There seems to be a nearly endless number of styles of martial arts, and the martial arts stretching requirements differ greatly from one style to the next. If you are a taekwondo, northern shaolin or savate practitioner and your art requites extremely high kicks then your program of flexibility stretches should emphasize leg stretching and elasticity of the hamstrings, and hips, if you practice grappling arts then your martial arts stretching workout should accentuate the core body and arms more. In addition a beginning martial artist needs to concentrate more on overall general flexibility and develop a more art specific routine as proficiency develops.There are several components of any very effective martial arts stretching program which should be followed to maximize the effects of your efforts. Following are several tips to make your martial arts stretching program as effective and safe as possible:
1. The Morning Stretch
To explode your progress you should incorporate a morning stretching routine into your lifestyle. The morning stretch is best performed before breakfast and should take fifteen to thirty minutes. It should include a warm-up, a number of dynamic type stretches, and a cool down period. This work-out should not include any static, isometric or PNF stretches as they are too hard on your muscular system, take too long to recover from and should be reserved for your main stretching work-out. Although it is a commitment to do a stretching workout in the morning, you'll find that the benefits are amazing.
2. The Warm-Up
Every stretching workout should use a two part warm-up procedure which includes a beginning and a specific part. The beginning warm-up should include general calisthenics to increase your body temperature and get the blood flowing into your muscles. The specific warm-up should include dynamic stretches which closer resemble the movements of your martial art and are a little less generic. a proper warm-up is of particular importance to the morning stretching routine as your body is more apt to be tight and run a greater risk of injury. You should move from the specific warm-up to the main part of your stretching routine which addresses the particular flexibility needs of your style in greater focus and effort.
3. The Cool-Down
The main portion of your martial arts stretching work-out should be followed with a cool-down process. The cool down should resemble the first part of your warm-up to allow blood to flow into your muscular system and help with recovery.
4. Relaxation
You should remain relaxed during your martial arts stretching work-out. The whole idea behind stretching is to make your body more supple and relaxed at extended ranges of motion, and tension is counterproductive to this goal. One of your main adversaries to gaining flexibility is the "stretch reflex" and the best tactic to overcome it is relaxation. Advanced stretching methods such as isometric or PNF stretching will use tension to trick the stretch reflex into allowing you to relax into a deeper stretch. Try to approach your stretching work-outs with a clear, peaceful and relaxed frame of mind and use breathing techniques to help keep you relaxed.
5. Safety
The whole point of a martial arts stretching routine is to help the safety and progress of your skill development in your art. Injury or damage to your muscle system, connective tissues or skeletal system brings the exact opposite result. Here are a few generic safety tips to observe:
- Always, always, always consult your doctor before beginning any stretching program or training routine. You will not only proceed with more safety, your peace of mind will enable greater progress when you have the OK from your medical professional.
- You should never experience pain during or after any stretching work-out. While you should feel the effect of lengthening of your muscles as a sensation of warmth or slight burning you should never feel pain. Besides risking injury from over taxing your body, even slight pain typically represents micro-rearing of muscles and connective tissues and will result in scar tissue and an actual lessening of flexibility. You should always consult your doctor if you are experiencing any moderate or severe pain while stretching.
- Never use bouncing or rhythmic bobbing motions as part of a stretching exercise. This method of stretching is known as ballistic stretching and the risks of damage or injury are not worth any gains in flexibility these movements may bring.
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