When Stretching is the Wrong Solution

Are you a cyclist, triathlete, and/or runner who is frequently getting injured? Perhaps your stretching routine is causing you more harm then good. We play devil’s advocate and look at how stretching is often not the right solution to most problems.

Let’s start off with the question, “Do I need to be stretching?” Simply put, our answer is no. The primary reason is because the vast majority of athletes often put other structures at risk when stretching. When it comes to the act of stretching, there are a lot of assumptions that have been embraced without much evidence of benefit. For example, many have argued that stretching reduces the likelihood of injury, however, scientific literature fails to support this notion. Stretching has been touted as a very simple way for the athlete and non athlete alike to “self-treat” nearly any and all orthopaedic problems. This is simply not the case and here are 5 reasons why stretching may be causing you collateral damage.

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