Have you ever been to the circus? Invited a clown over for a birthday party? If not, surely you've seen one on television. Whenever they are about to make a balloon animal, what do they do? If you don't remember, I'll tell you.
They take the balloon they are about to blow up and stretch it a few times. But why?
Well, the clown is preparing that balloon to be blown up, that is, increasing the elasticity of the balloon so it can be blown up easier, and larger without popping. Your muscles are essentially the same, and stretching them properly will allow you to have a much more effective and satisfying workout.
When muscles are used, they "contract." This means that muscle fibers come together in your muscles like a zipper comes together on a jacket. As the muscle relaxes, the fibers separate, again, like unzipping a jacket. What a lot of people fail to understand is that our muscles are not constantly contracting and relaxing in a 50-50 ratio.
In fact, certain jobs or daily activities can keep the muscle contracted or relaxed for LONG periods of time. Eventually, you get muscle fibers that are staying contracted or relaxed the entire day. They forget how to do the other! Don't believe me? Try to flex your back vs. your bicep. Which one do you think contracts more on a daily basis?
They take the balloon they are about to blow up and stretch it a few times. But why?
Well, the clown is preparing that balloon to be blown up, that is, increasing the elasticity of the balloon so it can be blown up easier, and larger without popping. Your muscles are essentially the same, and stretching them properly will allow you to have a much more effective and satisfying workout.
When muscles are used, they "contract." This means that muscle fibers come together in your muscles like a zipper comes together on a jacket. As the muscle relaxes, the fibers separate, again, like unzipping a jacket. What a lot of people fail to understand is that our muscles are not constantly contracting and relaxing in a 50-50 ratio.
In fact, certain jobs or daily activities can keep the muscle contracted or relaxed for LONG periods of time. Eventually, you get muscle fibers that are staying contracted or relaxed the entire day. They forget how to do the other! Don't believe me? Try to flex your back vs. your bicep. Which one do you think contracts more on a daily basis?
The underlying result?
You fatigue quicker during certain exercises because they muscle is exhausted from contracting, you use the wrong muscle to lift a weight because the right muscle forgets how to contract, and worst of all, you initiate a muscle tear or spasm (a constant state of contraction of all of the muscle fibers in a specific area).
As a trainer, I see a lot of clients working desk jobs where their entire front half of their body is constantly contracted at work, and the back of the body is relaxed. It definitely shows when we I teach deadlifts, squats, rows, lunges, just to name a few. Then comes the back pain, the knee pain, the shoulder pain. All due to inconsistency in the tightness of muscles.
The solution?
Trigger Point Therapy (aka self myofascial release).
This type of stretching is super easy. All you need is a tennis ball, foam roller, or my choice, a hard rubber ball (40+ mm diameter preferred). Then, you are going to use that ball to apply pressure to a muscle in constant contraction. You can do this by laying on the ball or pushing on it against a wall. How do you know which muscles are contracted? It will hurt like a bitch when you apply pressure to that muscle. Think of these spots as "knots."
You want to apply "pleasurably discomforting" pressure to the area for 30-45 s. DO NOT ROLL ON THE BALL, KEEP IT IN PLACE. Then, the muscle fibers should start to relax. Once they do, find another spot.
If you are particularly sedentary, do this technique twice a day. Each "session" will take about 15 minutes. Most common trigger point spots are the front of the shoulder, chest, hips, quads, and lower back. It's amazing how this technique is instantly effective on my clients.
You fatigue quicker during certain exercises because they muscle is exhausted from contracting, you use the wrong muscle to lift a weight because the right muscle forgets how to contract, and worst of all, you initiate a muscle tear or spasm (a constant state of contraction of all of the muscle fibers in a specific area).
As a trainer, I see a lot of clients working desk jobs where their entire front half of their body is constantly contracted at work, and the back of the body is relaxed. It definitely shows when we I teach deadlifts, squats, rows, lunges, just to name a few. Then comes the back pain, the knee pain, the shoulder pain. All due to inconsistency in the tightness of muscles.
The solution?
Trigger Point Therapy (aka self myofascial release).
This type of stretching is super easy. All you need is a tennis ball, foam roller, or my choice, a hard rubber ball (40+ mm diameter preferred). Then, you are going to use that ball to apply pressure to a muscle in constant contraction. You can do this by laying on the ball or pushing on it against a wall. How do you know which muscles are contracted? It will hurt like a bitch when you apply pressure to that muscle. Think of these spots as "knots."
You want to apply "pleasurably discomforting" pressure to the area for 30-45 s. DO NOT ROLL ON THE BALL, KEEP IT IN PLACE. Then, the muscle fibers should start to relax. Once they do, find another spot.
If you are particularly sedentary, do this technique twice a day. Each "session" will take about 15 minutes. Most common trigger point spots are the front of the shoulder, chest, hips, quads, and lower back. It's amazing how this technique is instantly effective on my clients.