{"id":552,"date":"2022-07-11T15:30:20","date_gmt":"2022-07-11T15:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/?p=552"},"modified":"2022-07-11T15:30:20","modified_gmt":"2022-07-11T15:30:20","slug":"why-is-stretching-so-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/index.php\/2022\/07\/11\/why-is-stretching-so-important\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is Stretching So Important?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-1 fusion-flex-container nonhundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"--awb-border-radius-top-left:0px;--awb-border-radius-top-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-right:0px;--awb-border-radius-bottom-left:0px;--awb-flex-wrap:wrap;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start fusion-flex-content-wrap\" style=\"max-width:104%;margin-left: calc(-4% \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-4% \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-0 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\" style=\"--awb-bg-blend:overlay;--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:0px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:0px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><div class=\"fusion-audio fusion-audio-1\" style=\"--awb-progress-color:#ffffff;--awb-border-color:var(--awb-color1);--awb-background-color:#1d242d;--awb-max-width:100%;--awb-border-size:0;--awb-border-top-left-radius:0px;--awb-border-top-right-radius:0px;--awb-border-bottom-right-radius:0px;--awb-border-bottom-left-radius:0px;\"><!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('audio');<\/script><![endif]-->\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-552-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Episode-034-Why-is-Stretching-So-Important.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Episode-034-Why-is-Stretching-So-Important.mp3\">https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Episode-034-Why-is-Stretching-So-Important.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-1\"><h2>&#8211; Or: Health and Wellness is all like serious business and stuff<\/h2>\n<p>Ok, I&#8217;ll admit it.\u00a0 I don&#8217;t stretch.\u00a0 Neither the truth nor my physical human body form. Stretching has never been my jam.<\/p>\n<p>At least not with any regularity.\u00a0 Once in a blue moon?\u00a0 Maybe.<\/p>\n<p>Except at some point a few weeks back I talked about the fact that I&#8217;ve been exercising again for what is now somewhere in the neighborhood of 3 months.\u00a0 Possibly longer; I&#8217;m not good at keeping track of stuff.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;But George,&#8221; you ask, &#8220;isn&#8217;t stretching supposed to be a healthy part of every workout routine?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>YUP!<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;But George,&#8221; you ask in follow-up, &#8220;isn&#8217;t stretching supposed to be a healthy part of daily life, whether or not we&#8217;re working out?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>YUP AGAIN!<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;So George!&#8221; you ask in exasperation, &#8220;why are you a self-admitted NON STRETCHER??&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>To which I would reply: &#8220;LAZINESS.&#8221; Immediately followed up by: &#8220;YOU ASK TOO MANY QUESTIONS! QUOTA REACHED!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>At least up to this point.\u00a0 A friend of mine has been talking about how beneficial stretching is in overall health, avoiding headaches, and generally feeling great.\u00a0 I admittedly know so very little about the subject when all is said and done, so based on their experiences I thought it might be nice to get a better look at some of the science behind it.\u00a0 Develop a more effective and formulated knowledge of the subject.<\/p>\n<p>So let&#8217;s learn a whole mess of stuff on the topic and <span class=\"LrzXr kno-fv wHYlTd z8gr9e\">\u00e6<\/span>ffix a hearty STAMP OF APPROVAL.<\/p>\n<h2>Definition of Stretching<\/h2>\n<p>I <em>could<\/em> be a super dork and dive into different definitions of stretching.\u00a0 How one can stretch the truth of a story in order to spin and weave a tale of epic proportions.\u00a0 Or the concept of stretching an earth dollar in order to maximize the return on its expenditure.\u00a0 You know, stuff like that.\u00a0 But I&#8217;m not going to be that super dork <em>this<\/em> time.\u00a0 Let&#8217;s get back to the human body.<\/p>\n<h3>Golgi Tendon Organ<\/h3>\n<p>I was today years old when I learned that there is a thing called the Golgi Tendon Organ (GTO).\u00a0 Not to be confused with a B4 Hammond Organ, the GTO is a nerve receptor that squats at the point where muscle meets tendon.\u00a0 Kind of a mediator holding peace talks except instead of trying to ease tension, it <em>thrives<\/em> on it.\u00a0 When the GTO senses tension &#8211; say, for example, in the form of oh, I don&#8217;t know, <em>STRETCHING<\/em> &#8211; it sends signals to the spinal cord announcing that negotiations are getting heated.\u00a0 The spinal cord, taking on the role of the placating diplomat, in turns sends a signal back via efferent neurons to tell the muscle to relax, effectively taking sides.\u00a0 The tendon walks away like a champ and the muscle feels like they left something at the table.<\/p>\n<p>While the scenario above sounds one-sided, there is a purpose to this.\u00a0 The GTO monitors and regulates these situations to ensure that injury isn&#8217;t on today&#8217;s menu.<\/p>\n<h3>Muscle Spindle<\/h3>\n<p>If Sleeping Beauty had managed to poke her finger on a muscle spindle instead of that of a spinning wheel, the story might have turned out significantly different.\u00a0 Like, say, instead of sleeping for 100 years she might have ended up fully beefcaking and punching that dragon right in the snout.<\/p>\n<p>I digress.<\/p>\n<p>The muscle spindle is yet another protective measure built into the body to prevent injury.\u00a0 In this case, signals are sent once again to the benevolent spine letting it know that the length of the muscle has undergone a change.\u00a0 A stretch reflex is then invoked causing a resistance to the elongating nature of the muscle.\u00a0 The faster the elongation happens, the stronger the stretch reflex is to try and compensate.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s like having an entire fleet of security built into the muscle structure to better prevent injuries from taking place.<\/p>\n<h3>General thoughts<\/h3>\n<p>Yet ultimately the goal of repeat stretching is to enable the stretch reflex to simmer down a bit so that a good, long stretch can take place.\u00a0 Training our bodies to do the things that we want them to do.\u00a0 Or something to that effect.<\/p>\n<p>When a muscle is stretched, it increases blood flow to that area. The blood vessels widen up to enable a larger quantity of blood to flow which in turn creates more demand on the heart to supply as such.\u00a0 Newer research has hypothesized that this will improve overall circulatory health.\u00a0 Lower blood pressure and a boost in blood vessel production being side effects of this, what could possibly go wrong?\u00a0 Seems like everybody wins in that context!<\/p>\n<h2>Methods of Stretching<\/h2>\n<p>Most sources that I could find when hunting around agree that there are two very common types of stretching: static and dynamic.\u00a0 Whether or not this is meant as a simplification or way to keep written material to a minimum is difficult to say, but if you were to jump over to the fine folks at MIT, <a href=\"https:\/\/web.mit.edu\/tkd\/stretch\/stretching_4.html\">their article linked here<\/a> would argue that there are, in fact, at least SEVEN different types.\u00a0 And because wordiness is absolutely <em>my jam<\/em>, I&#8217;m going to touch on each of them because I like learning stuff!\u00a0 Here we go!<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s also entirely possible I&#8217;m going to get some of these wrong. Please feel free to provide corrections as they come up!<\/p>\n<h3>Static Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>Sometimes roped in with &#8220;Passive&#8221; stretching, Static stretching in and of itself is when we push a muscle to a limit and then hold it there by our own actions.\u00a0 We&#8217;ll get into passive stretching in a moment.\u00a0 An example of static stretching would be to bend down and attempt to touch your toes without bending your knees too much to stretch out the back of the legs.\u00a0 I say attempt because I haven&#8217;t been able to do that in a long, long time. When you have gone over as far as you can go, you hold there for a predetermined amount of time &#8211; WITHOUT BOUNCING &#8211; before returning to your normal bipedal position.<\/p>\n<h3>Dynamic Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>Dynamic stretching is wont to be used in the context of warming up or preparation of an activity, be it working out or a sport or the like.\u00a0 These stretches are controlled motions in the arms and legs that go to the extent of range of motion without exceeding those limits.<\/p>\n<h3>Ballistic Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>Remember that part where I said earlier about NOT BOUNCING when stretching?\u00a0 Well, ballistic stretching is going to bust through that rule.\u00a0 &#8230;.. ballistically.\u00a0 This is a very controversial method of stretching due to the potential for serious injury.\u00a0 MIT strongly recommends against this while the American Council on Exercise notes as follows:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This type of stretching is typically used for athletic drills and utilizes repeated bouncing movement to stretch the targeted muscle group.\u00a0 While these bouncing movements usually trigger the stretch reflex and may cause an increased risk for injury, they can be safely performed if done from low-velocity to high-velocity and preceded by static stretching&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>tldr: proceed at your own risk.\u00a0 Or actually, don&#8217;t.\u00a0 Seek a professional who can help you to make certain if this should or should not be part of your lexicon.<\/p>\n<h3>Active Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>While similar to static stretching in that a position is held, the methodology is a bit different.\u00a0 Positions are held utilizing the agonist muscles and can generally only be maintained for 10 seconds and no more than 15.\u00a0 Many yoga poses are considered to be active stretching.<\/p>\n<h3>Passive Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>Passive stretching differs from Static stretching in that passive stretching is usually an individual who is in a relaxed state and brought to a stretch by an external force.\u00a0 Examples of this could be a physical therapist assisting an individual with a stretch while the individual remains passive.<\/p>\n<h3>Isometric Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>I&#8217;m still trying to wrap my head around this one because the explanation is complicated.\u00a0 It <em>almost<\/em> looks like math in physical form and math is scary.\u00a0 Launching into it: Isometric stretching involves getting into the position of a passive stretch &#8211; see above &#8211; tensing the stretched muscle against an immovable force like a wall or The Force for 7-15 seconds, and then relaxing that muscle for 20 seconds.<\/p>\n<p>See?\u00a0 Math.\u00a0 However, one of the benefits to this type of stretching is speedier static-passive flexibility.\u00a0 It also seems to decrease pain, which &#8230;. &lt;suppressed chuckle&gt; &#8230;. can&#8217;t hurt.<\/p>\n<p>BAHAHAHAHAHA<\/p>\n<p>anyway.<\/p>\n<h3>Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) Stretching<\/h3>\n<p>That&#8217;s a mouthful.<\/p>\n<p>PNF stretching is a way of combining Passive and Isometric stretching into a method of rapidly increasing flexibility.\u00a0 The short version seems to be that it takes advantage of muscle vulnerability from the one activity and immediately capitalizes on it by adding the other activity to stretch beyond the initial barrier.\u00a0 To quote the MIT article:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;<span class=\"default\" style=\"font-size: small;\">PNF stretching techniques take advantage of the sudden &#8220;vulnerability&#8221; of the muscle and its increased range of motion by using the period of time immediately following the isometric contraction to train the stretch receptors to get used to this new, increased, range of muscle length. <\/span>&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>That is ALSO a mouthful.<\/p>\n<p>More detailed reading on the subject can be found linked at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthline.com\/health\/fitness-exercise\/pnf-stretching#pnf-techniques\">Healthline<\/a> if you would like to learn more.\u00a0 I&#8217;m going to stick with the overview though because it&#8217;s a LOT.<\/p>\n<h2>Benefits of Stretching<\/h2>\n<p>Right out of the gate: in many circumstances, stretching feels <em>great<\/em>.\u00a0 If you are so inclined to do the stereotypical &#8220;morning stretch&#8221; upon shedding the cocoon of your comfortable resting place, you know this.<\/p>\n<h3>For the gym rats<\/h3>\n<p>Within the context of fitness, this applies as well.\u00a0 For those of you who participate in &#8220;leg day&#8221; (yes, I kiss my mother with that mouth) if you haven&#8217;t done some calf and thigh stretching after the fact you are missing out.\u00a0 All of those hundreds of thousands of \u00e6fferents carrying that &#8220;hurts so good&#8221; feeling to the brain, which in turn allows us to keep at it! Stepping on the edge of something with the front of your feet and letting your heels slowly drop and feeling the tightness slowly ebb away after a good run?\u00a0 Yes please and thank you.<\/p>\n<h3>For the &#8230; uhh &#8230; -not- gym rats<\/h3>\n<p>Outside of the context of exercise recovery, the act of stretching just by itself as a separate activity is a really good idea!\u00a0 Throwing this into your daily routine or even a few times a week can have some significant benefits.\u00a0 Muscle and joint health will receive a boost that would otherwise be absent.\u00a0 Effective muscle movement and your posture will get quite the level up.\u00a0 (we talked about <a href=\"https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/index.php\/2022\/05\/02\/why-is-good-posture-so-important\/\">posture<\/a> a while back in another blog post) A huge deal though?\u00a0 Tension reduction.\u00a0 If you happen to be prone to headaches or <a href=\"https:\/\/georgenowik.com\/index.php\/2022\/05\/16\/insomnia-is-a-jerk\/\">insomnia<\/a>, this is an extra important potential addition to your day.\u00a0 That simple act of stretching out those muscle fibers and easing tension in the neck and shoulders could make a huge difference in both of those things, which likely improves overall mood and the ability to do stuff and things.<\/p>\n<h2>For the Singers and Voice Actors<\/h2>\n<p>If you think for ONE SECOND that I forgot about my singing and acting compatriots &#8230;&#8230;&#8230;. er &#8230;&#8230;.. you&#8217;re right.\u00a0 I did.\u00a0 &lt;insert shameful feeling of shame here&gt;<\/p>\n<p>Completely got by me until the proof-reading process.\u00a0 Whoops!\u00a0 BUT I&#8217;M HERE FOR YOU NOW. THAT COUNTS FOR SOMETHING, RIGHT?\u00a0 &lt;insert puppy dog eyes here&gt;<\/p>\n<p>Anyway.<\/p>\n<p>Singing and voice acting do have some things that are in common.\u00a0 They both use similar muscle groups and they both utilize the vocal folds, lips, and face much more than, say, someone dead lifting their own body weight.\u00a0 Although if you&#8217;ve ever been in a gym, there&#8217;s always that One Guy who vocalizes REALLY LOUDLY with Each. And. Every. Single. Rep.<\/p>\n<p>He&#8217;s not singing or voice acting.\u00a0 He&#8217;s &#8230;.. loud.<\/p>\n<p>Where was I?<\/p>\n<p>Oh yeah!\u00a0 Stretches for us.<\/p>\n<p>Being relaxed and free of muscle tension in the course of singing and acting are very, very important components of the process. Why is that?\u00a0 Theories once upon a time would indicate that you must &#8220;utilize the diaphragm,&#8221; &#8220;squeeze this,&#8221; or &#8220;gird against that&#8221; or what have you.\u00a0 I&#8217;m vividly remembering a Kentucky vocal coach who used to tell kids at a singing camp that in order to properly sing they must &#8220;squeeze their sphincter.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Man, the early 2000s were a weird era.<\/p>\n<p>None of those things are going to help at ALL.<\/p>\n<p>Why?\u00a0 Because each of those conventional activities are going to cause <em>tension<\/em> in your body.\u00a0 Tension in your body when focusing on a specific area while trying to sing or vocalize will lead to tension in the neck and shoulders and, thus, vocal folds.\u00a0 Instead of the loose, free, effortless release of sound from the body you will instead sound like you&#8217;re full of rigidity and pressure. Maybe that works for an occasional role?\u00a0 But the overall effect will be unpleasant.\u00a0 Kinda like the way I sing because I never learned better.<\/p>\n<p>(side note: if you&#8217;re a singing coach who can undo decades of bad habits, see me after class)<\/p>\n<h3>Suggested stretches<\/h3>\n<p>For the body, stick with the basics.\u00a0 Static stretching of the sides, the hamstrings, and arms are a great place to start.\u00a0 Light and slow rolling of the neck in circles one direction and then the\u00a0 next is a fantastic suggestion as well.\u00a0 But LIGHTLY.\u00a0 Do not stretch to the point of fatigue.\u00a0 You&#8217;re trying to loosen things up, not prepare for bench pressing with your <em>face<\/em>. Want to add a light massage to the neck around the area of the larynx?\u00a0 Get after it.\u00a0 Gently.<\/p>\n<p>Lip trills seem kinda silly when in the thick of it.\u00a0 I love doing them in the car and seeing the looks on peoples faces when they see me pretending like I&#8217;m glitching out in an attempt to get a duck-face MySpace selfie.<\/p>\n<p>Yawn!\u00a0 No, like really!\u00a0 That will actually stretch out some of the jaw and neck muscles you will want to release for ease of vocalization.<\/p>\n<p>And then email me after reading the previous line to tell me what a jerk I am for the power of suggestion and the fact that you probably <em>did<\/em> yawn.<\/p>\n<p>You&#8217;re welcome.<\/p>\n<h2>Risks of Improper Stretching<\/h2>\n<p>There are some stretches that, while considered to be beneficial to the majority, could do some damage in the short and long term.\u00a0 If you have low back pain or an injury causing that, some stretches that target the hamstrings and hip flexors could exacerbate that condition.\u00a0 The last thing you want to do is anything that would make a chronic low back pain condition worse.\u00a0 Consult with your doctor about effective methods of stretching those muscles that will keep the low back out of their business.<\/p>\n<p>If you remember back to when you were in elementary school, you probably thought it was pretty cool to try to bend down and touch the ground with your hands.\u00a0 If you couldn&#8217;t quite reach it, no sweat!\u00a0 Just bounce your way down until you make contact.\u00a0 Piece of cake.<\/p>\n<p>Bouncing through stretches is a Very Bad Idea.\u00a0 A one way ticket to potential injury.\u00a0 Unless the prospect of snapping a hamstring sounds appealing to you, avoid bouncing.<\/p>\n<p>Trying to stretch way beyond your capabilities is <em>also<\/em> a Very Bad Idea.\u00a0 Another one way ticket to potential injury.\u00a0 Feeling tension is one thing, but there&#8217;s a significant difference between tension and pain.\u00a0 When it crosses the threshold into pain, back off and make certain you&#8217;re not causing or reawakening an injury.<\/p>\n<h2>What have we learned?<\/h2>\n<p>The short version is: stretching is really important on a variety of levels.\u00a0 Overall body health, potential reduction in a variety of ailments, increased blood flow, and vascular health just to name a few.\u00a0 Pre-workout can keep muscles from being injured, post-workout can increase overall flexibility.<\/p>\n<p>While it seems like a no-brainer in terms of something that can benefit all of us, it&#8217;s still important to remember that it comes with risks when improperly implemented.\u00a0 It can be an effortful activity and sometimes it&#8217;s difficult to fit something like that into our extremely full schedules.<\/p>\n<p>If I could display some massive effrontery, I would say that it&#8217;s absolutely worth our while to add some of it to our lives.\u00a0 Having done all this homework, I&#8217;m definitely going to be working out a way to get it into my daily routine.\u00a0 All to gain and nothing to lose it seems.<\/p>\n<p>Join me in the stretch extravaganza!<\/p>\n<p>Until next week,<\/p>\n<p>-= george =-<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-1 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column\" style=\"--awb-bg-size:cover;--awb-width-large:100%;--awb-margin-top-large:0px;--awb-spacing-right-large:1.92%;--awb-margin-bottom-large:20px;--awb-spacing-left-large:1.92%;--awb-width-medium:100%;--awb-order-medium:0;--awb-spacing-right-medium:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-medium:1.92%;--awb-width-small:100%;--awb-order-small:0;--awb-spacing-right-small:1.92%;--awb-spacing-left-small:1.92%;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-column-has-shadow fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":564,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[180,177,69,178,176,179,164],"class_list":["post-552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-efference","tag-exercise","tag-health","tag-muscles","tag-stretching","tag-tendons","tag-wellness"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why is Stretching So Important? - George Nowik - Voice Actor<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Stretching the body and muscles is supposed to be all like super healthy and stuff. 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