5 Deadly Sins of Stretching

In this article we’ll talk about the most serious mistakes when training for flexibility. It’s extremely important that you pay attention to these, since making these mistakes will, if you are lucky, just get you stuck, however, in many cases they will get you injured. We’ll explain each mistake and we’ll give you solutions for each. Let's begin! 1- Holding a stretch This is one of the less obvious ones, since what most people know about becoming flexible is exactly that, holding a stretch. People using this approach are wondering why their flexibility is not improving, most of them just gave up becoming flexible already, because it’s slow and painful, and they don’t feel it benefits them in any way. Those who are more steady with this approach, mostly people who practiced yoga, or learned the old stretching ways that became popular in the 80s, they wonder why they seem to make progress one day to come back to square one by the following training session.The body is doing this, coming back to your original flexibility, to protect itself. Whatever flexibility you gain stretching this way, holding stretches forever, will vanish, as it is not complemented by the proper strengthening, securing and habituation techniques. So if you don't stretch or hold a position to increase your flexibility, what do you do instead?! Dynamic type of flexibility exercises, and we are not only promoting the Zaichik Stretching Technique (ZST) here, which is dynamic, safe and includes strengthening and habituation techniques. Basically, if you want to develop quick flexibility and have it stick from session to session, incorporate movement, and strength into your stretches.There are also other methods, just do not stretch passively to improve flexibility, and if a method you find involves this and only this, then keep looking, that is not the method you need to be flexible. A proper flexibility training method includes:- dynamic stretching to increase range of motion- strengthening exercises to secure the new range- movement and habituation techniques to make your newly gained flexibility stick- cool down exercises, and these yes are passive and relaxedPassive static flexibility has many benefits, such as speeding up recovery, learning about your body, calming down your nervous system. It should be used for what it is intended, not for increasing flexibility. 2- Pushing a stretch This is the more harmful version of the above. This is straight looking for an injury. Holding a stretch is not as dangerous if we consider this one. Holding a stretch may be at the level of “playing with fire”, while this is “playing with a grenade”. People do it in a number of ways: bouncingpulling with a machineasking a partner to push All very wrong and dangerous! What’s the point! We feel it hurts already holding it, let’s go all the way and rip the tendons, nerves and muscles off, right? So sad this is still used at dance and gymnastics schools. The alternative and smart way is to gradually let our body adapt to new ranges, using a dynamic approach, which preferably avoids the stretch reflex, like the Zaichik Stretching Techniques.You will find many of these techniques throughout our blogs here, on our Facebook page and our YouTube channel. 3- Stretching every day Yes, you read it correctly, training everyday for flexibility gains can get you injured. Now, we must clear this up like with the others, as the popular idea is right the opposite.You first have to learn that stretching for flexibility is not the same as stretching to loosen up or to cool down. Loosening up every day is fine. Attempting to increase your range of motion every day or even two days in a row is not.Now that you are aware of this difference you know why some people recommend to stretch every day, while others don't. They are actually speaking about different things, using the same word. When you stretch to become more flexible muscles suffer:you are repeating the technique, working on your Zaichik Stretching Techniques or a different dynamic, effective and safe type of stretch... practicing your sets and repetitions, improving your awareness, going deeper and deeper...... while your muscles are becoming tired, getting the normal micro-injuries that come from exercise, so you naturally have to rest. This is much like when you do any type of conditioning exercise: you do push-ups, or squats, or run up the hill, you will then be sore, your body will adapt and improve, and you have to let this natural process take place. If you train before you are fully recovered, you will re-strain your body while it is recovering, which will make you need even more time to rest, or will just plain get you injured. Stretching for flexibility is very stressing for our bodies, same as lifting weights. Stretching for loosening up or cooling down is done differently, looking for relaxation, for slight and gradual extension of the tissues and so on. Other techniques are used.This brings up the issue that most people are using cooling down stretching techniques to increase flexibility. No wonder their flexibility gains are slow or non-existent. Much like when we use a wrench to put a nail in the wall. You can do it, but it's not ideal, you may break the tool or the nail or the wall, or all three, and it's just not the tool to do it. Pay attention to your ideal frequency of training: this is personal and it depends on your diet, stress levels, training level, genes, even weather, so you have to find this precise moment when it’s good to train again. If you are interested in understanding this point from a scientific point of view, you can research on the topic of “supercompensation", For most people it’s safe to leave 24 whole hours for resting, though normally when you are doing something new, or training for deep flexibility you may need up to 72 hours. A quick way to test if you can stretch for flexibility again, is to press on your muscles. If they are tender then you must rest. It is during recovery that you improve. Exercise is a stress, a stimulus for your body to let it know it has to improve. Your body will get stronger and more flexible, provided you give it time to distribute the right nutrients and create new and better tissues according to that stimulus, and as long as the stimulus was exactly that, a stimulus not a huge stress: it has to be in the right intensity and duration. 4- Not being steady This must have happened to you: you watch a very motivating dance or martial arts or gymnastics movie and you are all pumped up, or you meet someone that motivates you and you go training full throttle for a week, then you stop... Then you remember that you had committed yourself to becoming more flexible and so you start again, training 3 hours every time, then you quit for another week...At this point you have gained… wait, nothing. You’ve just wasted a month of your life. Whatever you progressed you went back to square one, even if you were not doing any of the other “sins” above. Make up your mind about what and how much you can do... ... and stick to it. Is it 10 minutes 3 times a week? Then maintain that, focusing on optimizing your day in order to do 30 minutes 3 times per week. Those 10 minutes 3 times per week for a month will give you results, compared to absolutely no results following an “intermittent approach”. It is true that one gets according to how much one invests, still harvesting 5 degrees of flexibility per month can take you to full split in ten months if you are 50 degrees away, whereas 0 degrees per month will take you nowhere, in a year or in 20 years. 5- Not having a map This embodies all of the others in a way. Flexibility improvement takes a long time, and much effort in remaining steady, focused in your goal to master that skill, in eating right and resting properly. Since the trip is a long one, you must be sure you are taking the right turns every time. A wrong turn can land you in the wrong place.If one day you do this one stretch, try it for a while then stop, then find another stretch or another youtube video and do it even if it feels wrong or does nothing, then you keep looking and find another “expert” that shows great flexibility so she or he must know what he is talking about, right? … and you go train their method for a while, then you drop it again. Or you do what your dance teacher, or yoga teacher says, then you also do what this other guy or friend says, you are “having each foot on a different boat”, where do you think you’ll end up, with a nice “split over two boats” like Van Damme’s Volvos one? Ha! More likely you’ll end up in the water!So that you don’t make these mistakes and others you are not aware of or not spoken about in this article, we invite you to start with one of our programs. If you need help picking one, click here to take our goals quiz, chat with us live or write to us at info@easyflexibility.com. Goodbye, Painful StretchesHello! EASY, FAST and SAFE flexibility! Online On-Demand Video Strength & Flexibility Training Programs for ALL ages! Instant Access, so that you can start training right away! It's easy to get started.Select a Program based on your goal.Login to your online Library.Join customer's only private support group.Start training.Keep track of your progress with Stretch 180 App!No contracts or hidden fees, you pay one time and the programs are yours to keep forever in your online library!Our programs are safe for ALL ages, ALL fitness levels and fitness backgrounds!*No need to have any previous experience with stretching!Easy to follow step by step instructions! Start You Flexibility Journey Now! *Before starting any fitness program be sure to check with your doctor to rule out any underlying issues that may prevent you from exercising, stretching and general fitness. Do you dream of being super flexible? Do you wish that getting flexible would be EASY, PAIN FREE and FAST? Do you want to keep the flexibility that you’ve gained for years to come? If the answer to all of these questions is a big fat YES!, then you’ve come to the RIGHT place. At EasyFlexibility we offer just that, EASY, FAST, PAIN FREE and SAFE flexibility with a proven method that is guaranteed to get you flexible! We can even predict the date that you will achieve your goals! Interested? Then keep reading…Why are we so confident? Because THOUSANDS of people worldwide are getting flexible every day using our method! Achieving their lifelong dream of being able to do Splits, Touch their Toes, Do back bends, you name it! Zaichik Stretching Method is a proven and tested method! Zaichik Stretching Method is a proven and tested method that took Paul Zaichik, the founder of EasyFlexibility, 30 years of rigorous testing, experimentation, and deep knowledge of the human body to perfect. 30 years of knowledge compressed into concise, easy to follow training routines which will take 30 – 40 minutes of your time, 2 – 3 times a week to get the results you’re dreaming about! Zaichik Stretching Method is designed for ALL people of ALL AGES and FITNESS BACKGROUNDS! This method is not reserved for some elite and fit people who have been working out their whole lives and now are easily getting their splits. This method is designed for ALL people, of ALL fitness backgrounds, of ALL ages! Even if you have never worked out a day in your life you will be able to follow our programs and GET RESULTS! But don't take our word for it, take a look what EasyFlexibility practitioners are saying: GOODBYE PAINFUL STRETCHES. HELLO! EASY, FAST AND SAFE FLEXIBILITY! These are not just empty words. Our method is very unique!It truly is EASY, just ask thousands of satisfied EasyFlexibility practitioners who are already sitting in splits, doing back bends, various Yoga poses, etc, etc., etc. Zaichik Stretching method is FAST! Some people get flexible within days! Some see dramatic results after trying the method only one time!For others it takes just a few weeks! Zaichik Stretching Method is SAFE! Zaichik Stretching Method has been created by a World Renowned Strength & Flexibility Expert Paul Zaichik with over 30 years experience in the field. The Zaichik Stretching Method is designed to work with your body, getting you flexible naturally which prevents unnecessary strain on your muscles. And most importantly, our method is PAIN FREE! It's easy to get started. Select a Program based on your goal.Login to your online Library.Join customer's only private support group.Start training.Keep track of your progress with Stretch 180 App!No contracts or hidden fees, you pay one time and the programs are yours to keep forever in your online library!Our programs are for ALL ages, ALL fitness levels and fitness backgrounds!*No need to have any previous experience with stretching!Easy to follow step by step instructions! Start Your Flexibility Journey Now! *Before starting any fitness program be sure to check with your doctor to rule out any underlying issues that may prevent you from exercising, stretching and general fitness. With the Zaichik Stretching Method you can now get flexible FAST, SAFE, EASY and PAIN FREE! Zaichik Stretching Method is different from anything you've ever tried before:It is designed to Isolate muscle actions one by one, to ensure they are doing their job. This means that every single stretch is scientifically designed to target one muscle at a time, translating into a very safe and nourishing experience for your body. Zaichik Stretching Technique takes care of the muscles that are tighter first. Tight muscles translate into easy injuries. Traditional stretching methods focus on all muscle stretches at the same time. Zaichik Stretching Technique (ZST) allows you to focus on muscles that are the underlying cause of slow progress and potential injury. Releasing tight muscles first allows for a much more enjoyable stretching session, leaving you feeling renewed, relaxed and refreshed and yet invigorated to tackle any task of the day. Zaichik Stretching Method allows easier focus since you are working on one specific area at a time. Instead of doing the same stretches over and over again with ZST method you will be able to strategically focus on a specific area of your body. This allows muscle memory to kick in and help you achieve steady results. You can do it all on your own! No pushing or bouncing is necessary, not even a partner. This is freedom at it's finest, no longer will you need a partner or anything but your own body and the floor to get flexible fast. This means that you can do these very enjoyable stretches at the time that works for you. No need to go anywhere or spend tons of money on one-on-one stretching sessions that don't work. With ZST you acquire much more than freedom, you acquire the KEY to success! Zaichik Stretching Method is PAIN FREE! Remember that phrase "No Pain - No Gain?"Well, it doesn't apply to our method. Each stretch is designed to be Pain-FREE. Thereby eliminating discomfort to allow you to continue training to achieve faster results. Zaichik Stretching Method is the only stretching method that is NATURAL for YOUR BODY! Totally safe, since it was designed according to what is natural for your body.Paul Zaichik, a World Renowned Fitness & Flexibility expert has spent many decades perfecting the Zaichik Stretching Techniques. Having tested this method on himself, his family and thousands of people around the world the conclusion was evident. Everyone achieved results without injuries!This is possible due to the succession of each element forming the ZST. Each technique responding to the natural movement of the body, transforming it from within. Gains are permanent and steady. Unlike other stretching techniques ZST is designed to give you results that last. No longer will you need to start over every time you stretch. Utilizing muscle memory, your body will start from where it left off the last time you stretched, working in unison with your mind and your desire to progress further. The endless struggle of mind vs matter will come to an end where your body will be in tune with your mind allowing for fast flexibility gains steadily helping you to attain your goals. Zaichik Stretching Method combines Strength & Flexibility into One workout session! It is very enjoyable to do, and feels more like a workout.If you're worried that you will not have enough time to squeeze in a full body workout, you will. With ZST method you're getting much more than just a stretching routine. You are also getting a strength training workout. Strengthening and stretching your muscles in one session is a win-win for your body, keeping it a lean, mean, strength and flexibility performing machine. Each ZST session will have you walk away refreshed, relaxed and yet invigorated ready for the most rigorous activity of the day. With ZST results are visible right away since the stretch reflex is avoided! This only means one thing: You'll get to show off your flexibility in no time! After experiencing the Zaichik Stretching Techniques: "Watch out for my superhuman flexibility" will become your mantra. Ready to get started? Thousands of people worldwide have achieved the same results you're dreaming about and you can too! Got my flexibility back after many years! I have been a professional dancer for over 10 years this DVD is now part of my training regimen I had an average turnout, but with use of this program, I have seen amazing results. My body is in correct alignment and my knees are not stressed out, because my turnout is coming from the hip. Thank you Easy Flexibility, it feels great to do a Grand Plie !! Mary Ellen Valenti We have hundreds of stretching programs that target various flexibility goals, which you can narrow down based on your goal by taking our goalz quiz, If you're interested in getting Splits, we have 9 different Splits programs to choose from based on your current level of flexibility. NOW PICK YOUR PROGRAM BELOW AND MAKE YOUR DREAM A REALITY! P.S. Remember how we said we can estimate your splits date? Well we really can with the use of our Stretch180 app which will not only approximate your splits date, but will help you to keep your flexibility progress and keep getting you motivated so that you can finally reach your goals! This app will also help you find out your current angle of flexibility. For more info on our app click here. And if you're interested in more than just splits check out our other programs for all your flexibility needs: © ElasticSteel Corp., EasyFlexibility, Paul Zaichik, et. El., 2022. No part of the materials available through ElasticSteel.com, EasyFlexiiblity.com, site may be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated or reduced to any electronic medium or machine-readable form, in whole or in part, without prior written consent of Paul Zaichik EasyFlexibility.com, Elasticsteel.com.. 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