Flexibility part II

[disgruntled]

after reading that post about aging and flexability i did a bit of research and decided to add onto my info on stretching/flexibility. i advise you read this before this post to understand the basics of flexiibility.

more info:

Aging and flexability

as we age are bodies dehydrate a little and this reduces the lubrication around our connective tissues which causes stiffness. but the good news is that stretching actually increases the production of this lubrication, thus making stretching esential as we get older. flexibility also drecreases with age due to inactivity. the less you use you muscles the less flexible they become. this is primarily because collegen, fatty fibers, start to build up in our muscles. the fatty fibers increase the density of the muscle thus making them feel stiff. and if you are inactive and gain weight, the build up of fat can interfer with the bodies ability to do a full range of motion (large muscles can also cause the same restrictions). limiting the range of motion of you body is not good. as your body gets use to repetitive short motions the muscles become shorter and thus can not elongate as well which is needed to be flexible.

Importance of Stretching to Increase Flexability

you MUST stretch after a work out if you want to increase flexability or ensure that you do not LOSE flexibility. it is beneficial for many reasons:
1) your body is already warmed up and your muscles work optimally at a slightly higher than average body temperature. and warm muscles do not damage as easily.
2) stretching after class will reduce the likelihood of being sore the next day.
3) stretching muscles after a workout helps to build those muscles. after you work out your muscles "pump", they get all nice and round and look bigger and impressive, but when they "pump" they also get shorter. the shortening is cause by doing intense repetitive motions that are less than the full range of you motion. in addition, the intense exersice creates the by-product lactic acid which builds up in the muscles, adding to the "pumped" look. but lactic acid is not good. it is what is responsible for you feeling stiff the next day (and when you are stiff you limit the range of your muscles thus shortening them more). the solution to these problems is stretching. stretching the exercised muscle reduces the amount of lactic acid in it and stretches it back to its original length. the muscle will appear smaller after being stretched back out, but it will not in fact be smaller.

Strength Training

strength training is very beneficial to increasing flexibility. stretching elongates the connective tissues which also makes them weeker. thus sudden muscle contractions, like a fast kick, can damage the connective tissues. thus you always want to pair the muscle that you are stretching with strength training to ensure that the muscles does not get week and damaged. but when you do strength training, do the best you can to use your full range of motion to help stop muscle shortening.

The Splits

especially in MA, we tend to think that doing the slits is the ultimate demonstration of flexibility and that it means that the person must kick high too. this is a misconception. the type of flexibility needed for the splits is passive static flexability whereas you need dynamic flexability for high kicks. thus being able to do the splits does not give you the ability to kick higher.



so in closing, yes as you get older you do face more challenges in your quest to become more flexibile, but it is still very possible, realistic and essential. stretch at least 4-5 times (the moring is the best time of day, always afer a work out, and make sure to warm up the body first!) a week to increase your flexibility, follow the tips on how to optimize your flexibility and you will soon be kicking higher than the young whipper-snappers.

for further info check out this site