What is the importance of stretching for overall health?

The Importance of Stretching for Health

Regular stretching exercises performed 2-3 days per week are essential for maintaining joint range of motion and overall health, with the greatest benefits occurring with daily flexibility training. 1

Key Stretching Recommendations

Frequency and Duration

• Perform flexibility exercises ≥2-3 days per week, with daily exercise providing the greatest gains in joint range of motion 1
• Malaysia's guidelines recommend stretching should be done every day for older adults 1
• Intermittent stretching (2-3 days/week) is sufficient to maintain range of motion gains acquired from a prior stretching program 2
• A reasonable target is to perform 60 seconds of total stretching time for each flexibility exercise 1

Proper Technique

• Stretch to the point of feeling tightness or slight discomfort, but not pain 1
• Hold static stretches for 10-30 seconds for most adults; older persons may benefit from holding stretches for 30-60 seconds 1
• Repeat each flexibility exercise 2-4 times 1
• Stretching is most effective when the muscle is warmed through light to moderate aerobic activity or passively through external methods such as moist heat packs or hot baths 1

Types of Stretching

• Include a series of flexibility exercises for each of the major muscle-tendon units 1
• Static flexibility (active or passive), dynamic flexibility, ballistic flexibility, and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) are all effective methods 1
• For PNF stretching, perform a 3-6 second contraction at 20-75% maximum voluntary contraction followed by a 10-30 second assisted stretch 1

Benefits of Stretching

Improved Range of Motion

• All stretching typologies show ROM improvements over a long-term period, with static protocols showing significant gains compared to ballistic or PNF protocols 3
• Time spent stretching per week is fundamental to elicit range of movement improvements when stretches are applied for at least 5 minutes per week 3
• Weekly frequency is positively associated with ROM improvements 3

Health Benefits by Age Group

• For adults ≥65 years, flexibility activities should be performed ≥2 days/week for ≥10 minutes each 1
• France's guidelines recommend flexibility activity to involve all the major muscle groups with 3-4 repetitions of holding a static pose for 10 to 30 seconds 1
• Ghana's guidelines include muscle and stretching activities ≥2 days/week as part of their recommendations for older adults 1
• Philippines' guidelines recommend stretching to the point of tension after aerobic activity or at cooldown for ≥20 seconds per muscle group ≥4 times/week for older adults 1

Sport-Specific Considerations

• The importance of stretching may vary depending on the type of sports activity 4
• Sports involving bouncing and jumping activities with high-intensity stretch-shortening cycles (e.g., soccer and football) may benefit from increased muscle-tendon unit compliance through stretching 4
• For sports with low-intensity or limited stretch-shortening cycles (e.g., jogging, cycling, and swimming), the benefits of stretching for injury prevention are less clear 4

Common Pitfalls and Caveats

• Excessive stretching immediately before strength training may temporarily decrease strength performance 5
• Increasing range of motion beyond what is functionally necessary for specific activities may not provide additional benefits and could potentially cause injury 6
• The duration of stretching stimuli in many studies has been excessively long compared to common practice, which may exaggerate negative effects 5
• There is limited scientific evidence supporting the common practice of stretching before exercise to prevent injuries 4, 6

Integration with Overall Exercise Program

• Stretching should be part of a comprehensive exercise program that includes aerobic activity and resistance training 1
• For a well-rounded physical activity program, the American Heart Association recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity per week, along with muscle-strengthening activities and flexibility exercises 1
• The FITT-PRO approach (Frequency, Intensity, Type, Time, and Progression) provides a framework for incorporating stretching into an exercise prescription 1