Do you stretch because your muscles are tight and you want to increase overall range of motion? Or as part of your cool down after a workout? Or just because it feels good or relaxes you? Then it is probably doing what you want it to.

But if you are stretching before a workout because you’ve been told it will prevent injury, then you’re probably wasting your time.

There is little or no valid scientific research on humans that indicates stretching before a workout has any ability to prevent injury. In fact, the latest research seems to prove that it doesn’t have any effect.

An Australian study just released in September 2001 took over 2,500 Army recruits and randomly divided them into 2 groups. Over a 12 week period half of them stretched before their physical training, the other half didn’t.

The results? In what is believed to be the world’s first controlled trials on the subject, researchers concluded that stretching was futile.

"There is every indication stretching before exercise is a waste of time." said Mr. Rod Pope, a physiotherapist and one of the researchers. They found no clinically significant difference in bone or muscle injury rates between those that stretched and those that didn’t. In fact, because of the results, the army has abandoned its protocol of stretching before exercise, and sports medicine experts are admitting to being unaware of the scientific basis for this kind of stretching.

So how DO you prevent injury before a workout? According to Dr. Michael Clarfield, a sports physician, " ...increase the blood flow to the muscle." Use the muscle gently before your activity. As the blood flows into the muscle it becomes softer and more malleable so it is better able to absorb shock from hard landings and stretch further before tearing. (That’s why you should always warmup before you stretch and stay warm while you’re stretching.)

"Get the muscle loose and flexible and then do your activity." says Dr. Clarfield. And make sure you warm up as many muscles as possible, or at least the muscles you’re going to use the most. Do a gentle form of the activity first- ski a few blue runs before you start tossing yourself off cliffs, jog easily before your run, do some upper body exercises before you start pumping weights. Or maybe try something like yoga Sun Salutes.

Van Powel, President of Mind-Body Fitness, Inc., has worked with a variety of professional and Olympic athletes over the last 5 years, including members of the National Snowboard, Alpine Skiing, Cycling, and Freestyle Teams and he says, "I always teach something called Sun Salutes from Ashtanga Yoga. They are the best all-purpose warmup I’ve ever found. They warm up every major muscle group, take the spine through almost every range of motion, coordinate movement with an amazing breathing technique... every time I work with a coach or athlete I ask them to please let me know if they ever find a more effective all-purpose warmup. No one ever has."

So is ALL stretching a waste of time? Definitely not, says Powel. "It may help the body process post-exercise waste, it can be very relaxing, and increasing range of motion can dramatically improve performance." As an example, he mentions Matt Biondi who won 7 gold medals at the Seoul Olympics, "He had measurably less arm power than other members on the US swim team but he had tremendous range of motion in his shoulders."

Powel recommends some kind of warm stretching program to complement strength training. "Muscles tend to get shorter and tighter the more we work them so a very strong athlete can end up with a severely limited range of motion. And unfortunately muscles don’t get longer on their own when we stop training, so some type of stretching is vital. I know of one Russian trainer who actually encourages dynamic stretching while cold, but unless you know exactly what you’re doing, I always recommend stretching while warm or hot."

The bottom line? "Stretch because you enjoy it. Or to increase your range of motion," says Powel. "But if you’re trying to minimize injuries, a warm-up routine is the way to go."

©2001 Mind-Body Fitness, Inc

For a summary of the latest study (2002) go to:

http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2002/08/30/stretching020830.html