and the stretch is held for no more than two seconds. These stretches provide an effective way to restore a normal range of motion in targeted muscles without stressing tendons or triggering the body reflexes that tighten up muscles.
STRENGTH WORK
The muscles are one of the body’s shock absorbers and an important line of defense against damage to the joints. Building up strength in the muscles and connective tissues that stabilize and drive the joints is the goal of the final phase of our strategy and program. We’re not interested in pumping up “trophy” muscles in the gym. We
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and their own explanations for how and why they work. Some of them talk about manually breaking up microscopic scar tissue or “adhesions” (ART) or nodules of painfully contracted muscle (Trigger Point Therapy). But broadly considered, they’re all trying to do pretty much the same thing: relax tight muscles, relieve pressure on the joints and nerves, and, in most general terms, bring movement (and with it, blood flow and oxygen) to a musculoskeletal system that may have grown restricted and stagnant.
STRETCHING
As discussed, stretching has generated a lot of skepticism in the sports medicine world. Study after study has failed to find much benefit from it: it does not improve athletic performances nor reduce injury rates. But here’s the catch. The research has only looked at the traditional “static” form of stretching where you hold the stretch. (Picture a jogger with his leg up on the park bench and bending at the waist, reaching for his toes.)
The stretches we think are most generally valuable are “dynamic.” They incorporate movement, and the stretch is never held for more than a couple of seconds, if at all. So is static stretching bad? No. Static stretching has its uses, as do all the stretching styles. Once again, it’s a question of matching the right solution with the right problem. Here’s a quick and simple look at what’s available.
• Static stretching is the conventional and probably still the most popular way to stretch. The static stretcher typically brings the muscle right to the end of its range of motion and holds it there for twenty or thirty seconds. Over time, the muscles, tendons, and ligaments can lengthen, which increases flexibility, but flexible tendons and ligaments are not generally a good thing. Gymnasts, dancers, and martial artists benefit from this improvement in “end range,” but most athletes, recreational or elite, play sports that don’t need any special flexibility (distance running, cycling, etc.), so for them the argument in favor of static stretching isn’t strong. In fact, static stretching, rather than preparing the body for a workout, may weaken the muscle for a time, making it the worst possible pre-workout choice. Furthermore, even if an area of the body has been properly warmed up beforehand, a static stretch can trigger a muscle reflex that actually tightens the muscle, which may lead to irritation of the tendon/muscle area. In postsurgicalrehab, static stretching can be effective for breaking down or preventing the formation of scar tissue in order to bring a joint back to a normal range of movement.
• Dynamic stretches incorporate movement, usually emphasizing continuous, rhythmic motion (see the stretch exercises on page 53) that brings blood to the area, loosening and warming up muscles and tendons and preparing them for the increased effort of a workout. They also provide a safe way to relax muscles that have been stressed and shortened during a workout, for example, a run or weight-lifting session. They’re equally good for the nonathlete moving through the middle or senior years, as a way to counteract the tightening and stiffening of the connective tissue that occurs with age.
• Active-isolated stretching is a specific type of dynamic stretching (see the stretches at the end of the “hot-spot” chapters). The motion is rhythmic and the stretch is held for no more than two seconds. These stretches provide an effective way to restore a normal range of motion in targeted muscles without stressing tendons or triggering the body reflexes that tighten up muscles.
STRENGTH WORK
The muscles are one of the body’s shock absorbers and an important line of defense against damage to the joints. Building up strength in the muscles and connective tissues that stabilize and drive the joints is the goal of the final phase of our strategy and program. We’re not interested in pumping up “trophy” muscles in the gym. We
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