“That stretching is only for women is a myth”. Personal story of an athlete

In the fitness world, there are often stereotypes and prejudices associated with certain exercises and approaches. One of these is the belief that stretching and flexibility are exclusively “feminine” aspects of fitness. There are tons of marathons and courses dedicated to stretching and aimed solely at a female audience. However, stretching is actually very important for men as well, especially if they are looking to improve their performance in strength training. A vivid example of this is our hero Dmitry Afanasov.

fitness tréner

My experience is 21 years, of which 11 years I have been coaching. I am not a beginner in sports for a long time, but I have always had exercises that were harder than others. My least favorite was “leg day.” It was hard to squat, I felt discomfort in my lower back and hips. Before one of the lower body workouts, I decided to try some stretching and the class went much better. Another time before pumping my back, I did the stretching again and the muscles responded really great too. So I decided to do an experiment and do stretching every morning for a month.

What approach did I use?

Static and dynamic stretching are two different approaches that affect muscles and joints in different ways.

Static involves stretching the muscles to a certain point and holding that position without movement for a period of time – usually 15 to 60 seconds. This approach is usually used after a workout or physical activity. During static stretching, the muscles are stretched passively, without active movement, and held in a stretched state. This allows them to relax and increase flexibility.

I, on the other hand, did dynamic stretching. It consists of repetitive movements that activate muscles and joints: first you stretch the muscle and then you contract it. This type is performed before a workout to warm up the muscles and improve joint mobility. This warm-up helps the body develop in a balanced way and reduces the risk of injury.

What kind of exercises did I do?

Every morning I did a full-body complex for 15-20 minutes, starting with my legs and ending with my neck muscles. If there was a workout that day, before it, I would repeat part of the complex for the muscle group I was going to train.

Here are a few exercises you can try to add to your warm-up.

Quadriceps stretch

Technika

• Stand up straight, rest your hand on a wall or other support for balance.
• Bend one leg at the knee, grab it by the ankle and slowly pull the heel towards the buttock.
• Feel a stretch in the front of your thigh. Hold this position for a few seconds and then return to the starting position.
• Opakujte s druhou nohou.

Hojdačky tam a späť

Technika

• Standing straight, lean against a wall or other support. Raise one leg and perform back and forth swings. Try to do the exercise with maximum amplitude, but without jerking.
• Return the leg to the starting position and repeat the movement with the other leg.
• This exercise helps to stretch the hips and buttocks.

Swings from side to side

Technika

• Standing at the support, lift one leg and perform side-to-side swings. Try to perform the exercise with maximum amplitude, but without jerks.
• Return the leg to the starting position and repeat the movement with the other leg.
• This exercise helps to stretch the muscles of the inner and outer surface of the thigh.

Rotations of the arms with a stick

Technika

• Take a stick or rope with a wide grip and hold it in front of you at waist level.
• Slowly raise your arms over your head and then lower them behind your back without bending your elbows.
• Then also slowly return to the starting position.
• If you can’t get your arms behind your back, try spreading them wider.
• This exercise helps to stretch and stretch the shoulder and pectoral muscles.

Incline with a turn of the body

Technika vykonávania

• Starting position is standing, legs wide apart. Keeping your back straight, lean forward and reach with your left hand to the toe of your right foot, your right hand stretches upwards.
• Try to turn the body as much as possible. Then repeat to the other side.

Turns in a squat

Technika

• Starting position – deep squat, toes and knees apart.
• Lower the left hand to the floor and point the right hand upwards, turning the body.
• Return to the starting position and repeat in the other direction.

Chest opening in a squat

Technika

• Lower yourself into a deep squat, toes and knees looking to the sides.
• Fold your hands behind your head. Slowly move your arms out to the sides, feeling the stretch in your pectoral muscles.
• Return to the starting position and repeat.

Stretching calf muscles

Technika

• Stand on a step platform or pliobox so that your heels remain on the weight.
• First, slowly lower your heels down as far as possible and then rise to your toes.
• Repeat.

Lean to the foot

Technika

• Starting position is standing, feet shoulder width apart. Put one foot slightly forward and place it on the heel, pull the toe towards you.
• Bend the other leg at the knee and reach forward to the tips of your toes. Feel a stretch in the back of the thigh and calf.
• Return to the starting position and repeat on the other side.

What happened in the end?

I felt the effects almost from day one. As I have already said, for me leg training is very difficult and energy-consuming. Such exercises bring me less pleasure than, for example, pumping arms or chest. At some point it became not just hard, but as if a little twisted. It was like something was interfering with the coherent work of the muscles.

I started to analyze and suggested that maybe some muscles were spasmed and I should try stretching and see what happens. After stretching the workout was much more comfortable and interesting. After a month of training, the effect was still there, even if I missed a couple of days.