The last time you felt a tight muscle, what did you do to address it? I’ll assume you stretched it, right? Ask yourself, did it help? While it’s been proven static stretching may improve tissue extensibility in the short term, what if I told you to stop wasting your time with that and instead there is power in resistance training to increase your range of motion? In a recent article published within the Sports Medicine Journal researchers reviewed how resistance training can improve range of motion just as well as stretching (Alizadeh S, Daneshjoo A, Zahiri A, et al., 2023)!
In this systematic review with meta-analysis the effectiveness of chronic resistance training was compared to that of a control group, a stretching group & a combo (stretch + resistance training) group. While range of motion was improved across the board, it was surprising to see there were no significant differences between the resistance training and stretch training. While “active” individuals involved with this study increased their range of motion through resistance training, the “untrained” or “non-active” individuals had significantly higher improvements in their range of motion. When diving further into the specifics of “resistance training” it was found that external loads (holding weights, bands, etc) needed to be included in order to gain significant improvements. Bodyweight resistance training had no significant improvements in range of motion as compared to stretching.
The takeaway from this is two-fold: while stretching can & should be used as a viable option to improve an individual’s range of motion, when applicable a progressively loaded resistance training program designed at moving throughout a full range of motion can just as easily be utilized to improve range of motion. With this in mind, our old-school thinking of stretching prior to or after resistance training may not be necessary to enhance our overall flexibility. To learn more about proper resistance training, reach out to us! Our performance physical therapists are here to help you overcome your pain and achieve your wellness goals.
Source:
Alizadeh, S., Daneshjoo, A., Zahiri, A., Anvar, S. H., Goudini, R., Hicks, J. P., Konrad, A., & Behm, D. G. (2023). Resistance Training Induces Improvements in Range of Motion: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 53(3), 707–722. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-022-01804-x
