is Stretching overrated?
DISCLAIMER: While we are medical professionals, this article does not serve as medical advice. Please seek the guidance of a medical professional for your specific body before taking advice from anyone on the internet, including us.
Too often we hear our patients say, “I don’t know how I injured myself, I stretch all the time!” But for sports injury prevention, it’s not about stretching, it’s about building strength and reactivity.
Think about the mobility of your shoulder joint when you’re throwing a ball. If you’ve been throwing in a sport for a while, odds are that you already have the natural flexibility to achieve that throw. But, in order to continue throwing at speed for years on end, you need to focus on the strength of your muscles to sustain constant throwing power. You need to be strong in your core, legs, and all of the muscles groups that stabilize your body while you throw.
strength training vs stretching
In a study in the Journal of Sports Medicine, three authors studied if physical activities could reduce sports injuries, so they studied strength training, stretching, proprioception (which essentially means, hand eye coordination or reactivity) and combinations of these.
The study found that strength training is highly effective in reducing injuries, with a significant decrease in the risk of injury. Hand-eye-coordination training and “multiple exposure programs“ (think of this as circuit training) also show positive results in injury prevention. However, stretching exercises don't seem to have a significant protective effect against injuries.
More studies needed in sports physical therapy
Like in all good studies, the authors suggest that further research is needed, especially in exploring the benefits of strength training for a wider range of injuries. It also advises that when doing strength training to prevent injury, it only works if you’re doing well-proven work outs. Or in other words - you have to do the right exercises to prevent injury or re-injury within your sport.
“weirdest pt I’ve ever done”
This is why we love it when our patients say that we’re more like “a hard workout” than a PT office. Or, thanks to our proprioception drills, that we’re the “weirdest PT they’ve ever done.”
For most people that walk into our gym, they can’t tell the difference between our performance training clients and our physical therapy clients. They’re all working on building strength and reactivity. Our expertise is based on giving you the right exercises, the right amount, at the right time.
Be strong, and see you at the gym!