1. Stop
stretching before workouts
Stretching is still cool. Just not in the way that it's been taught by
generations of short-sighted PE teachers. In fact, the long-held practice of
static stretching has been found to decrease performance while offering no
greater protection against injury.
Studies have shown that static
stretching before training can negatively impact strength. A better bet is dynamic stretching, which calls for you
to perform several range-of-motion exercises that increase your body's core
temperature, excite your nervous system and generally prepare your joints and
muscles for the work ahead.
Dynamic stretching routines vary
greatly, but the goal should be to spend three to five minutes working your way
up through a series of activities of increasing intensity. Before squats, for
example, you may follow a progression like this, doing each activity for 15 to
20 seconds: jogging in place, jumping jacks, high-knee running in place,
partial body-weight squats, full body-weight squats and squat jumps.
If you've done it right, your heart
rate should be elevated and you should have a light sweat going. Researchers
have found that this type of warm-up improves strength and flexibility --
virtues that help reduce injury risk.
2. Do a
specific warm-up
When you're done with
your dynamic warm-up, it's time to get specific. Using the squat example again,
this means getting under the bar and performing a few light sets, generally in
a higher-rep range. This helps to increase blood flow to the muscles and joints
that you'll be working, but, more importantly, it helps to engrain proper
movement patterns ahead of your heavier work.
This brain training ahead of your
working sets helps you work out more efficiently, limiting the small deviations
in form that can send you to the trainer's table. Take advantage of these sets
by focusing on every part of the movement, and do as many sets as you think are
necessary before piling on the plates.
3. Stretch
it out
Like we said, stretching
is still cool, but timing is everything. After your workout is the time to sit
and hold some static stretches with the muscle groups you've trained. Warm
muscles are more limber than cold ones, meaning that you'll get a truer stretch
with less risk of injury at this time.
You should hold each stretch for at
least 30 seconds and up to 90, the top end of which has been shown to improve
flexibility. Breathe slowly and deeply on each stretch, getting a little
"deeper" into each stretch upon exhaling. Static stretching
post-workout also can help speed recovery and has been shown to reduce (not
eliminate) next-day muscle soreness.
4. Roll it
out
Almost universally,
professional athletes say that getting frequent massages is key to their
success. Much to the dismay of our checkbook, they're not wrong.
Massage is a restorative process that
promotes blood flow (and thus recovery) while also keeping muscles, connective
tissues and fascia supple and healthy.
One cheap alternative? A high-density
foam roller can help rub out pesky knots and release tension in aching muscle
bellies -- a process known as myofascial release -- all without the costly
enlistment of Helga's man-hands. Though painful at first, the use of foam
rollers can help rejuvenate muscles and tendons between workouts.
5. Rest
Have you ever started a new workout
routine only to be sidelined in the first week with a screaming shoulder, sore
knee or achy back? "Yes," said every person reading this. In our
enthusiasm, we sometimes trick ourselves into believing that we should be
consistent at all costs -- even when our body is telling us otherwise. A better
approach would be to temper your initial efforts and instead insist on a
gradual progression from week to week. You don't have to lift all the weight on
the first day.
Once you have that urge in check, it's
important to let muscles recover between workouts -- 48 to 72 hours is a good
general guideline.
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