The Different Kinds of Flexibility
In order to get the most out of your workouts you should know The Different Kinds of Flexibility.
The Different Kinds of Flexibility
It’s hard enough for a lot of people just to workout, and then you have to throw the quotient of eating right into the mix. Right there is where most people stop. To those of you who think that just working out and eating correctly is enough, you WILL eventually find out that you were sorely wrong! How do I know this? Great question, because, if you do workout on a regular basis, there will come a point where you WILL injure yourself; and it’s not a question of IF, but a question of WHEN.
How can I be so sure? Easy. Any athlete that pushes him or herself to any moderately high level (or stepping out of their comfort zone in anything for that matter), is really like playing with fire. You may not get burned today, tomorrow or even this year, but if you continue playing with fire you are going to get burned about as predictably as the sun setting in the west and rising in the east.
Accident
Sometime last year I had a VERY major bike accident in which I tore off the whole front end of my race bike. I had a head on collision on the world famous American River Bike Trail. I was going about 21 MPH on a blind corner and hit another cyclist doing about the same speed. I snapped both the carbon fiber Easton EC90 fork arms, broke both my Deda handlebars and Deda stem and bent my METAL Campagnolo crank rings. How I did not break my wrist is a miracle straight from God and because of flexibility. All in all it was about a $2000+ accident, between bike parts and doctor visits. The first thing most people ask is 1) Are you O.K? and 2) are you done cycling? The answers to those questions are 1) Yes and 2) No. Every cyclist KNOWS that if you cycle, you WILL crash; it just comes with the territory. Most cyclists *almost* look forward to it, just so they can get it out of the way. Most serious cyclists know that if you are not flexible then your recovery time is GREATLY extended.
Have you ever noticed how flexible people rarely get injured, even people who do not workout much? How about people who do a lot of yoga – have you ever noticed how those people rarely get injured? If you are a women’s tennis fan then you have probably noticed that even though Serena Williams is significantly more muscular than her sister Venus, their tennis serves are clocked at pretty much the same speed. Why? Because Venus is much more flexible than her sister Serena; thus, There Is Power In Flexibility.
The Different Kinds of Flexibility
In sports there are six kinds of flexibility. The different type of flexibility largely depends on the muscle group, the action of the muscle and the presence or absence of the force (externally) that moves throughout the ROM (range of motion). Here are the different kinds
- Static Active Flexibility – You know what static stretching is; Static Passive Flexibility is using the muscles of the stretched body part to hold that stretch.
- Static Passive Flexibility Above Threshold – This is the amount of pain your muscles can take statically (Holding it in the same place) before giving way (tearing) using “outside” assistance. The greater the “limberness” of ROM and pain threshold the less likely you are to get injured.
- Static Passive Flexibility Below Threshold – This is the amount of flexibility your muscles can take statically (holding in the one static place) without experiencing pain. Ever notice how babies can sleep in the most awkward positions. This is some great static passive flexibility below threshold.
- Dynamic Passive Flexibility Above Threshold – *Dynamic = Movement*. This is the amount of pain your muscles can take before giving way (tearing) using “outside” assistance. The greater the ROM and pain threshold the less likely you are to get injured.
- Dynamic Passive Flexibility Below Threshold – This is the amount of flexibility your muscles can take without experiencing ANY muscle pain. Ever notice how babies can put their foot in their mouths then fall asleep! This is a very high level of Dynamic Passive Flexibility Below threshold. And it is how babies rarely get injured!
- Dynamic Active Flexibility – This is only using the muscles of your moving body part.
For now just know what the different types are. I will get into how to increase you own flexibility in later post.
This concludes my post on The Different Kinds of Flexibility.
