The importance of stretching has been ingrained in our heads since we were children. It has always been an integral part of any exercise and fitness routine. Has anyone ever questioned its value? Will it improve range of motion? Will it relieve muscle tightness permanently? Does it prevent injuries? Greg Roskopf and his Muscle Activation Techniques are providing the answers to these questions and are revolutionizing the health and fitness industry every single day. Science and common sense will help me explain, in very simple terms, why stretching isn't as useful as you thought it was! Let's be very clear here, I am not saying that increasing flexibility is harmful. It is just the means to get there that can cause all the problems.

The majority of our society lives with muscle tightness and pain. At a recent lecture of personal trainers, physical therapists and athletic trainers, we asked all in attendance to raise their hand if they had muscle tightness and/or pain. Of the 100 participants, approximately 85 people raised their hands. These are the people representing the healthy active lifestyle and trying to teach the general public how to be healthier. They are the ones telling us that by elongating our tight muscles we can prevent or actually heal injuries. Traditional healthcare has been telling us that if a muscle is tight we must stretch it. Common sense and an understanding of science tell us that this concept just doesn't work. Muscle tightness is just the symptom of the body's natural defense mechanism. Instead of focusing on symptoms, we should be looking for the cause. The principles behind Muscle Activation Techniques can prove that muscle tightness is secondary to muscle weakness.

Basic Science

So what exactly is "muscle tightness?" It can be described as a position in which a muscle cannot move optimally into a full range of motion. For this to happen, one muscle must shorten while the opposite muscle must lengthen. In the health and science field we call this the law of reciprocal inhibition. The muscle that is shortening is called the agonist. The lengthening muscle is called the antagonist. These terms are extremely important in understanding what causes limitations in movement. The agonist is the muscle that contracts in order to put you into a certain position. A simple example of this is when you are doing a bicep curl and you flex your elbow, the biceps becomes the agonist. As this motion occurs, the triceps muscle on the other side of the arm is getting longer allowing the elbow to bend. In this example, the triceps is the antagonist. If there happened to be muscle tightness or strain when moving into this position, the conventional treatment would be to stretch the triceps muscle hoping it would loosen up so that the elbow could bend further. But we are saying, "Not a chance!!" The triceps muscle is tightening up because of a weakness in the opposing elbow flexors.

So what does all this mean? Let me give you another example. How many times have you seen people trying to stretch their calf muscles? Every time I go to the park, there are always numerous people lined up with one leg hanging off a curb or the great push-against-the-wall while trying to keep one heel on the ground. That calf muscle is tightening up because of a weakness in the muscles of the shins. The calf muscle and Achilles tendon are extremely strong muscles. There have been some tests that show a cadavers Achilles pulling a truck without tearing! We have to realize that there is little to no long term effect from our attempts to stretch them. It just does not work!

Let's use a simple comparison to make some more sense of how a muscle works. Take a credit card and try to bend it. It will definitely bend but will initially come right back to its original form. Keep doing this over and over. Slowly, the card begins to lose its shape and a crack develops. A few more bends, and it breaks in half. The credit card starts in an elastic stage where it can bounce back. It ends up in the plastic stage with a permanent tear. That is exactly what stretching is doing to your muscles. With every stretch, you are slowly tearing away muscle fibers.

So what would happen if you actually did tear some muscle tissue and create a little bit of new flexibility? Do you think you will be strong in this new range? I think not. If your muscle intends to go into this newly created range it better be strong there. It is very possible that you just set yourself up for an injury.

The Power of Isometrics

So now what do you do? Isometric exercises are the easiest means to strengthen a muscle at the end ranges of motion and correct these muscle imbalances. The term isometric, derived from Greek, means "equal length." It refers to applying a force to an immovable object not allowing the muscle fibers to lengthen and shorten. An example of this is the pyramidalis muscle, a small but very important muscle that lies just below the abdominal muscles. When the force is applied during full hip flexion, the central nervous system will sense the new stability and the muscles of the hamstrings and lower back will no longer need to tighten up to protect itself. The end result is instant flexibility!