3 Easy Steps To Increase Your MOBILITY! Why Stretching Doesn't Work Pt 2
We've Discussed why passive stretching Is not going to help you with improving your mobility long term (click here for that video)...
Now Here is an easy 3-step process that's going to get that new range of motion to stick!
1. start with passive stretching (just holding a stretch) for 2 minutes.
2. After 2 minutes of holding, isometrically (don't move out of the stretch) activate the agonist muscle groups. The agonist muscle groups are the ones you have been stretching.
build up the intensity, until you get to an almost max contraction. hold it for a ten seconds. And then from this end range position, activate the muscles on the antagonist or shortened side (the opposite muscle groups).
*Important* You're not going to be able to move because you are at your end range, but you're contracting there for ten seconds. you're then Going to relax back into that passive stretch. so you're no longer pushing or trying to contract any muscles now.
hold this passive stretch about thirty seconds.
Then, You're going to repeat, pushing into it so the agonists are working, building up the contraction for ten seconds. Then fire the antagonists, pulling yourself deeper into the stretch.
3. Last and most important step!!!!
Now you need to build stability through the entire range of motion. And you need to also be able to function through that entire range of motion.
So you're gonna grab a band. move into that stretch position, where there's still some tension on the band, and then come back and release the tension. The point of this exercise is to control moving into that new range of motion. And using the agonist to eccentrically control the motion.
RECAP
1. Passive stretch
2. Contract muscles being stretched (lengthened), contract muscles on other side (shortened). Repeat again
3. move with resistance through full (new) Range of Motion.
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just doing this once or twice isn't going to help this stick. It is something that you'd want to work into a daily routine.
There you have it - STRETCH GAINS!!!!