We all know how important stretching is. It’s been preached about for decades. We all can remember the days of being in school and having gym teachers and coaches running us all through stretches. Unfortunately, in those days it was primarily static stretches and not dynamic stretching.
People are used to the normal static stretches but are truly missing the boat by not utilizing dynamic stretching. Maybe you’ve never heard of dynamic stretching before?
This IIFYM.com article will fill you in on this amazing stretching method and explain all of the advantages of dynamic stretching and how to apply them to your active lifestyle.
(If you’re active but are looking to change your body composition and need to dial in your diet, our macro calculator is a great starting point!)
What is dynamic stretching?
Dynamic stretching is exactly as the name itself implies. With dynamic stretching, you are moving and involving the muscles for the stretch to take place. Whereas with normal static stretches you are standing or sitting still while holding the stretch for a given amount of time.
Dynamic stretching is a great way for athletes and lifters alike, to not only stretch their muscles but also incorporate a warm-up in the process due to the movement involved.
How does dynamic stretching affect the body and performance?
Dynamic stretching is a great way to tell the body that movement and even a workload is about to take place and to prepare itself. Due to the movement involved, dynamic stretching gets the blood pumping, raises the temperature of the body, and is effective at reducing muscle stiffness (which not only helps with flexibility but also helps reduce the likelihood of a muscle tear).
It’s important to incorporate dynamic stretching movements that correlate with the exercise or work that is about to be performed.
By doing this, the muscles get flooded with blood and oxygen to allow them to perform at a high level, either on the playing field or in the gym. This helps the muscle fibers and connective tissue to become more flexible and improve your overall range of motion.
In addition to the advantages listed above, dynamic stretching can also help increase power output. This is especially important for athletes who need to utilize explosive movement or lifters such as powerlifters who need to exert explosive forces against weight in order to conduct and complete an exercise or lift.
Coaching Application
Many coaches are incorporating dynamic stretching into their routines, and for good reason—they work! It’s important to incorporate dynamic stretching movements that correlate with the exercise or work that is about to be performed.
For instance, it won’t do you much good if you focused strictly on upper body stretches and did nothing for the lower body when what you’re about to do next involves running. For sports such as football, it’s important to incorporate both upper and lower body dynamic stretching.
Speaking of coaching, IIFYM.com also has coaching available as well if you wanted to put it all together and combine the sound workout program you’ve been utilizing with IIFYM nutrition coaching. You’ll get 12 weeks of online coaching and check-ins and a macro blueprint.
What are the benefits of dynamic stretching?
- Increases flexibility
- Increased range of motion
- Increase blood flow
- Increases body temperature
- Increases power output
- Increased endurance
- Improved neuromuscular activation
- Improve balance
- Improve coordination
- Decrease the risk of injury
How to incorporate dynamic stretching?
In order to set yourself up for success, you’re going to want to follow the following protocol:
- Warm-up for 5 minutes by incorporating a walk, jog, or light biking.
- Incorporate dynamic stretching movements based off of the work that will be performed.
- Begin your activity (sport or workout).
As with any exercise or nutrition program, you are going to want to speak to your doctor prior to ensure you are healthy enough to engage in such activities or alter your current daily macronutrient intake. The coaches for IIFYM want to ensure you are in great health before making any drastic changes to your lifestyle.
…you can ensure your body is ready to handle the workload you intend to put it through.
With all dynamic stretches, they should be completed using a smooth and controlled motion from start to finish. Do not use jerky motions or rushed movements or injury could occur—which is something we are trying to prevent by doing dynamic stretching in the first place.
What is an example of dynamic stretching for the whole body?
There are many different exercises that can be utilized for dynamic stretching. For this particular warm-up, we are looking at seven. These include:
- Lunge with a twist
- Knee to chest
- High kicks
- Hip stretch with a twist
- T-push-ups
- Jump squats
- Jump Lunges
Putting it all together
Use dynamic stretching as a way to prepare your body to do battle with your competitor or the weights. In doing so, you can ensure your body is ready to handle the workload you intend to put it through. Be sure to refuel your body after your workouts as well to help maintain proper hydration levels as well as speed up the recovery process.
With all of the advantages to dynamic stretching, we hope you feel it is worthy of incorporating into your routine. If we can ever be of help, our knowledgeable staff at IIFYM.com is always here to help.
If you are in need of nutrition help, IIFYM.com has many programs you can choose from. In addition, IIFYM.com has many different calculators at your disposal if you wanted to know what your total daily energy expenditure was, or your resting metabolic rate, and even your IIFYM macro breakdown.
Don’t forget to check out all of the other great articles surrounding the IIFYM lifestyle as well. Knowledge is said to be power, but the implementation of that knowledge is even more powerful.