Stretching
After you complete the warm-up exercises, you are ready for some stretching.
Tae Kwon Do has many spectacular kicking techniques so we must teach our muscles how to relax and extend naturally if we want to be able to kick powerfully and quickly!
You should hold each stretch for 10 seconds , and repeat 10 times. Be sure to breath out when you stretch. Stretching should be gradual and relaxed. If you feel a lot of PAIN this is your body telling you to be careful. Beginners should make sure they obtain sound advice from an instructor before performing stretches for the first time!
The stretching period gives you the time to prepare your body and mind for your Tae Kwon Do session. Take the time to give some thought to the movements and techniques that you will perform today.
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| Hamstring and Calf stretch |
Calf stretch |
Hamstring stretch |
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| Inner Thigh stretch |
Hamstring stretch |
Hamstring and Calf stretch |
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| Groin stretch |
Hamstring stretch |
Quads stretch |
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| Inner Thigh stretch |
Inner Thigh stretch |
Hamstring/Quads
stretch |
Note: These exercises should be taken as a guide to stretching only
About Stretching
Stretching is one of the most important activities a martial artist
studying Tae Kwon Do can participate in.
First of all, in order to execute the highest quality techniques you
are capable of, no matter what level you perform at, your body must
be properly warmed up, and stretched out.
Secondly, the number of injuries you are likely to experience as a
result of your training is dramatically reduced by proper stretching
techniques.
Finally, your body's recovery after a training session is much faster
and more complete if you stretch properly.
A short discussion of Your Body's Structure as it relates to Stretching
Your muscles work with your bones by contracting, and thereby applying
force between the bones; this is the basis for almost all movements
that your body can make. Some muscles do work without the benefit of
applying force to bones (your tongue and your heart are good examples
of this), but they are not important to this discussion.
In order that they might apply force to the bones, the muscles are
attached to the bones by tendons. Bones are generally attached to each
other by ligaments at the joints.
Muscles are made up of individual muscle fibers, which are either relaxed,
or contracted. Muscle fibers do not ever partially contract - they are
either fully contracted, or relaxed. An individual muscle fiber cannot
change the intensity of its contraction; so the way a complete muscle
increases the overall force it generates is by contracting a larger
number of fibers. This is called "recruitment" - just like
recruiting more soldiers to do a bigger job, your muscles recruit more
fibers to perform more work.
Contraction occurs because deep inside each muscle fiber, flat plates
coated with special chemicals overlap each other; the body's nervous
system stimulates the plates electrically, and they move towards each
other. The larger the overlapping plate area, the stronger the contraction.
This is why when your arm is extended and the bicep is stretched, your
ability to close your arm is weak - the plates are pulled away from
each other and there is less overlap; hence the muscle can generate
less force. Conversely, if your arm is halfway closed, the plates are
in a well-overlapped state, and so much more force can be generated.
There are three types of muscle fibers, two types of fast-twitch and
a slow-twitch type. Slow twitch fibers are smaller in diameter, have
greater blood supply, generate greater force, get tired less easily,
and (as the name suggests) are actually slower to generate force. Fast-twitch
fibers are larger, have less blood supply, generate less force, get
tired sooner, and contract at higher speed.
All three types are generally present in all of your muscles. For training
in Tae Kwon Do, it is preferable to have fast-twitch fibers predominate,
as speed is a key factor in a large number of Tae Kwon Do techniques.
Normal Tae Kwon Do training - that is, attempting to strike, block and
move as quickly as possible - will cause your body to naturally increase
the number of fast-twitch fibers in your muscles.
Surrounding the muscle fibers is an elastic material ("elastin")
combined with a strong, inflexible material ("collagen").
These are contained in a substance which acts both as a lubricant and
a fixative.
Muscles generally work in pairs; for each motion there is an agonist,
which does the work of the movement, and an antagonist, which work against
the motion being made and also will perform the role of the agonist
when the motion is reversed. For example, when you close your arm, the
bicep is the agonist, and the tricep is the antagonist.
Stretching: What Happens?
When you stretch a particular muscle, first the individual muscle fibers
stretch, and then the connective tissue around the fiber stretches.
Interestingly, just as when a muscle is contracting only some fibers
participate, the same occurs when stretching. Some fibers stretch -
other don't. You can easily see then that the more fibers you can get
to stretch, the better the stretch will be - the longer the muscle will
get overall.
Special nervous system elements ("proprioceptors") are located
in the nerve endings of the muscular system; in the muscles, and in
the tendons as well. These "report back" to the nervous system
about the state of the nerve with regard to how much pressure it is
experiencing at any one moment. When you stretch a muscle, these nerve
endings trigger a reflex which works against the stretch - it causes
the muscle being stretched to attempt to contract, which of course in
turn reduces the amount of stretch. This reflex works normally to prevent
muscles from over-stretching in response to a sudden load. The side
effect here works against your purpose - to stretch. However, if you
hold your stretch for a while (usually 15-20 seconds is sufficient),
the reflex begins to "back off", and accordingly the muscle
will begin to elongate further. By continually stretching your muscles,
as is normal in Tae Kwon Do training, the reflex will become less intense,
allowing greater initial stretching capacity.
What needs to be stretched
Although it is useful to stretch all muscles that will be used in a
workout, the key to high performance is to concentrate on the muscles
that will be used either at, or past, the normal end of the range of
motion for those muscles when they are unstretched. Here are two examples
that should make this idea clear:
Muscle used in range
The bicep.
Extend your arm fully, so that your arm is straight, until your elbow
prevents the arm from going any further. This is a normal motion for
your arm, even though it extends all the way to the end of the range
of motion. No further motion is possible because the elbow joint is
locked, yet this is completely comfortable for most people.
Now close your arm, until the pressure of your forearm against your
bicep prevents further closure. Again, this is a normal motion for your
arm, no further motion in this direction is physically possible, and
it is completely comfortable. Since in fact there is no additional range
of motion available, it is obvious that the arm will not be used beyond
its normal (and in this situation, maximum possible) range of motion.
In the case of the bicep, stretching will not, actually cannot, extend
the range of motion nor make the bicep significantly less injury-prone.
For this reason, it is not important to stretch the bicep.
Muscle used out of range
The hamstring.
Stand with your right leg back and your left leg forward, feet about
one foot apart. With your leg kept perfectly straight, gently throw
the right leg forward and up, towards your head.
This stretches the right hamstring, which is located in the back of
the right upper thigh. At some point in its travel towards your head,
the leg will come under significant tension from the hamstring, and
it will cease rising.
Your leg's maximum possible range of motion as determined by the hip
joint is actually much further than this; in fact, you could put your
foot right behind your head if the hamstring didn't prevent such a move
- the hamstring is normally too short to allow this, however.
This kicking motion is therefore one which reaches the end of normal
range of motion. However, in the practice of Tae Kwon Do, this muscle
and related muscle groups are used to this point and in fact well beyond
it. Extending this range of motion is therefore a worthwhile and highly
sought after goal of the training, as it directly results in better
kicking techniques.
Because this muscle is used beyond the normal range of motion, it is
important to stretch it carefully and completely before attempting to
use it.
Warming Up
It is critically important that you warm up before you begin to stretch.
You should exercise with movements that have short range of motion,
such as short hops, knee lifts, and short punches.
The objective is to break a sweat. This indicates that your core temperature
is coming up, that you are "warm" in the true sense of the
word.
When warm, stretching is easier, less likely to injure you, muscles
reach greater final stretch extents, and the effects of the stetches
themselves (muscle memory) last longer.
Stretching Methods
There are a number of types of stretching methodologies:
Passive, or relaxed - Stretch using external force (i.e., a partner
or equipment)
A passive stretch is one where you assume a position and hold it with
some other part of your body, or with the assistance of a partner or
some other equipment, such as a "Flexmaster". A split counts
here, as the external force applied is gravity.
Active - Reach and hold a position using your muscles only
An active stretch is one where you assume a position and then hold
it there with no assistance other than using the strength of your agonist
muscles. A sitting stretch towards your foot is a good example.
Dynamic - gradually increasing movements and/or speed. No "jerks".
Dynamic stretching is moving parts of your body and gradually increasing
the range of motion, speed, or both.
Ballistic - "bouncing" don't do it! Actually reduces
your ability to stretch!
Ballistic stretching uses the momentum of a moving body or a limb in
an attempt to force it well beyond its normal range of motion. This
is different from Tae Kwon Do warm-up stretching kicks, where you gently,
slowly increase the stretch. This type of stretching may cause your
muscles to tighten up by repeatedly activating the stretch reflex mentioned
previously. Ballistic stretching is typified by reaching maximum stretch,
and then bouncing to go further.
Isometric - external force provides stretch, your muscles fight
it
In any position, the isometric tensioning of a muscle increases its
ability to stretch. Isometric stretching involves getting a muscle to
a stretched position, and then resisting the stretch isometrically (no
motion) for 10-15 seconds. Wait at least 20 seconds before repeating.
The stronger the muscles are, the better the technique works.
WARNING: Isometric stretching should not be performed by anyone
who is young enough that they still are experiencing bone growth.
July 22, 2007 Posted by Paul
| Tags: Information, TAGB | Stretching
