Many athletes who are overly addicted to strength training and who do not care about flexibility at all have dense and hard muscles. Many research studies show that athletes with tighter muscles have higher strength performance and a greater risk of injury than those with more elastic muscles.
Instructions
Step 1
All muscles are made up of the contractile proteins actin and myosin. The more of these fibers, the larger the muscles. The fibers are linked to each other by another protein, collagen. Each muscle is attached to the bones from both ends by tendons. The collagen contained in the tendons transmits the forces generated by the contractile fibers. Since collagen is harder than myosin and actin, its amount determines the degree of muscle density in its relaxed state. When the muscles are strained, myosin and actin become as hard as collagen. Therefore, when working on muscle flexibility, it is first warmed up so that the greatest stretching force falls on the muscle fibers, and not on the connecting ones.
Step 2
According to the results of studies conducted with the participation of experienced athletes and untrained people, those with dense muscles produced more isometric and concentrated effort. Consequently, muscle density directly affects strength performance. In elastic muscles, the transmission of force is longer, therefore, its work is less effective. It has also been noticed for a long time that muscles become enslaved during resistance training. The steroids they take have the same effect. On the one hand, the loss of elasticity for the sake of higher strength indicators is taken as a reasonable measure. On the other hand, it comes to the point that many strength athletes cannot reach the back pocket of their trousers with their hand.
Step 3
As noted, one of the side effects of hard muscles is an increased risk of injury in the form of ruptured ligaments. The exact reason for this has not been established, but most researchers are inclined to assume that the flexible musculo-ligamentous system absorbs better. Consequently, regular muscle stretching is not only a convenience in the form of a wider range of motion, but also a significantly lower risk of injury.
Step 4
In strength sports such as weightlifting or powerlifting, flexibility is sacrificed to win a competitive prize. Moreover, to make themselves more "stiff", they use a variety of T-shirts, shorts, belts and headbands. And the risk of injury when lifting extreme weights is still very high. In bodybuilding, sacrificing flexibility for extra pounds is pointless. The goal of the bodybuilder is to expose the muscles to as much stress as possible. And this can be done without heavy burdens.
Step 5
What's more, many researchers confirm that more elastic muscles allow an athlete to recover better between workouts. And this is just as important in bodybuilding as exercise. Active recovery by doing stretching exercises significantly speeds up muscle recovery. Moreover, it is recommended to perform such exercises either immediately after training, or the next day after it.
Step 6
In sports that require explosive force, such as jumping or sprinting, muscle hardness changes from a helper to an opponent. The fact is that more elastic muscles when stretched can store more energy, which is released during contraction. In addition, abrupt stretching (for example, squatting before jumping) causes muscle fibers to respond with a sharp contraction - this is called the myotatic reflex.
