The NY Times has an interesting article on stretching.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/26/health/26real.html?ex=1361>>>>>

I'm not sure that I agree with it. As a climber, runner, and yogi, stretching is an important part of my regular routine. I even stretch at work to help muscles relax from too much computer time.

I'm curious to see what your opinion is.

Does it prevent injuries? I don't know.

Does it have other benefits? I believe that it does. I use stretching to keep my shoulders mobile and balanced. Many climbers stretch to increase mobility and movement range (i.e., leg stretching to facilitate stemming and high stepping).

Unfortunately, the article doesn't address or acknowledge any positives of stretching , so it is hard to know if research is available to show that they exist and what they are.

I will continue to stretch my old body until the fibers begin to pop like worn guitar strings. Regrettably, that may happen sooner than later..

Wasn't there a discussion about this a few weeks back. I can't seem to find it but maybe someone can?

Thanks.

The article, and your thread title are misleading.

The research showed "little or no effect on post-exercise soreness." and it cites older studdies that looked at "total injuries", but doesn't define that.

I wouldn't be surprised to find that stretching doesn't effect "muscle injuries", but I think it is helpful in preventing injuries to other connective tissues (tendons, ligaments). I think it's critical to preventing elbow tendonitis, in particular, which is relevant to climbing. Another example with running would be IT band tendonitis.

PS, at least one self-proclaimed "expert" recommends against stretching your shoulders. He says you'll make them unstable and increase the chances of dislocating, etc.

It depends on the activity. If you don't need to be flexible for your particular activity then stretching won't do much for you.
For what I do, I know for a fact it prevents injury. I do alot of acrobatic stuff and watching my friends try the same moves and get injured as all the proof I need. I'm no stronger than them but being able to bend and twist a consideralbe amount further than your average joe has led me to get very few (0)strain related injuries.

Good example take a fresh tree branch and bend it quickly. It'l bend but (probably)not break. Now take an old dried up branch and do the same. . .Instant snappage. .

Think about it, if you can't twist your shoulders past 90deg from your hips and then all of the sudden something FORCES you to twist that far well you're gonna get hurt. If you already have that flexibility then its just another day in the park. ?Entiendes?

My .02

I totally disagree with this fluff piece. Maybe it doesn't change soreness so much, but certainly helps me warm up, reduce chance of injury, and releases lactic acid after a big pump.

Mike Anderson wrote:
PS, at least one self-proclaimed "expert" recommends against stretching your shoulders. He says you'll make them unstable and increase the chances of dislocating, etc.

Mike that is an interesting theory. I would tend to believe that strength and complete and balanced muscle development would be the most important piece of joint stabilization.

I have had physical therapists prescribe specific stretches to counter my shoulder problems. Not that I believe PT's are necessarily "experts' on specific non-typical injuries such as mine. Interestingly though, the stretches do seem to help stabilize my shoulders and allow me to keep them moderately strong.

I just attended a "science to application" sports performance conference in the last three days in which the latest consensus on flexibility and injury prevention as well as sport performance was covered.

But anyway, yes, I and some other people already talked about this topic recently on another thread linked by someone else here.

Basically, meta-analyses of all the best research out there show that stretching does not appear to have an effect on injury prevention. There are a few studies that come up with an opposing conclusion, but they are small in number when compared to the conclusions of the majority of the other studies.

As for sport performance (a totally different topic), long term, non-acute stretching may be quite beneficial for people who engage in certain activities like dance, gymnastics, certain martial arts, acrobatics, etc.--mainly because their sport requires them to go into statically held positions of extreme ranges of motion.

The rest of athletes typically not do require excessively large ranges of motion for maximal performance.

Additionally, in terms of injury prevention, it important to understand that research has found that most injuries occur within NORMAL ranges of motion during eccentric loading conditions (i.e. think of that as decelerating). Therefore, if injuries are unlikely to occur beyond the range of motion your joint already has, why would increasing it supposedly protect you from injury?

I may post more info from my notes later when I have Internet access again.

From my understanding (please correct me if I am wrong) though "active" resting is still supported as a better rest then just sitting by allowing the elevated blood flow to clear the lactic acid.

Now that may not be simple stretching but for example yoga and pilates (what I consider stretching) does elevate my heart rate which would I believe fall into this category.

Basically just checking my understanding here.

The article is misleading as well as the title of this thread. The article states that stretching has no impact on post- exercise soreness. I would believe this. I am sore no matter if I stretch or dont.

However, people are arguing different things in this thread. Does stretching prevent injury? Does stretching help with your sport?

These I believe are yes. A tight groin will pull way before a lose one does. Tight hamstrings will rip before a flexible hamstring. I could go on and on. But if you have played a competitive collegiate level sport (or simmilar) this whole argument is ridiculous to you.

It is like an article I read the other day that said soda and coffee can be a normal part of your hydration routine. It said they are not dehydrating.

Who writes this stuff?

Does being strong decrease your chances of injury when doing heavy lifting?

I think the jury might still be out on Lactic acid. One effect that the article did not address is the decrease in inter-muscular coordination from an increase in lactic acid which I believe is tied to the changes in pH in the muscle.

Also here are two interesting articles on lactic acid's effect on climbers:

Lactic Acid and Climbers

What is a Pump

All I know is that I feel better after stretching, everything feels loose and ready to do. Bike riding, hiking, running, etc...I feel totally different after warming up for 15 minutes, stretching and THEN hammering away then if I just go for it. I agree with Mike A. that my forearms definitely need to get warm and stretch now at my old age of 32. That goes for every other muscle in fact.

I mean there is a reason that in almost every sport people warm up and stretch before competition.

Whether or not it diminishes soreness...I've never found that to be the case, but is this why people stretch?

Stretching can be good and bad.
I stretch the forearms in the car on the way to the crag and on the way home.
If I stretch too hard before any kind of running I always have something cramp up.
If I stretch too much before climbing something always cramps up in my neck/back.
If I stretch too much while tendinitis is acting up, it gets worse.
If I stretch enough before the tendinitis acts up it never does act up.
I always try to stretch after an activity.
Warming the body up before any activity(including stretching) is the best thing for me.

to each his own I guess.

I think folks are talking about different things in terms of "stretching before exercise." My understanding from the other thread and elsewhere is that warming up before exercise is useful. But, the sort of old-school stretching -- touch toes, etc., in the more static way -- just isn't the best way to warm up and can actually make muscles perform worse.

So for me, a ten minute or more hike to the base of a climb, and then some gentle shoulder rotations, etc., feels good. Getting out of the car at the gym and hopping on something at my limit is not good. The best I can do at the gym, if I have the patience, is do a couple laps on the easiest climb there first.

My 2 cents on stretching and injury prevention. I can see Eyes of Green 's point that a lot (most?) reported injures aren't ROM issues. But I wonder if this finding is skewed by the definition of an injury. My big injuries -- blown MCL and shoulder separations from rugby -- weren't flexibility related. My body just got forced hard and fast to move in directions it isn't supposed to at all. But I feel like I have a lot of niggling injuries that wouldn't make statistics for injuries, but that stretching seems to help reduce. Eg.., my hamstrings are so tight that it puts strain on my lower back. When I stretch, no back pain. But that's never showed up in any injury statistics.

I'd have to conclude that the reason there are so few ROM injuries is due to the fact that so many people stretch. Seeing as how just about everyone stretches the chances of them getting ROM injuries is decreased dramatically. If everyone gave up stretching there is no doubt that ROM injuries would go up.

Someone once told me stretching was like chewing gum. You have to chew it a bit first before you can stretch it. I always warm up for 10-15 minutes before I stretch anything.