Ask the Therapist

We have joined YEG Fitness for their Ask the Therapist article. Here are our two most recent questions posed by readers and our answer.  

How important is stretching before exercising?

Stretching prior to training or exercise is important. What needs to be clarified is what type of stretching. Typically we see people doing static stretching both prior to and after training. Static stretching has a role but should be used at the end of a session as part of the cool down to increase flexibility. Prior to training incorporate dynamic stretching as part of your warm up. Dynamic stretching is controlled motion through the complete range. Do movements that mimic activities in your sport or training session. For more information check out our blog post Dynamic Stretching in Warm Up

What is the general time for Hamstring strain take to heal?

The average time for a hamstring strain to heal depends upon a five factors. Firstly the grade of the injury. Muscle strains are categorized into 3 grades. A grade 1 strain where there is not disability to a grade 3 which is a complete rupture, a grade 2 falls between these. Grade 1 strains typically resolve in around 1 week, grade 2 take 2-4 weeks and grade 3 beyond that. The second factor is if there is a prior hamstring strain. There is evidence showing that hamstring strains are a recurrent injury. Thirdly, the state of the body when the injury happened, fatigue and muscle imbalance can prolong the healing process. Fourth, the sport in which you participate. Any sport that involves running especially sprinting will take longer to get back to full competition. Finally, proper injury management. During the acute stage the principles of rest and ice are very important, followed by proper rehabilitation to increase range of motion, strength and functionality.

If you have a question about injury prevention, injury management or sport safety please email us at info@eliteinjury.com 

Follow us on Twitter @EliteInjuryMgmt and check out our website at www.eliteinjury.com 

Dynamic Stretching in Warm Up

This week Jasmine Eisenhaur, PT, MScPT is our guest blogger. This weeks focus is the importance of dynamic stretching during warm up.

As a physiotherapist who has been involved with sports for many years, whether as an athlete or a team therapist, it amazes me how many athletes still continue to statically stretch as part of a warm-up prior to competition. While this was previously the main way to stretch as part of a warm-up, it has long been known now that dynamic stretching is the more beneficial method. As Faigenbaum et al reported in their study, a brief period of static stretching negatively affected jumping and sprinting performance in children (2005). While static stretching can help to improve range of motion at a joint, in a muscle, and in the surrounding fascia, there is most definitely a more ideal time to do this than before a competition. McMillan et al found that the group who performed a dynamic warm-up had  improved performance on their measures of agility, functional leg power and total body power compared to groups that performed a warm-up with static stretches or no warm-up at all (2006). 

There are some basic guidelines you can use to ensure any athlete is getting a proper warm-up:

- Start with some light aerobic exercise ie. a jog, riding a stationary bike. Ideally this should be long enough that the athlete breaks a sweat. This is usually a few minutes in length and ensures that blood flow to the muscles has increased.

- Do dynamic stretching exercises for any muscles that will be used during the competition. Dymanic stretches should be controlled movement, meaning never too fast to lose control of the affected body part, and should be painfree.  The stretches should also move through as much of the muscle's or joint's range of motion as possible, ie. don't do a walking lunge and only go halfway down - get the most out of the stretch. 

- An effective stretching program will leave the athlete feeling limber and ready to participate without fear of injury during the competition.

While this may sound like a lot, there only needs to be one stretch for each muscle group. In many sports, ie. hockey, another more sport-specific warm-up is done before the competition, which emphasizes the importance of keeping the dynamic warm-up simple but effective while still preparing the athlete for the sport-specific warm-up. 

The one instance I will educate athletes on using static stretches as part of a warm-up is when they have been injured recently and they feel that they simply will not perform as well without statically stretching the affected muscle or joint. However, I will generally recommend to that athlete to follow the static stretch with a dynamic one when it is possible, to ensure the muscle is dynamically prepared for the competition ahead.