Static Stretching 2

7/28/2019 Static Stretching 2

1/6

S TATIC S TRETCHING I MPAIRS S PRINT P ERFORMANCEIN C OLLEGIATE T RACK AND F IELD A THLETESJ ASON B. W INCHESTER ,1 A RNOLD G. N ELSON ,1 D ENNIS L ANDIN ,1 M ICHAEL A. Y OUNG ,1

AND I RVING C. S CHEXNAYDER 21 Department of Kinesiology; 2 Athletics Department, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

A BSTRACT

Previous research has shown that static stretching (SS) candiminish the peak force output of stretch-shortening cycleactions while performing a dynamic warm-up (DW) protocol hasbeen shown to enhance performance in similar activities. Thepurpose of this study was to establish whether the deleteriouseffects of SS would wash out the performance enhancementsobtained from the DW. Eleven males and 11 females, who wereathletes of a NCAA Division I track team, performed a DWfollowed with either a SS or rest (NS) condition. After warm-upwas completed, three 40 m sprints were performed toinvestigate the effects of the SS condition on sprint performancewhen preceded by DW. Time(s) were obtained from timing gatesplaced at 0, 20, and 40 m respectively. Testing was conductedover 2 days with a 1 week washout period. Testing order wasbalanced to eliminate possible order effect. Time for the NSversus the SS group was signicantly faster for the second 20 m

with a time of 2.41 versus 2.38 seconds (P #

.05), and for theentire 40 m with a time of 5.6 6 0.4 versus 5.7 6 0.4 seconds(P # .05). The results of this study suggest that performing a SSprotocol following a DW will inhibit sprint performance incollegiate athletes.

K EY WORDS exibility, sprinting, track & eld, active warm-up

I NTRODUCTION

Flexibility (joint range of motion) is promoted as an

important component of physical tness (26). It iswidely conjectured that increasing exibility willpromote better performances and reduce the

incidence of injury (29,31). Consequently, stretching exer-cises designed to enhance exibility are regularly included in

both the training programs, and the pre-event warm-upactivities of many athletes (16).

Notwithstanding the widespread acceptance and use of stretching exercises as a major component of pre-eventactivities, the purported benets of stretching upon perfor-mance and injury prevention have come into question inseveral review papers (13,38). In addition, recent research hasestablished an adverse effect of acute static stretching uponvarious different maximal performances. For example, pre-event stretching has demonstrated an inhibitory effect onmaximal force or torque production (3,11,23), vertical jumpperformance (40), and running speed (24).

The use of a dynamic warm-up protocol (DW) hasgarnered attention in the literature in recent years as aneffective means of enhancing athletic performance andproviding for a safe warm-up procedure (8). Young andBehm (40) found an increase in countermovement jumpheight and rate of force development (RFD) when using DWover performing a traditional, general warm-up. In addition,the same researchers reported a signicant performanceincrease in drop jump height, countermovement jump,contact time, RFD, and peak force when using DWcompared to static stretching (40). Similar results have beenreported by Fletcher and Jones (10) with an increase in sprintperformance, by Stewart et al. (32) improved powerproduction, and Trimble and Harp (35) with a potentiationof the H-reex. Additional research conrmed the abovendings (8).

Given the deleterious effect of passive muscle stretching ina laboratory setting on skills relying on the rate of forceproduction and peak force generation, one could assume that

preperformance stretching would negatively inuence theperformance of explosive sports such as sprinting (24). Whatis found in the laboratory, however, does not always directlytransfer to sport performances. For an example, one can look at the confounding results such as those reported in Littleand Williams (19), who was able to demonstrate an im-provement in sprint performance using both static anddynamic stretching protocols in a 20 m ying sprint start, butthe dynamic stretch group only improved in a 10 m sprintfrom a standard start. Since preperformance stretching is stillwidely practiced by sport coaches, it was questioned whetherthe negative inuence noted in earlier research would

Address correspondence to Jason B. Winchester, [email protected].

1533-4287/22(1)/1318 Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 2008, National Strength and Conditioning Association

VOLUME 22 | NUMBER 1 | JANUARY 2008 | 13


2/6


3/6


4/6

and nearly identical statistical results to those mentionedabove were obtained.

Originally, data was separated for examination of possiblegendereffects.However, upon analysis of the data, both malesand females experienced a similar decit in performance.

Considering these results, data from both genders werecollapsed into onegroup to allow forgreater statistical power.These results on a lack of gender specic response to staticstretching as it relates to muscular performance would seemto be consistent with earlier research (18).

D ISCUSSION

The major nding of this study was a 3% decrease in sprintperformance at 40 m when the subjects participated in thestatic stretching protocol. This deleterious effect on sprintperformance occurred despite having undergone an extensivedynamic warm-up prior to the stretching condition. Asmentioned above, previous research has shown that an acutebout of passive muscle stretching can impede maximal forceproduction in both isometric and concentric contractions(3,11). In addition, prior stretching can also compromise theperformance of a skill where success is dependent on the rateof force production or power, rather than just the ability tomaximize force output (24,40). Our results show that thetime of a 40 m sprint was signicantly increased whenpreceded by static stretching. Thus, it appears that pre-performance stretching exercises negatively impact skills thatrequire multiple repetitive high power outputs in addition to

those that depend mainly on maximizing a single output of peak force or power.

Stewart et al. (32) demonstrated an increase in EMGactivity following the use of a dynamic warm-up protocol.In addition, they found an increase in maximal instantaneouspower which suggested that use of this type of warm-upmethod was benecial to performance. Dynamic warm-upshave been reported as an effective measure to increase sportspecic skills such as sprinting (10), and jumping (8,40). Onepossible mechanism for this increase in performance witha dynamic warm-up and for observed decreases with staticstretching was proposed by Rosenbaum and Hennig (27)

who noted an increase inAchilles tendon compliancefollowing a static stretch in-tervention. Rosenbaum andHennig (27) noted that thegroup who participated in a jogging warm-up rather thanstatic stretching, displayeda stiffer tendon which corre-lated with increased perfor-mance in force production.

Another possible mechanismhas been proposed by Wilson

et al. (39), who suggested that for concentric muscle actions,a stiffer system would improve contractile component forceproduction by allowing more favorable length and velocityconditions. Specically, they proposed that at a given state of contraction, a stiffer musculotendinous unit should give rise

to a greater length and a decreased shortening velocity of thecontractile component, thereby placing the contractilecomponent at a more optimal point on both the force/velocity and force/length curve in terms of force production.This is because there is not as much slack in a stiffer systemthat has to be taken up during the initial part of thecontraction. Extrapolating to the present study, stretching might have affected sprint performance by preventing theknee and hip extensors from operating over the mostfavorable parts of their force/length and force/velocitycurves.

Another possibility is that the performance may have beenhindered during the running portion of the sprint bya decreased ability of the musculotendinous unit to storeelastic energy following a stretch-induced increase inmusculotendinous compliance. Both muscular and tendinoustissues have theability to store elastic strain energyafter being stretched by an external force. Although disputed by someinvestigators (5,36), many authors report that the stretch-shortening phenomenon might be partly explained by therelease of elastic energy that is stored in the musculotendi-nous structures during the eccentric phase of stretchshortening-cycle exercises such as running, a mechanismreferred to as elastic potentiation (2,13,14,17). The amount of elastic energy that can be stored in the musculotendinous

unit is a function of the units stiffness and the extensionproduced by an imposed force (30). Belli and Bosco (4)suggested that an optimum stiffness might exist thatmaximizes the magnitude of elastic energy return. Further-more, they demonstrated that the active stiffness of thetriceps surae, measured using a vertical oscillation techniquewith motion restricted to the ankle joint only, was in factlower than the theoretical optimal stiffness calculated fortheir participants. Consequently, an acute bout of passivemuscle stretching might compromise the effect of a stretch-shorten cycle by decreasing active musculotendinousstiffness, thereby reducing the amount of elastic energy that

TABLE 1. The effect of stretch treatment on sprint time.

Values are Mean 6 SD.Variable : Time (seconds) 1st 20 m 2nd 20 m 40 m

Stretch 3.32 6 0.22 2.41 6 0.21* 5.72 6 0.42*No Stretch 3.28 6 0.46 2.38 6 0.35 5.62 6 0.42

*Signicant between stretch and no stretch conditions ( P # 0.05).

16 Journal of Strength and Conditioning Researchthe TM

Stretching and Sprint Performance


5/6

can be stored and re-utilized. A stretch-induced decrease inmusculotendinous stiffness has been demonstrated in somestudies (20,27), but not in others (12). In addition, McNairand Stanley (21) found passive stretching to have no effectupon the stiffness of the lower limb muscles during anisometric contraction at 30% maximal effort. However, noneof these studies measured stiffness under dynamic conditionsof repeated stretch-shortening cycles, and so the impact of passive stretching under actual sprinting remains to bedetermined. Interestingly, Nelson et al. (23) showed thatstatic stretching did not hinder maximal voluntary isokineticknee-extension torque production at faster speeds of movement. Since movement speeds investigated in theNelson et al. (23) study were slower than the limb movementspeeds in sprinting, one could have speculated that stretching would have little impact on sprinting. However, more recentdata reported by Cramer and colleagues (9) demonstrateda reduction in isokinetic peak torque at both slow and fast

movements, thus supporting the idea that pre-event stretch-ing can inhibit high velocity strength performance. It isimportant to distinguish that while maximal voluntary iso-kinetic knee-extension torque production does not employthe stretch-shortening cycle, sprinting does.

There arealso neurological mechanisms thatcould accountfora stretch-induced decline in the performance.Oneof theseinvolves the disruption of stretch reex activity. Bosco et al.(7) have proposed that the eccentric phase of a stretch-shortening movement initiates a myoelectric potentiation(i.e., a stretch reex which increases muscle activation during the period of concentric work). Rosenbaum and Hennig (27)demonstrated that muscle stretching could diminish thestrength of the stretch reex, elicited by an Achilles tendontap. Thus, pre-exercise stretching might negatively impactthe performance of skills that involve a stretch-shorten cycleby impeding myoelectric potentiation. Another potentialneural mechanism is related to the acute response of muscleand/or joint proprioceptors (e.g., Golgi tendon organs) tosustained stretch. Golgi tendon organs respond to tension byinitiating a reex inhibition (autogenic inhibition) of themuscle being stretched and its synergists in both theipsilateral and contralateral legs (22).

Notwithstanding the statistical signicance of this studysndings, the universal applicability of these ndings could be

questioned in terms of both magnitude and duration of thestretch-induced inhibition. Because the participants per-formed the sprints within 10 minutes of the last stretch, wecannot state if a similar effect would be evident, 30 minuteslater. Moreover, the 40 m sprint was much shorter than thestandard competition sprints performed indoors (60 m) andoutdoors (100, 200, and 400 m). Hence, it is not knownwhether the 0.1 second difference seen between thestretchedand nonstretched conditions would accumulate, remainstatic, or decrease over a longer distance. However, Fowleset al. (11) found that a 9% decrement in maximum isometricplantar exion torque was present 60 minutes following an

aggressive 30 minute stretching of the plantarexors. Thus, itappears that the capacity of pre-event stretching to havea negative impact could endure for a time much longer thanthat of even the longest sprints. The duration of the stretchesused in this study, however, were shorter than those of Fowles et al. (11). Hence, one would presume that themagnitude of any decrease and its duration would be lessthan that reported by Fowles et al. (11). Clearly, furtherresearch is required to establish both the magnitude of prestretching necessary to cause a deleterious effect, and thetime-course between the maintenance of the increased rangeof motion and the resumption of the capacity to generatemaximal power.

P RACTICAL A PPLICATIONS

Although the mechanisms responsible for the performancedecrements cannot be unequivocally established from the

present data, the ndings from this experiment, nonetheless,have important ramications. This study shows that passivemuscle stretching can negatively impact the performance of a skill that demands repetitive high power outputs even whenpreceded by a dynamic warm-up protocol. This effect mayinuence movements performed with either a purely concen-tric contraction (i.e., explosive take-off out of the starting blocks), a concentric phase followed by repetitive stretch-shortening cycle actions, or both. The performance of otherskills, therefore, might be affected if an acute bout of stretching is undertaken immediately prior to engaging in activity (e.g.,longjumping, high jumping, pole vaulting).Thus,in addition toestablishing the underlying mechanisms, further researchshould be conducted to determine if this studys ndingscould be generalized across a variety of skills. Presently, theresults only indicate that the knee and hip muscles should notbe passively stretched just prior to performing sprints if theintent is to maximize speed.This recommendation opposesthegeneral perception that passive stretching before vigorousexercise is always a prudent practice.

A CKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors would like to thank the LSU Track and FieldTeam for their assistance in performing this study, oursubjects, and the LSU Department of Kinesiology.

R EFERENCES1. Alexander, RM. The spring in your step: The role of elastic

mechanisms in human running. Biomechanics XI-A. (Edited byG. de Groot, A.P. Hollander, P.A. Huijing, and G.I. van IngenSchenau), pp. 1725. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. 1988.

2. Aura, O and Komi, PV. Effects of prestretch intensity on mechanicalefciency of positive work and on elastic behavior of skeletalmuscle in stretch-shortening cycle exercise. Int J Sports Med 7:137143, 1986.

3. Avela, J, Kyrolainen, H, and Komi, PV. Altered reex sensitivityafter repeated and prolonged passive muscle stretching. J Appl Physiol 86: 12831291, 1999.

VOLUME 22 | NUMBER 1 | JANUARY 2008 | 17

Journal of Strength and Conditioning Researchthe TM

| www.nsca-jscr.org


6/6

4. Belli, A and Bosco, C. Inuence of stretch-shortening cycle onmechanical behaviour of triceps surae during hopping. Acta Physiol Scand 144: 401408, 1992.

5. Bobbert, MF, Gerritsen, KGM, Litgens, MCA, and Van Soest, AJ.Why is countermovement jump height greater than squat jumpheight? Med Sci Sports Exer 28: 14021412, 1992.

6. Bosco, C and Komi, PV. Potentiation of the mechanical behavior of the human skeletal muscle through prestretching. Acta Physiol Scand 106: 467472, 1979.

7. Bosco, C, Viitasalo, JT, Komi, PV, and Luhtanen, P. Combined effect of elastic energy and myoelectrical potentiation during stretch-shortening cycle exercise. Acta Physiol Scand 114: 557565, 1982.

8. Burkett, LN, Phillips, WT, and Ziuraitis, J. The best warm-up for thevertical jump in college-age athletic men. J Strength Cond Res 19:673676, 2005.

9. Cramer, JT, Housh, TJ, Johnson, GO, Miller, JM, Coburn, JW,and Beck, TW. Acute effects of static stretching on peak torque inwomen. J Strength Cond Res 18: 236241, 2004.

10. Fletcher, IM and Jones B. The effect of different warm-up stretchprotocols on 20 meter sprint performance in trained rugby unionplayers. J Strength Cond Res 18: 885888, 2004.

11. Fowles, JR, Sale, DG, and MacDougall, JD. Reduced strength afterpassive stretch of the human plantarexors. J Appl Physiol 89:11791188, 2000.

12. Halbertsma, JP, Van Bolhuis, AI, and Goeken, LN. Sport stretching:effect on passive muscle stiffness of short hamstrings.Arch Phys Med Rehab 77: 688692, 1996.

13. Herbert, RD and Gabriel, M. Effects of stretching before and afterexercising on muscle soreness and risk of injury: systematic review. Br Med J 325: 468470A, 2002.

14. Hof, AL. In vivo measurement of the series elasticity release curve of the human triceps surae muscle. J Biomech31: 793800, 1998.

15. Hof, AL, Geelen, BA, and Van Denberg, J. Calf muscle moment,work and efciency in level walking: Role of series elasticity.J Biomech16: 523537, 1983.

16. Holcomb, WR. Stretching and warm-up. In: Baechle TR and Earle

RW. (Eds), Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning (2nded). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. 2000.17. Komi, PV and Bosco, C. Utilization of stored elastic energy in leg

extensor muscles by men and women. Med Sci Sports Exer 10:261265, 1978.

18. Kokkonen J, Nelson, AG, and Cornwell, A. Acute muscle stretching inhibits maximal strength performance. Res Q Exerc Sport 69:411415, 1998.

19. Little, Tand Williams, AG. Effects of differential stretching protocolsduring warm-ups on high-speed motor capacities in professionalsoccer players. J Strength Cond Res 20: 2037, 2006.

20. Magnusson, PS, Simonsen, EB, Aagaard, P, and Kjaer, M.Biomechanical responses to repeated stretches in human hamstring muscle in vivo. Am J Sports Med 24: 622628, 1996.

21. McNair, PJ and Stanley, SN. Effect of passive stretching and jogging on the series elastic muscle stiffness and range of motion of the ankle joint. Br J Sports Med 30: 313317, 1996.

22. Moore, JC. The Golgi tendon organ: a review and update. Am J Occ Ther 38: 227236, 1984.

23. Nelson, AG, Allen, JD, Cornwell, A, and Kokkonen, J. Inhibition of maximal voluntary isometric torque production by acute stretching is joint-angle specic. Res Q Exer Sport 72: 6870, 2001.

24. Nelson, AG, Driscoll, NM, Landin, DK, Young, MA, andSchexnayder, IC. Acute Effects of Passive Muscle Stretching onSprint Performance. J Sports Sci 23: 449454, 2005.

25. Nelson, AG, Guillory, IK, Cornwell, A, and Kokkonen, J. Inhibitionof maximal voluntary isokinetic torque production following stretching is velocity specic. J Strength Cond Res 15:241246, 2001.

26. Pollock, ML, Gaesser, GA, Butcher, JD, Despres, JP, Dishman, RK,Franklin, BA, and Garber, CE. ACSM Position Stand on therecommended quantity and quality of exercise for developing and maintaining cardiorespiratory and muscular tness, andexibility in healthy adults.Med Sci Sports Exer 30:975991, 1998.

27. Rosenbaum, D and Hennig, EM. The inuence of stretching andwarm-up exercises on Achilles tendon reex activity. J Sport Sci 13:481490, 1995.

28. Safran, MR, Seaber, AV, and Garrett, WE. Warm-up and muscularinjury prevention. An update. Sports Med 2: 26727, 1989.

29. Shellock, FG and Prentice, WE. Warming up and stretching forimproved physical performance and prevention of sports relatedinjuries. Sports Med 2: 267268, 1985.

30. Shorten, MR. Muscle elasticity and human performance. Med Sports Sci 25: 118, 1987.

31. Smith, CA. The warm up procedure: To stretch or not to stretch.A brief review. J Ortho Sport Phys Ther 19: 1217, 1994.

32. Stewart, D, Macaluso, A, and De Vito, G. The effect of an activewarm-up on surface EMG and muscle performance in healthyhumans. Eur J Appl Physiol 89: 509514, 2003.

33. Taylor,DC, Dalton JD, Jr, Seaber, AV, and Garrett, WEJ. Viscoelasticproperties of muscle-tendon units. The biomechanical effects of stretching. Am J Sports Med 18: 300309, 1990.

34. Thigpen, LK, Moritani, T, Thiebaud, R, and Hargis, JL. The acuteeffects of static stretching on alpha motoneuron excitability. In

Biomechanics IX-A (Edited by Winter, DA, Norman, RW, Wells, RP,Hayes, KC, and Patla AE.), pp. 352357, 1985.35. Trimble MH and Harp, SS. Postexercise potentiation of the

H-reex in humans. Med Sci Sport Exer 30: 933941, 1988.36. Van Ingen Schenau, GJ, Bobbert, MF, and De Haan, A. Does

elastic energy enhance work and efciency in the stretch-shortening cycle? J Appl Biomech13: 389415, 1997.

37. Vujnovich, AL and Dawson, NJ. The effect of therapeutic musclestretching on neural processing. J Ortho Sports Phys Ther 20:145153, 1994.

38. Weldon, SM and Hill, RH. The efcacy of stretching for preventionof exercise-related injury: a systematic review of the literature.Man Ther 8: 141150, 2003.

39. Wilson, GJ, Murphy, AJ, and Pryor, JF. Musculotendinous stiffness:its relationship to eccentric, isometric, and concentric performance.J Appl Physiol 76: 27142719, 1994.

40. Young, WB and Behm, DG. Effects of running, static stretching andpractice jumps on explosive force production and jumping performance. J Sports Med Phys Fit 43: 2127, 2003.

18 Journal of Strength and Conditioning Researchthe TM

Stretching and Sprint Performance

Documents

Static Stretching 2