Common sense is it is good to stretch after exercise or working out. I didn't know static stretching (hold stretch for like 15sec) was bad before working out/exercise, but I experienced that today. I was swimming, & got several cramps in my legs/thighs. I brushed it aside til I got a severe cramp- a Charley horse!! Holy sh*t!! I thought it was of the cold water, but did research & realized it was probably due to my bad-stretching habits... So, my questions are: Do you stretch? How often? What kind? When? I think I'm gonna hold off stretching til after exercise...prob before bed. Which I heard, it could disrupt sleep patterns, so I'll just do it after my afternoon cardio... Thanks!!!
I stretch before the gym, at the gym, after the gym, when I wake up and before I go to bed. the last session being the most intense. goes for like 20 minutes with massive emphasis on my lower half. don't do it every day, but the ones I do I feel real good.
[quote name='"ChiefyMcgee"']Common sense is it is good to stretch after exercise or working out. I didn't know static stretching (hold stretch for like 15sec) was bad before working out/exercise, but I experienced that today. I was swimming, & got several cramps in my legs/thighs. I brushed it aside til I got a severe cramp- a Charley horse!! Holy sh*t!! I thought it was of the cold water, but did research & realized it was probably due to my bad-stretching habits... So, my questions are: Do you stretch? How often? What kind? When? I think I'm gonna hold off stretching til after exercise...prob before bed. Which I heard, it could disrupt sleep patterns, so I'll just do it after my afternoon cardio... Thanks!!! [/quote] You must have done it wrong stretching before a workout is important to prevent injury
yogatic - YouTube I stretch regularly every day once or twice for 30 minutes each session, usually late night before bed or before I skate in the late morning. Really whenever I feel like I need to, It's my favorite part of the day and I'm always doing some kind of stretching . As you stretch more you'll notice that you have to stretch your whole body, there's no way around it. I try to practice all of the basic poses, and add intermediate/advanced as I need. Just search those Esthers videos, specifically "Yoga for beginners" (basic Yoga). She also has yoga geared toward specific things, such as injuries, yoga in an office chair, etc... Do you stretch often? Are you in good physical shape? I wouldn't recommend going from never stretching to doing full yoga flows and intense swimming afterwards. You should always do a light warm up before you stretch. For me this is usually a bike ride around the block or squats/arm circles/light exorcizes. I stretch like that before I exorcize and im fine. You could also be over stretching. Only stretch within your known boundaries, start slow, and immediately stop when you feel pain. I try to use my inhale to cause the stretch and on the exhale use the extra space created from the inhale to get deeper into the stretch. It's important with stretching to take your time and pay attention to small details like body alignment, your breath, the sensations you're feeling, and your thoughts. It might be worth your time to check your diet for problems with deficiencies. I'm too stoned to look up the exact stuff, but google "nutrition cramps causes" or something like that. I know bananas work wonders for preventing cramps.
I dunno, i used to swim competitively and trained every day. Id always swim for fifteen minutes to warm up, then id stretch (statically) and after stretching i always swam better. I did have cramps every now and then, mainly in my calves and toes, but i dont think id blame the stretching
Thunder Struck is right, dynamic before and static after is the proven way to go. Static stretching before actually can decrease strength when lifting weights