Do You Stretch?

[LK3]

DC stretches are far from extreme.

‘Dead hangs’ from a bar is great but please keep some tension on you biceps, do not do a dead hang with all your weight on your shoulder joints.

My opinions of courses.

for sure bud.
i use baby weights for everything these days nothing truly extreme going on here.

as far as actual stretching technique i cant really explain i can change the focus all over but has to do with pushing the muscle sort of keeping tension on it if you will. hanging i do for lats and back. then with sort of different pressure or angle for shoulders.

i also hang but toes on the floor and behind to stretch shoulders, chest abs sort of full body for the front hip flexor too.

for shoulder grabbing a fixed bar at about should height and turning into it allows you to pull on the tendons and not hurt the joint. its another move that has helped.

 

[LK3]

Same. Always stretch post ..one reason why I prefer not to do full body or ppl, I like to really stretch a body part after working it and don't have all day to be in the gym to stretch everything.

same. strech the body part or parts worked.
warming up and cooling down takes me more time then actual work out.

 

[qbkilla]

The data has actually been around for quite a while - for injury prevention the primary modality to decrease injury is strength training followed (not closely) by stretching.

After a cool down implementing a stretching routine pays dividends over time. It is something I, as it sounds like many of you, need to start doing a bit more.

Hard to go to a heightened physical state to something requiring very limited movement for me personally. I've been doing heaps of mobility work but minimal stretching.

What are your opinions on other recovery technique such as sauna, Cold shower, foam rolling? I do All these although I think the evidence says they don't really do much.

 

[alfresco]

for sure bud.
i use baby weights for everything these days nothing truly extreme going on here.

as far as actual stretching technique i cant really explain i can change the focus all over but has to do with pushing the muscle sort of keeping tension on it if you will. hanging i do for lats and back. then with sort of different pressure or angle for shoulders.

i also hang but toes on the floor and behind to stretch shoulders, chest abs sort of full body for the front hip flexor too.

for shoulder grabbing a fixed bar at about should height and turning into it allows you to pull on the tendons and not hurt the joint. its another move that has helped.

When I was rock-climbing I regularly did dead hangs, about every day,
multiple 'sets' (probably too much like most things I have tried).

But . . . I did them wrong, very wrong. I was hanging by the strength
of my shoulder joint integrity alone. Not good. I have since (been a
long time) done them, infrequently, letting the biceps absorb most
of the tension.

They do have some therapeutic value. Some even attach weights.
Never me.

They are great to do immediately following wrist curls, zero rest,
multiple sets until you can't fold on. (True failure.) Be careful,
your forearms may be so sore the next day you won't be able to pick
up your car keys.

My dead hang record, fresh, is ~2m30s.

 

[Performance Based]

What are your opinions on other recovery technique such as sauna, Cold shower, foam rolling? I do All these although I think the evidence says they don't really do much.

This is actually I’ve been thinking about lately. I have access to daily chiropractic, physio (dry needling, Airrosti/manual release, massage, etc.) care and so forth at a top tier clinic.

When I am injured this pays absolute dividends and speeds up the healing process substantially.

However when I am not injured it’s like some of these modalities (especially dry needing) increase the prevalence of injuries.

Cold shower I have never really actually dove into. Systemic Cryo I did, for physiological recovery the data is straight forward it doesn’t do anything. It however does seem to act like a reset switch for the CNS. I personally can’t stand the bullshit science and sales pitches when I walk into those places so I just don’t fuck with it. Used them religiously up to about three years ago. Work won’t get one so

Sauna I enjoy, I find it gives an uptick in CNS activation and opens my lungs up a bit prior to training sessions.

Legit sitting in one now sipping my pre workout. But for a recovery stand point - meh

Foam rolling - this is more a feel thing. I don’t care about the recovery here. It makes me feel better, live with less pain, and gives me 20 minutes a day where I can just zone the fuck out. Which is a win!

Greatest things I’ve discovered for recovery is my band sessions pre durability training, mobility work, and honestly learning it’s ok to take time off. Coming to terms with I’m not 28 anymore and can’t train for work for 8 hours then run a marathon then crush a gym session every day…

 

[qbkilla]

This is actually I’ve been thinking about lately. I have access to daily chiropractic, physio (dry needling, Airrosti/manual release, massage, etc.) care and so forth at a top tier clinic.

When I am injured this pays absolute dividends and speeds up the healing process substantially.

However when I am not injured it’s like some of these modalities (especially dry needing) increase the prevalence of injuries.

Cold shower I have never really actually dove into. Systemic Cryo I did, for physiological recovery the data is straight forward it doesn’t do anything. It however does seem to act like a reset switch for the CNS. I personally can’t stand the bullshit science and sales pitches when I walk into those places so I just don’t fuck with it. Used them religiously up to about three years ago. Work won’t get one so

Sauna I enjoy, I find it gives an uptick in CNS activation and opens my lungs up a bit prior to training sessions.

Legit sitting in one now sipping my pre workout. But for a recovery stand point - meh

Foam rolling - this is more a feel thing. I don’t care about the recovery here. It makes me feel better, live with less pain, and gives me 20 minutes a day where I can just zone the fuck out. Which is a win!

Greatest things I’ve discovered for recovery is my band sessions pre durability training, mobility work, and honestly learning it’s ok to take time off. Coming to terms with I’m not 28 anymore and can’t train for work for 8 hours then run a marathon then crush a gym session every day…

Good post. Never bought into the cyro esp for the price. The cold showers, especially after sauna, feel great. Also foam rolling so I do them. Never been a fan of chrios not sure why people use them but that's a whole nother thread. A physical therapist serves the same role, and have always fixed my injuries. The way I look at it "needing maintenance" isn't fixing. Saw one once he said my spine was out of what he wanted to "adjust me" and I'd keep coming back. Told him I'd pass on that. Then whenr to a PT and he diagnosed my injury, fixed me up perfect without needing to "adjust" me as the injury was a muscle strain, nothing to do with my spine, and I never had to see him again. I'll stop there because I know how some love their chiros and don't want the thread off topic lol.

 

[el hereje]

Fundamentally it's often less about stretching and more about balance. Western lifters tend to over emphasize bench/chest work which results in stronger anterior deltoids. This leads to posture issues but also eventually shoulder injuries.

Consider bench press as horizontal pushing. The opposing movement is horizontal pulling or rows. I see precious few lifters emphasize rowing to equal levels. Overhead work is good too. Now some people are just built a certain way but that work and shoulder prehab will save you issues longer term.

Military press and squat I was always told were the two most important movements. Agree that the average gym rat does not prioritize movements properly.

 

[nothuman]

I need to be better at this. I have trouble doing barbell squats now because my arms don't extend well enough to get under the bar without a lot of difficulty.

 

[Cerberus777]

I do light warm ups with deep negatives that seems to stretch things out but I should be doing more of the traditional stretching.

My biggest issue since I put a bunch of weight on this year is that my shoulders have been rolling forward. I’m conscious about it so when I notice I pull them back and straighten out my posture but I never had to think about it before. I’ve read that when the chest overpowers your back it will do this and pull forward but my back is a much stronger body part for me. I’ve tried all sorts of stretches without any luck.

Anybody been able to find a solution for this that won’t require a weekly visit to a sports therapist?

Laying off front delt work and stretching is the only thing that has helped.

 

[Ruhlfreak55]

2hr workouts? That's nuts, lol. A good gym session should be no more than 1 hr.

I've probably done 5 workouts my whole life that short.

 

[alfresco]

What are your opinions on other recovery technique such as sauna, Cold shower, foam rolling? I do All these although I think the evidence says they don't really do much.

Let me raise my hand if you don’t mind.

I only do foam rolling and stretching. Does that count on forwarding my recovery? Personally, for me, I don’t think so. And it is all I do except some ‘active’ rest between workouts; walking, stretching, getting in fights or running from them.

The guy I have been training with swears by them. After a soccer match, dunk. After we workout, dunk. He told me the temp but I have forgotten but it was very cold.

He is adamant that cold dunks are responsible for much of his recovery, without them he can barely get out of bed.

And them some folks say they don’t work. That is fine but it will be difficult to convince those that it is working for to do any different.

Different strokes for different folks.