You may have wondered it it’s best to stretch before or after exercise. Well the answer to that depends on a couple factors. It’s definitely important stretch after exercise because it helps to elongate the muscle back to it’s original length since contracting the muscle during exercise actually shortens it. While it is debatable whether or not stretching before exercise is necessary, it is definitely always important to at least warm-up before hand to get blood flowing through the muscle and lessen the chance of injury. While some people attempt to stretch cold (before warming up), this is actually a waste of time. If you are prone to injury or just coming back after an injury, you should stretch both before the exercise (but after the warm-up), and then again after it. This will decrease your risk of a strain or sprain.
Melissa Allen, BS, CPT, CES. Please visit my website at OptimumCondition.org.
