@Canva.com: AndreyPopov

When you hear the word ‘stretching’, you immediately think of a wide variety of methods – from dynamic rocking to static stretching. The world of stretching techniques is full of trends and opinions. But which method can actually permanently lengthen a shortened muscle?

When a muscle contracts, its smallest building blocks, the sarcomeres, push into each other. Each sarcomere contains two protein filaments, actin and myosin, which interlock like small hooks. Movement of the myosin heads causes the filaments to contract, shortening the muscle.

If the muscle is now slowly stretched, i.e. pulled apart, something similar happens, but in reverse: the myosin heads still hold on to the actin, but they now slow down the pulling apart.

This slow yielding is called eccentric movement. It is more demanding for the muscle because it is ‘braking’. A typical example of this is when you slowly lower a heavy object to the floor – this is easier than lifting it up. Another example is bicep curls with a dumbbell. Lifting the weight is concentric, while slowly lowering it is eccentric. This is precisely the difference between the active contraction (concentric) and controlled yielding (eccentric) of a muscle.

Tense or shortened muscle?

Put simply, a tense muscle is too strongly contracted – the small building blocks in the muscle are too close together. Classic stretching, heat or gentle movement help to release the tension.

A shortened muscle, on the other hand, is actually too short because it has too few building blocks in length. Normal stretching is not enough in this case. Eccentric stretching, i.e. slowly yielding and stretching under tension, is the right method for this.

Large lever important

Braking under tension until the end of the movement triggers a growth response in the muscle during eccentric stretching. As the body perceives that there is insufficient strength towards the end of the movement, the long-term solution is to incorporate new muscle cells. This allows the muscle to work powerfully again towards the end of the movement. However, in order for the body to benefit from this stimulus, it is essential to work with a large lever or weight. The following three exercises can be done 2-3 times a week:
 

Good Morning

Goal: To stretch the hamstrings

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and stretch your arms above your head. Your knees should be slightly bent, your back straight and leaning slightly forward, and your head in line with your spine.
2. Lower your upper body forwards, keeping your back straight.
3. At the end of the movement, move your upper body slightly up and down so that you feel a stretch in the back of your thighs.

Important: 

• Keep your knees slightly bent and your back straight.
• At the end of the movement, you should feel a pull in the muscle.

Dosage: 2 sets of 20 repetitions per side.

Variation: Instead of using your arms, you can also perform the exercise with a barbell bar over your shoulders with a small amount of weight.
 

Deep lunge

Goal: To lengthen the hip flexors and knee extensors

How to do it:

1. Place two chairs so that you can take a good, stable stride between them.
2. Choose a distance that allows you to perform a deep lunge as your starting position.
3. Place your hands on your pelvis.
4. Slowly lower your back knee as far as possible, but make sure you can lift it back up again.
5. Slowly return to the lunge starting position.

Important:

• Both knees should move up and down in a straight line and should not turn inwards or outwards.
• Keep your upper body upright; do not lean forward.
• At the bottom of the movement, you should feel a stretch in your thigh and groin area.

Dosage: 2 sets of 20 repetitions per side.

Variation: The exercise can be intensified by holding a dumbbell in each hand.
 

Twisting the upper body

Goal: To lengthen the chest muscles

How to do it:

1. Lie on your side on the floor with a dumbbell in one hand.
2. Extend the other arm out to the side along the floor. Extend the lower leg straight out and bend the upper leg so that the foot is in the hollow of the knee.
3. The arm with the dumbbell is initially stretched straight up towards the ceiling.
4. Now slowly twist your arm and upper body backwards towards the floor until, if possible, your arm can be placed diagonally on the floor or as far as possible.
5. Hold for a moment, then rotate your arm and upper body back to the starting position.

Caution:

• Do not arch your back.
• Move slowly to the end position.
• First move your thoracic spine and then move your arm completely backwards.

Dosage: 2 sets of 20 repetitions per side.