The Urban Trainer Blog - UK

There are many types of Stretching and if you single them out, some can be good and some can be bad for you, depending on the type of sport, activity or need for a better recovery.

When beginning a workout – Dynamic Stretches are good, preparing your body for exercise by raising blood flow to muscles and tendons, improving performance and cutting down the risk of injury. On the other hand – Static Stretches – such as touching your toes to loosen the hamstrings – have been shown to reduce muscle power, lengthening it and making it more prone to injury. Imagine Blue- Tack – stretch them cold and their likely to snap. Warm them up and they become adaptable.

I’ve put down these three basic dynamic movements which will warm you up for most activities.

For the lower body SQUATS and LUNGES (both minus the weights). For the upper body, try a TRUNK ROTATION, followed by circling and flapping of the arms. You might think you’ll look stupid! – I do it all the time. Better safe than sorry!