Squats with a barbell stretching the biceps of the thigh. Yoga Anatomy: Stretching the Stiff Quads

Jump lunges

The combination of aerobic and power load will have a wonderful effect on pulling up the figure. Difficulty of execution due to jumps quite high.

In addition to the main muscle group being worked out, lunges will help tighten the buttocks and calf muscles.

1. Starting position - Feet together, back straight, arms at the seams, gaze directed forward;
2. On inspiration, we lunge forward with the right foot, exhale, hovering;
3. On the next breath, we jump and land in a lunge on the other leg.

Learn more from the video:

You can do this exercise with or without weights. For beginners, start with 10-12 reps per leg for 2-3 sets.

For the necessary coordination of movements, help yourself when jumping with the characteristic wave of your hands.

Leg raises while lying on your stomach

An excellent static load for girls and women, acting mainly on the biceps femoris. The difficulty is not high, the main thing is to concentrate on the area being worked out and feel the muscle tension in it. This movement is also called.

1. Starting position - Lay a mat, lie on your stomach, arms and legs straight and stretched down;
2. On inspiration, we understand 2 straight legs up 15-20 centimeters from the floor level, we linger for 2-3 seconds;
3. Exhaling, we come to the starting position.

More on video:

You can perform actions both on both legs at once, and separately on each. For starters, 15-20 repetitions for 3-4 sets will be enough.

You can perform the exercise both without weights, and use weights on the calves or ankle.

Calf flexion while lying on your back

Functional exercise involving rear surface thighs, buttocks, back muscles and strengthening the press. The complexity is small, the main thing is to save correct back bend so as not to get injured. For greater efficiency, you can use 2 small hill supports - you can put pancakes from a barbell / dumbbell or towels folded several times.

As promised, I post an article on healthy spine and silt exercises

STRENGTH EXERCISES AND BACK HEALTH

A common question here in the community is about back pain.
Definitely need to go to the doctor first.

The consequences of spinal curvature can be very different: from pain in the back, limbs and internal organs.
Lifestyle modern man very conducive to this, unfortunately.

Stretched quads and tight hamstrings make perfect ground for lordosis.
And in gym, in addition to everything else, they tighten the chest and, in general, the muscles that bring the shoulder inward, which creates the basis for kyphosis.

Bodybuilders have a huge skew in rotation inward - because there is a load on the chest, back, and other muscles that rotate inward.
muscles are a kind of biological rubber bands, entangled in nerve endings and clogged with sources of energy and water. The importance of taking into account the load on them lies in a simple postulate: ANY PHYSICAL LOAD SHORTENS THE MUSCLES (not counting stretching). So, loading (read, shortening) one from muscle groups that perform a specific function, for example, moving the shoulder girdle forward - pectoralis major and minor, there is a danger of displacing the shoulder joint from a healthy position over time and even disturbing the posture of the thoracic spine, causing hypertrophied kyphosis.

Let me explain clearly: as a rule, a modern office worker looks like the letter S from the side.
A protruding pelvis, a protruding belly, a crooked back and forward shoulders.
Tightened hamstrings - adductors of the shins and stretched quadriceps (due to constant sitting), tight buttocks - adductors of the hips, tightened psoas and stretched abdominal muscles, tightened chest and stretched middle back.

BUTT BRIDGE ON ONE LEG



Lie on your back, placing your legs bent at the knees together. Lift your socks off the floor and, tensing your buttocks, lift your pelvis up. Maintaining this position, pull your right knee to your chest. In reverse order, return to the supine position and repeat on the other leg.





This exercise develops the so-called. The "posterior chain of the cortex", from the lumbar muscles, to the buttocks and hamstrings, these muscle groups are the most important for the health of the spine and back in general!







SIDE PLANK



This is like next exercise, fitness came from hattha yoga



Turn to the floor sideways and stand on one elbow, directing the forearm at a right angle to the body. Bring the body in line with the legs, draw in the stomach and hold this position for another 30-60 seconds. Without rest make an approach for the other side.







FRONT PANEL



Stand on your elbows, straightening your body and hips. Draw in your stomach and tighten your buttocks. Freeze for 30-60 seconds.









For those more experienced in fitness, you can do a complicated version with arms or legs raised alternately.





These two exercises are developed by the so-called. "anterior chain bark". Particularly the abdominal muscles.

All three exercises are indispensable for use in the gym by beginners in order to develop their core muscles. Unfortunately, I have NEVER seen a trainer give these exercises to their athletes.





BODY LIFT



Hooking the lower ribs on the floor, "so that the stomach is firmly pressed to the floor, slowly bend the body upward, unbending exactly in the THORACIC region. Turn your shoulders back and try to bring your shoulder blades together. Do NOT throw your head back, keep it PARALLEL to the floor. Feel the muscle tension between the shoulder blades. Try to keep it in. Fix in this position and hold the achieved position of the body with the muscles of the back for 20-30 seconds.Then slowly lower yourself to the starting position and relax.

BULGARIAN SPLIT SQUAT

Put your back foot on a rigid support, and put your front foot far forward into a lunge, and squat. This is a Bulgarian split squat.
The main thing is that the knee does not go further than the toe of the legs.

Numerous studies have already proven that walking lunges, and even more so walking lunges, can cause significant damage to the knee joints! But the Bulgarian and classic split squats are absolutely safe and just as effective!











L-BREEDING



Stand next to an incline bench. The top of the bench should be at the level of your nipples. To do this, bend your knees or raise the bench.

Take a small plate or a very light dumbbell in your left hand, lower your left triceps to the top edge of the bench. Then place your right hand on the bench directly under your left triceps. At the beginning of the exercise, the left hand points to the ceiling. Slowly lower the plate or dumbbell to a point slightly below level where the forearm is parallel to the floor.



The value of this irreplaceableexercise is that it increases the strength of the rotators of the shoulder joint, including the upper, lower and subscapular rotator cuffs of the shoulder, as well as small muscles (see atlas). The tendons of these muscles are connected to the tissues of the shoulder joint (rotator cuff).

L-wiring (this exercise is also called "L-Fly", "L-fly") is necessary in order to reduce the imbalance between the strength of the external (weaker) and internal (stronger) rotators. An excessive imbalance of strength between these opposing muscles is often the factor that contributes to problems. shoulder joints.

To understand the difference between the external and internal rotators of the shoulder joint, imagine that you are shaking someone's hand with your right hand. Bend your right arm at the desired angle, and keep your elbow pressed to your side. By moving the right hand to the right, we get "outward rotation". By moving the right hand to the left, we get "inward rotation".

BREEDING HANDS TO THE REAR DELTOIDS

• Be sure to keep your torso straight and still throughout the set. This is a guarantee of both safety and effectiveness of the exercise.
• To achieve maximum contraction of the posterior deltoid, middle trapezius and rhomboid muscles, be sure to bring your elbows behind your back. If that doesn't work, then you've lifted too much weight, or you need to work on improving shoulder flexibility.
• Don't chase heavy weights. The secret to the effectiveness of reverse dilutions is strict adherence to the correct form and technique of the exercise.

1. Hip Flexor Stretch

Get on your left knee, putting your right foot far forward. Bend it at the knee and transfer your body weight to it. Rest with both hands on the thigh of the right leg and fix the lower back. Without bending in the spine, lower the pelvis as much as possible and slightly move forward. Breathe evenly. Hold this position for 15-30 seconds and then do the same for the other leg.

2. STRETCHING THE BICEPS
Stand up straight. Without twisting in the lower back, bend your whole torso forward and down, reaching your hands to the floor

Cane use.
Another simple technical device that I use with clients is what I call a cane. The weapon is no more exotic than a broom handle. Hold it behind you, opposite your lower back, parallel to the floor. Grasp it with palms forward at both ends, arms outstretched. Spend at least 10 minutes a day in this position, walking in circles and maintaining this position - the longer the better. The cane will pull your shoulders back, properly aligning them, and force your spine into a more favorable position. Make sure to keep your head high and straight: the back of your ear should be directly above the midline of your deltoid

breast expansion .

our ribcage is often cramped due to bad posture and tight muscles surrounding your spine (not to mention years of gravitational pull). This exercise makes soft tissues in area chest more mobile. Lie across a stretchy roller, about 6 inches or 15 cm in diameter (you can probably find one where you purchased the roller shown in the first exercise of this section). You can do this exercise statically, keeping the position unchanged, or make it dynamic (and more effective) by rolling the roller forward a few inches (i.e., as if the roller is rolling down your back) and back (to the starting position shown in the picture) . Do this exercise for five minutes every day, adding a minute or two every week until you reach 10 minutes.
(unfortunately I couldn't find a better photo)

Stretching in the doorway will also be extremely useful (but it is very important not to bend over in the spine!

The main thing here is that all this works ONLY all together.
It is necessary to perform ALL exercises of strength and strech orientation in order to have an effect.

P.S.

In general, ONLY exercises ONLY cannot help in posture. In posture helps TOTAL CONTROL from second to second behind her! And exercises are only as supplements - and carry only 10% of success. But even then you need to understand what and where to do - after all, posture can be bad in different ways - which muscles to stretch and which to pump. Whether to stretch the muscles of the biceps of the thigh and pump the rear deltas or something else. And here by the way stretching no less important.

Be healthy!

Quadriceps are a powerful group of muscles that form the front surface of the thigh, especially its lateral part. This group muscles (namely 4) takes an active part in the fundamental movements of a person - walking, running, squatting, standing up, maintaining balance. Without active involvement in the work of this zone, it is impossible to imagine a full-fledged yoga practice, as well as most sports and physical activity. I propose to understand in practice how to significantly improve the quality of the quadriceps and expand its functionality.

The quadriceps consists of a straight, lateral, medial and intermediate parts connecting the hip and knee joints. thus, we can talk about a very powerful connection of two large joints that are constantly in motion. Over the course of life, if a person does not specifically engage in stretching the anterior surface of the thigh or, for example, spends most of the time sitting, the quadriceps shorten and form a stiff interarticular joint, which significantly reduces the mobility of the lower body and “folds” the body from the side of the abdominal cavity forward.

Many yoga exercises and practices require an already stretched and elastic front of the thigh. Examples are Eka Pada Raja Kapotasana, Hanumanasana, Ushtrasana, even quite simple variations of Parighasana. However, the preparation of this complex of muscles for full-fledged and, most importantly, safe work is a very long and regular process, requiring constant attention and monitoring of sensations from the practitioner, and from the teacher - a scrupulous "muscle" analysis of exercises and practices and competent adjustments.

I will share several yoga therapy techniques for self-practice. I must remind you that this information will in no way replace a full-fledged consultation with an experienced specialist, but it will give you the keys to understanding the features of working with this muscle group.

1. When using any hamstring stretching exercise, never "thump" into the pose. For example, you are in a wide lunge with support on one knee, ready to lengthen and stretch the quadriceps of the supporting leg. Do not follow the typical desire to lower the pelvis as low as possible and reach the pain threshold of stretching the indicated muscle! You simply do not give the body time to realize what is happening and turn on not a defensive reaction (“run away” from pain when a stiff muscle either “sticks” or gives a sharp pain signal, and often this is accompanied by tissue ruptures), but a calm interaction with the existing resource and gradual progress through the "correct" pain to a new muscle length.
2. Quadriceps is a "compound muscle". Understand to the subtleties exactly what effect each of the components has and what exactly is your unique structure of this part of the body, taking into account the present age, the past bodily history and lifestyle. A serious help in this will be the assessment of the "posture" of the legs. For example, X-shaped legs may indicate a significant reduction in the lateral and intermediate sections of the quadriceps, and the O-shaped position, on the contrary, to a rigid medial muscle and tensor fascia lata. Taking into account individual characteristics, it is worth building a practice that will undoubtedly very effective in your case.
3. Don't limit yourself to standard quadriceps "stretches," such as wide lunges or kickbacks while standing. As I said, the "complex" quadriceps requires multifaceted study and a variety of practice. Don't forget about rotations hip joint, developing muscle fascia and places of attachment of muscle bundles, flexion-extension of the knees in various positions, giving elasticity to hard fibers at the point of attachment to the joint, all kinds of diagonal and lateral lunges and grips.

Learn your body through practice. Make the individual approach as professional as possible by resorting to knowledge in all expressions. Pass everything through the prism of your feelings and build up a unique experience of a different quality of movement and life!

Amazing Science Discovery: Increasing Muscle Elasticity Through Stretching Really Increases Muscle Mass and Strength!

Friends, I would not have started writing this article if I had not known in advance that I would give you a sensation. It's about stretching, the one that every bodybuilder knows is useful and ... boring. Yes, yes, I, a jock with many years of experience, know from myself how difficult it is to force myself to do stretching exercises. Before training - well, all right, but between the hardest sets, and even more so after training, when the knees are already breaking, it’s not at all, as they say, at the box office. And in general, it seems that stretching is from another opera. Think for yourself: you take a thick plasticine sausage by the ends and stretch it. Sausage what? That's right - it becomes longer and ... thinner. It turns out that stretching with muscles will be the same! Why the hell do we need this? Furthermore, somehow a couple of years ago I read a serious article that it was harmful for a bodybuilder to lean on stretching. The arguments are like this. Any joint is just the ends of bones pressed against each other. And so that the joint does not "break up", the whole thing is "sealed" inside a dense hermetic "case" - scientifically, the articular bag. The articular bag is "made" of connective tissue. In all security officials, over time, it coarsens, and the joint becomes stronger. As the author explained, this is an adaptive reaction to heavy strength training, which should be very cherished, because due to it we become stronger. (Admittedly, this makes us look like clumsy koala bears and can't tie our own shoelaces, but that doesn't seem to help.)

So what about stretching? She has the opposite task - to stretch the articular bag and thereby provide the joint with greater freedom, more precisely, greater amplitude. According to the firm belief of the author of the article, the stretching of the articular bag means a rollback in terms of strength indicators and a huge risk of injury. In fact, the bag, they say, becomes larger, and the ends of the bones no longer fit with the same force - the joint becomes "loose". Is it possible to put a critical weight on such a joint?

After such an article, I generally abandoned the stretch. And I would never have remembered her, if not for one story. I could not swing the hamstrings in any way. My earnest but futile efforts were observed for a long time by a local trainer, until finally he gave me seemingly lame advice to stretch. According to him, I should regularly devote 15-20 minutes of targeted stretching of the hamstrings. I don’t consider myself to be a dumb guy who, like rhinos, can only run in a straight line, and therefore I decided to try. In the end, as a result of the experiment, I will know for sure that stretching is a complete g ... And what would you think? Within 4 days my weights went up! Well, after a month and a half, I could not recognize my own legs! Of course, I immediately began to stretch the rest of the muscles. And here, too, a complete triumph awaited me! Both weights and volumes went up sharply!

I understand my personal experience for many not an argument. I will retell what I "dug up" in the special literature. It turns out that back in 1992 in Australia, one experiment was staged, which can only be called sensational. Elite powerlifters were divided into two groups with a traditional training program focusing on the bench press. However, the first group was also forced to intensively stretch their muscles. shoulder girdle. Two months later - hold on! - the first group was ahead of the second as a result of the bench press by 15%!!! This amazing result would have been buried in archival annals if the Americans had not taken up the matter. Serious scientists set up two objective experiments on two control groups of athletes.

Both in the first and in the second case, the subjects had to train the hamstrings, but in the first group, the athletes also stretched the muscles. As a result of both experiments, both groups gained strength in the biceps of the thighs, but the stretching group in both the first and second cases was ahead of the other in the strength indicator by a close figure - 19%!

So how does science explain the phenomenon? So far, unfortunately, researchers have only hypotheses about stretching. In particular, this one. The strength of a muscle depends not so much on its ability to contract powerfully, as previously thought, but on its general elasticity. muscle tissue. In other words, the muscle must be able not only to contract, but also to stretch beyond its normal length. The degree of stretching and the degree of muscle contraction are equivalent characteristics of muscle tissue, which form a single indicator of its "quality", i.e. her level of strength and endurance. Hence the conclusion: one-sided training of the contractile characteristic naturally brings a limited result. Add here "stretching" training, and the power potential of the muscle will increase.

However, this is the point of view of theorists, but what about practice? There are also many interesting things here. Canada is home to the "guru" of strength training, Doctor of Sports Medicine Todor Bompa. Here is his opinion: “In order to get the most out of bodybuilding training programs, you must work with full range of motion. The reason is that only such training gives truly voluminous muscles. Limited range mainly develops strength - this is the basics of the science of strength training. To perform movements with full amplitude, you need to have flexible joints. To have flexible joints, you need to actively stretch. In short, stretching in bodybuilding is in the first place ... "However, this is a general discussion, as for practical specifics, then all Bompa's wards stretch 6 times a week for half an hour. Almost all of them are elite, competitive bodybuilders with great experience, which means they train with huge weights. According to the well-known theory that I retold at the beginning of the article, they should have broken all their arms and legs long ago. But no, somehow they manage without injuries. What is the secret? Bompa believes that everything Injuries in bodybuilding have a common root cause - weak joint flexibility.Exercises aimed at increasing mass, they say, objectively have a large amplitude.But at the same time, it never occurs to anyone that such an amplitude may, in principle, be inadequate to the flexibility of your joints.Recall the most common bodybuilding injuries: shoulder injury, pain in the elbows and knees, rupture of the pectoral muscle.The anatomical picture is as follows.As the weight is lifted, the tension in the muscles increases, they shorten their length. At the same time, just like strings, numerous "working" ligaments are "stretched" more and more. At some point, they no longer have enough elasticity potential - there is a tear or complete rupture of the ligament, or even separation of the ligament from the bone. If the bodybuilder had “made” the ligaments “rubber” in advance, the injury would not have happened. Is it logical?

And here is another revelation, owned by the American scientist Mike Alter. Muscle pain after intense training is caused by multiple ruptures in muscle fibers. It is generally accepted that this is a "good" pain, since it indicates a super-intense "pumping" of the muscle. Meanwhile, so far sports medicine found no direct link between post-workout pain and muscle growth. Pain does not appear to provide any benefit in increasing muscle volume. By observing professional and beginner bodybuilders, Michael Alter found that post-workout pain is common only for beginners. Professionals do not feel it even after extreme loads. According to Alter, it's all about the weak elasticity of muscle fibers in beginners. Due to the "stiffness" of the fibers, the muscle is not able to either properly contract or stretch properly. As a result, strong-willed overcoming of weight leads to ruptures of muscle fibers and then to pain. Only and everything. If a beginner stretches his muscles from the very beginning, he will not feel pain exactly like a pro. By the way, there is a strong belief among professionals that stretching speeds up recovery. More recently, scholars have argued in favor of this point of view. It turns out that the muscles that have repeatedly contracted during the training process "shrink" - they reduce their length. And in order for the recovery processes to begin in the muscle, it must return to its natural, natural length. It usually takes 2 to 5 hours. If the bodybuilder regularly stretches the muscles, then they return to "natural" size almost immediately. It is clear that the total recovery time (until the next workout) is significantly increased.

What is the conclusion? Stretching should be a fundamental part of your training, just like protein intake and high intensity exercise. From now on, you must stretch, stretch, stretch... For exact directions, see below.

Flexibility: an inside view

We'll have to get under your skin. Forgive me, but this is the best way to explain what happens to your muscles when you try to stretch them.

So, right under the skin, we find the first layer of muscle. Why first? Yes, because in addition to the superficial skeletal muscles that we bodybuilders care about so much, there are also many others that help us breathe, digest food, create children, etc. (We will make a reservation in advance that we will talk only about the muscles of the skeleton.) So, the first thing we come across is the so-called. fasciae or, as they are also called, connective tissue membranes. They cover all our muscles along with all their blood vessels and nerve entanglements. The muscle lies inside the fascia as if in a "case". By the way, inside it there are also "minicases". Some bundles of muscle fibers are embedded, while others, completely microscopic, are separate muscle fibers.

Now let's take a closer look at the muscle fiber itself. Inside it there are many filamentous formations, the so-called. myofibrils. They stretch along the muscle fiber. Each myofibril, in turn, consists of tiny formations - sarcomeres. Let's take a closer look at them - it is with them that any movement begins, including stretching.

Inside the sarcomere there are two types of filaments, or filaments; thick filaments are called myosin filaments, and thin filaments are called actin filaments. They consist of muscle protein and are "responsible" for the ability of muscles to contract. These threads run parallel to each other, slightly touching in places.

magnetic attraction

In truth, we still don't really know how muscles contract. A forty-year-old theory says that before a muscle contracts, a nerve impulse stimulates the release of calcium ions within that muscle. Under the influence of adenosine triphosphoric acid (ATP), calcium ions "saturate" myosin and actin fibers. As a result, something like a magnetic field is formed between them. In other words, myosin and actin fibers seem to be attracted to each other. From this, the entire muscle fiber is shortened, and tension arises in it, which we call muscle contraction. According to this theory, this process sequentially involves sarcomere by sarcomere, myofibril by myofibril. As a result, our muscles make the movement that we wanted from them.

When the muscles relax, actin and myosin fibers cease to be attracted to each other and diverge in different directions. By stretching the muscles, we force the fibers to move even further apart.

At some point, the sarcomere stretches to its extreme limit, and the fascia, the very membranes that cover the muscles, begin to stretch further. According to scientists, the fascia accounts for up to 41% of our effort when we stretch a particular muscle.

Motion detectors

So far, we have been talking about extrafusal muscle fibers. In parallel with them, other fibers, intrafusal, are located in the muscles. It forms the so-called. muscle spindles.

These formations are not directly involved in weight lifting. In fact, they are a type of proprioceptors (proprioceptors), sensory nerve endings with which the brain controls the position of our body in space, including the position of the limbs. body. When a muscle is stretched, the same unwittingly happens to the muscle spindles. At the same time, they “fix” how quickly and to what extent the muscle fibers lengthen, and transmit this information to the central nervous system. If the muscles are stretched too fast or too much, the muscle spindles signal to “turn on” the reverse action, that is, the muscles begin to resist the stretch, trying to contract.

With regular stretching, muscle spindles gradually get used to the new state. However, there is one subtlety here: you need to stretch the muscles slowly and best of all in a static position. Sharp movements simply do not leave the muscle spindles a chance to adapt to the load.

small bodies

It is necessary to mention another proprioceptor - the Golgi body, which is located at the junction of the muscle and tendon, by which the muscle is attached to the bone. At muscle contraction tension is transmitted to this organ. Like muscle spindles, the Golgi corpuscles record the speed and intensity of this process and send the appropriate information to the central nervous system. If the tension is too great, at their signal, a countermechanism is activated, preventing further contraction and forcing the muscles to relax.

It happens that both proprioceptors are stuck. muscle spindle and the Golgi body "work" at the same time, sending opposite signals. In this case, the signal from the Golgi body usually suppresses the signal from the spindles. And then, having properly stretched and feeling considerable tension in the muscles, you suddenly feel that at some point they seem to have relaxed, after which they can be stretched further. Some scientists attribute this reaction to the Golgi bodies.

Stretching Guide for Strength Athletes

Basic stretching exercises

To stretch the most important muscle groups, you will need to do all of these 11 exercises. Perform the entire complex after training, and individual exercises - of your choice - before training (after warming up) and between sets, depending on which muscle groups you are working on. Each pose should be held for 15-30 seconds 3-4 times per workout.

Shoulders

Lateral stretch

Muscles: deltoid, with an emphasis on the posterior bundles.

Exercise: straight arm across the body at shoulder level. Put the other hand on the "working" hand above the elbow. Exhale and slowly press the "working" hand to the body. The same for the other hand.

No need! Do not even try to press the "working" hand with jerky movements!

Stretch in the door

Muscles: small internal rotators of a shoulder.

Exercise: Stand in a doorway and rest your arm bent at the elbow on the jamb. Exhale and slowly turn the torso around the vertical axis, giving the "working" shoulder forward. Do the same with the other hand.

No need! Do not tilt your torso forward, keep it strictly vertical, avoiding involuntary rotation of the pelvis.

Upper back

Hand behind your back

Muscles: Small external rotators of the shoulder

Exercise: Put one hand behind your back. Grab it with your other hand just above the elbow. Consciously relax the whole body, exhale and gently press on the "working" hand. Do the same with the other hand.

No need! Do not push the "working" hand and do not lean forward.

Upper back stretch

Muscles: rhomboid, trapezius, round muscles and top of the latissimus dorsi.

Exercise: Stand about a meter away from a crossbar or railing. Put your feet together. Bend over and grab the bar with an overhand grip, fully extend your arms, exhale and slowly bend at the waist until you feel a good stretch.

No need! Do not bend your back - keep it straight and even slightly arched. No stress in the knees!

Hips

Seated hamstring stretch

Muscles: hamstrings.

Exercise: Sit on the floor, straighten your body, stretch your legs in front of you. Bend one leg and pull the foot towards the pelvis as far as possible. Bend the other leg slightly to relieve tension in the knee. Exhale and lean forward keeping your head straight. Bend the other leg and repeat the movement.

No need! Do not try harder to bend the "non-working" leg - this will not enhance the effect of the pose.

Hands

Triceps stretch

Muscles: triceps.

Exercise: raise your hand up. Bend it at the elbow so that the brush is behind the back of the head. With the other hand, grab the elbow of the bent arm, exhale and slowly pull the elbow behind the head. Do the same with the other hand.

No need! Do not make sudden jerky movements!

Breast

Stretching the pectoral muscles

Muscles: chest.

Exercise: Stand in a doorway and raise your arms bent at the elbows to shoulder level. Rest your elbows on the jambs, exhale and slowly lean forward. (This exercise can be done with each hand in turn).

No need! Don't try to jerk your torso.

Legs/lower back

"Butterfly"

Muscles: adductors.

Exercise: Sit on the floor, straighten your back, press the soles of your feet together. Place your hands on your ankles so that your elbows touch your thighs. inside, exhale and lightly press your elbows on your thighs. (Alternatively, grab your feet or ankles, exhale, and with a straight back, gently lean forward.)

No need! Don't arch your back or put too much pressure on your hips.

Sitting turns

Muscles: buttocks, upper area hips and lower back.

Exercise: Sit on the floor, stretch your legs in front of you, rest your hands on the floor behind you. Cross your right leg over your left and pull your right foot toward your pelvis. Lift your left hand off the floor and place your left elbow on the outside of your bent right knee. Exhale and press your elbow on your knee while turning your head to the right. Do the same with the other leg.

No need! Do not turn your head too much - you can stretch the neck muscles.

Small of the back

Muscles: erectors of the back and extensors of the hips.

Exercise: take a lying position. Pull your knee towards you so that you can grab your thigh just above the knee. Slowly bring your knee to your shoulders. Do the same with the other leg. (Alternatively, you can do this exercise on both legs at once).

No need! Grabbing the leg in front is traumatic for the knee. Try not to lift the thigh too high, otherwise you can not only stretch, but pull the muscles of the back.

How to stretch

Before stretching, be sure to warm up for 5-10 minutes. Stretching can be done at home or in the gym, as long as there is enough space and the surface (floor) is smooth and not too hard. Basic stretching exercises serve to work out large groups muscles. To target small muscle groups or specific areas, use Targeted Stretches (see below).

All movements should be performed slowly. Avoid sudden movements. Such movements overstrain the connective tissue and threaten injury.

Hold the stretched position for 15-30 seconds.

· Repeat each exercise 3-4 times. During the first set, the muscles being worked out should be tense, but in moderation, without pain. Try to relax well before the next sets to stretch even better.

· Never bring the case to pain. If you feel pain, ease the load. Stretching should not be painful.

Do not hold your breath while stretching. Exhale as you stretch and inhale as you return to the starting position. Breathe slowly and deeply.

Stretching before training and between sets will help increase the range of motion and avoid injury; Stretching after a workout speeds up recovery processes and relieves pain in the muscles.

· If you have never stretched before, then at first it will be difficult for you to do it with the maximum amplitude. Everything will get better with time. Try to stretch in every workout, at least three times a week.

Beginners may experience some muscle soreness the day after stretching, which usually resolves in a day or two.

Target exercises

Use these exercises as an addition to your basic stretching routine, especially when you're targeting specific muscle groups, or to develop flexibility in general.

Stretching on the floor

Muscles: rhomboid, trapezius and latissimus dorsi.

Exercise: kneel down, extend your arms in front of you, rest your palms on the floor, back straight. Exhale and try to "press" your hands into the floor, stretching your upper back.

No need! Don't bend your back!

Bent Over Stretch

Muscles: calf and soleus.

Exercise: Stand against a wall a little further than arm's length. Take a step forward. Exhale, lean forward and rest your elbows against the wall. Shift your weight onto your front foot, keeping the sole of your other foot firmly "glued" to the floor. Lower yourself into a squat, feeling the stretch in your calf. To “turn on” the soleus muscle (photo below right), slightly bend the back leg at the knee, but again, do not lift your heel off the floor. Change legs and do the same again.

No need! Do not bend or arch your back!

Biceps stretch

Muscles: biceps.

Exercise: Stand at arm's length from a door frame or machine stand, facing away from a support. Grasp the support with an outstretched hand with a grip away from you ( thumb"looks" down). Exhale and try to turn your biceps up - without loosening your grip! Do the same with the other hand.

No need! Do not change body position. The body is motionless, only the biceps moves around its axis.

neck tilt

Muscles: scalene (lateral side of the neck) and trapezius.

Exercise: keep your shoulders turned, look straight ahead. Exhale and slowly tilt your head to the side, trying to touch your shoulder with your ear. Do the same on the other side.

No need! Do not "help" the head with your hand! Don't raise your shoulder!

Sitting hip stretch

Muscles: anterior tibialis.

Exercise: Sit on a bench with the ankle of one foot over the other next to the knee. With one hand, grab your left leg just above the ankle. Grab the other hand upper part feet, exhale and slowly pull the foot towards you. Do the same with the other leg.

No need! Don't jerk!

Standing hamstring stretch

Muscles: hamstrings.

Exercise: Stand in front of a bench. Place your foot on the surface of the bench with your knee slightly bent. Slowly lean forward at the waist, trying to touch the knee of the raised leg with your chest. Keep your back and hips straight. Do the same with the other leg.

No need! Do not bend your back, keep it pointedly straight. Do not overextend the "working" knee. knee.

Stretching gluteal muscles sitting

Muscles: buttocks.

Exercise: Sit on a bench. Straighten your back, relax your shoulders. Place your left foot on your right thigh (well above the knee). Grab the top of your left foot with your right hand, and outside knee - left. Exhale and slowly bring your knee to the opposite (right) shoulder. Do the same with the other leg.

No need! Do not bend your back or rotate your body! Don't lean forward!

Six dangerous exercises for stretching

These movements cause excessive load on joints, tendons and ligaments. Under the condition of regular repetition, such exercises with a guarantee lead to injuries.
Tilts with body rotation. This exercise forces you to involuntarily hyperextend your knees - this threatens to injure the knee ligaments. In addition, the movement is traumatic for the lower back.
"Plow". This exercise creates an excessive load on the intervertebral discs, critical in the neck.
Jerk twists of the body. This movement puts strain on the knee ligaments. Even worse, the force of inertia creates shock loads on the spine, so that movement is fraught with injury to the lower back.
Sitting forward bends. This movement, designed to stretch the biceps femoris, is dangerous for your knees: it is possible to stretch the knee ligaments and dislocate the patella.
Retracting the body back while sitting. The exercise stretches the quadriceps well, but it can easily injure the knees, since the knee joint bent leg is in an unnatural position. With the deviation of the body back, the risk of injury increases even more.
tilts to the feet while sitting. This exercise involuntarily forces you to straighten your knees as much as possible. As a result knee joints experiencing extreme stress. In addition, there is a risk of injuring the lower back. (For the same reasons, similar tilts in a standing position are also contraindicated).

An Agile Approach to Agility Development

So, let's say I convinced you, and you realized that you need stretching. But what should it be? Static, active, passive, ballistic, dynamic or what? When is the best time to stretch - before, during or after a workout? How long should you stay in the "stretched" position? How many sets of stretching exercises should you do? Well, how do you figure it out? It's time to beat your head on the bar!

In fact, there are several options for stretching. Each has its pros and cons. The same goes for timing when to do stretching exercises. The only thing required condition Before stretching, it is necessary to warm up properly in order to increase body temperature and speed up blood circulation. Exercises should be performed slowly, smoothly, without jerking, so that you do not get hurt. And now let's consider different variants and weigh all the pros and cons.

Static stretch

This is the most common method. You slowly stretch and remain in this position for a certain time. Experts consider this method the best for those bodybuilders who do not even think of competing.

Each pose should be held for 15-30 seconds 3-4 times per workout. You should clearly feel how your muscles are stretched, but do not bring it to pain.

Dynamic stretch

Unlike static stretching, dynamic stretching is done in motion. Like this? And like this. There are movements during which one of the limbs is in a stretched position. The simplest example is a lunge with one foot forward. Expanding the amplitude of the stretch is achieved by gradually increasing the range, speed, or overall intensity of movements. If we talk about attacks, then they are done like this. You step forward, bend your knee, and get into a deep lunge position. Then you rest your palms on the floor and hold your body in this position for the count of "one-two-three". Then you take another step - now with the other foot and again take a lunge position - and so on at a distance of 15 m. Bodybuilders are unlikely to fit this method- there is usually not enough free space in the gym. In addition, such exercises should be performed under the guidance of an experienced trainer.

Ballistic stretch

This is perhaps the most dubious technique when movements are made sweepingly and abruptly. Due to this technique, a jerky traumatic stretching of the connective tissues is carried out. Most modern specialists do not approve of this method, since the joints and muscles experience risky overloads. However, this method is still actively used today in some types of Japanese martial arts.

Passive stretch

With this stretch, some external force acts on the muscles in the person of a partner, physiotherapist or trainer.

The amplitude of movements, of course, is greater than with self-stretching. The only problem is that the assistant must have some qualifications. Almost make it, and there will be no sense; overtighten a little and you could get hurt. In short, you can't trust yourself with random hands.

Active stretch

In active stretching, you stretch your limb to a certain position and then hold it in this position with the help of an opposing muscle group. For example, to stretch the quadriceps, you pull your foot up to the buttock and hold it in this position with the strength of one hamstring. What is the logic here? Doctors believe that a powerful muscle contraction leads to over-relaxation (and stretching) of the antagonist muscle. In our case, relaxation of the quadriceps is achieved. Another variant of the same technique is the so-called. isometric stretch, when you try to straighten your leg bent at the knee, overcoming resistance own hand. Thus, you strain the biceps of the thigh very much, and the quadriceps, on the contrary, relaxes.

Proprioceptive neuromuscular support (PNS)

Although many experts believe that this is the best way to increase the range of motion, you should only do such a thing under the supervision of a specialist. In general, this system combines passive stretching with isometric muscle contraction.

In one method, contraction-relaxation, the muscle is gently stretched, then isometrically contracted (i.e. contracted against external resistance), relaxed, and stretched again. With another method - "contraction-relaxation-opposite action-contraction" - after relaxing the "main" muscle, the opposing muscle is contracted, and then the "main" muscle contracts again. For example, if you are planning to stretch the biceps of the thighs, then you must first carefully stretch this muscle group, then contract it, overcoming resistance (yours or your partner). Next, you need to reduce the opposing muscle group (in this case, the quadriceps). For what? According to the physiological law already known to you, this will lead to relaxation of the hamstrings, which means that in the next "circle" you will be able to achieve greater stretching of these muscles. Then the cycle repeats again. Experts do not advise using this technique for those who have had or have heart disease or hypertension.

When to stretch?

Ideally, you would first warm up, then do a set of stretching exercises, work with weights, stretching before each successive set, and stretch again at the end of the workout. But our lives are far from perfect, and most of us have limited training time. How to be? Methodists recommend stretching at least between sets. But for beginners who train all muscle groups at a time, you can and should stretch ONLY between sets. There is a rationale here. If, for example, you work out your arms at the end of a workout, then at least an hour will pass from the moment you stretch your arms. Will there be any sense from stretching then? So, you need to stretch on the very "eve" of the exercise - between sets.

As for stretching after a workout, as you remember, it is important in terms of speedy recovery. Well, it's all up to you. If you want to grow faster, just like in training, put your soul into stretching.

Good day to all beginners and actively continuing! Today we will get acquainted with such a phenomenon as stretching and stretching exercises. After reading the article, you will learn how muscle stretching is useful, what mistakes are made when they are performed, and most importantly, how to properly relax your muscles.

So, everyone clung to the blue screens, we begin.

Stretching exercises: what, why and why

According to statistics, most people who visit the gym/fitness rooms do it unconsciously. Those. they come in, upload their daily training program into the brain, and complete it on autopilot. Due to the fact that the main scourge of modern society is a total lack of time, usually there is no time at all for various preludes in the form of a hitch and muscle stretching. And really, why waste your precious time on some kind of utility room - stretching exercises, because muscles definitely won’t grow from this, and everyone knows this. This philosophy is typical for most trainers and fitness ladies. Moreover, I constantly encounter her in my rocking chair. Is this correct, and what place should the “utility room” occupy, we will talk further.

If you have ever watched the training of professional bodybuilders (at least through youtube), then you probably noticed that they pay a lot of attention to the correct “rolling” into training process. Those. they perform various pulling exercises which, it would seem, have nothing to do with bodybuilding. So why is this happening? Maybe the pros know some secret, a secret? Rather yes than no.

So, stretching (stretching) is a set of specialized exercises aimed at developing muscle flexibility and joint mobility.

The main types of stretching are:

• static - stretching the muscle at a certain point and holding it in that position;
• PNF stretch - you stretch and contract the muscles;
• passive - the partner helps (participates) in stretching;
• active - stretching without assistance;
• ballistic - you use bouncing to force the muscles into a deeper tension;
• dynamic - you stretch the muscles in a controlled movement with increasing speed.

Note:

For the first time, only use static view stretching.

Stretching exercises: the main benefits

The main benefits of muscle stretching include:

• increased flexibility, muscle strength and endurance, joint mobility, range of motion, sense of body control;
• increasing circulation by sending oxygen and blood to the muscles;
• building muscle mass and strength by stretching the fasciae (connective tissue covering muscle, tendon, nerve and bone).
• injury reduction (acceleration of their healing) And ,
• removal of muscle and joint tension (clamps), liberation of muscles;
• blood flow contributes to the washing out of decay products and the mood of the muscle for a new approach;
• makes performing strenuous activities easier by training the muscles.

Note:

A slight stretch causes a slight increase in the temperature of the muscle tissue, which, in turn, increases the threshold for rupture of the fibers. It also improves the function of energy-generating enzymes, which are very important during training, because they give the human body more energy for exercise.

As you can see, stretching provides many benefits, both short-term and long-term. Intermediate conclusion: stretching exercises (done properly) are the most effective way to fully connect your mind and body (to establish a neuromuscular connection), and therefore must be included in the .

Stretching exercises: theory

Now let's look at the main calculations regarding stretching.

No. 1. Stretching muscles does not release growth hormone

No, it is not an activity that triggers synthesis, but it prepares the whole body well for such release exercises.

No. 2. Stretching helps fight hardening of the arteries

Scientific studies have shown that long-term stretching (in the form of yoga) with moderate aerobic exercise and diet control can lower cholesterol levels and significantly reverse hardening of the arteries in adults. (before 20% regress) if they have a similar disease.

No. 3. New research and new rules

Many trainers say that there is never too much stretching. However, the results latest research show that athletes in active sports (football, basketball, etc.) immediately before the game should not perform long stretching procedures, because. this temporarily slows down muscle activation. long stretch (near 20 minutes) reduces strength for up to one hour after stretching and slightly attenuates muscle activation.

Now let's delve a little into science and figure out how stretching affects muscle growth?

Undoubtedly, professional bodybuilders know many secrets in building impressive volumes, and one of them is stretching. It plays an important role in the formation of muscle mass and here's why.

Every muscle in your body is encased in a special sack of tough connective tissue known as fascia. It is important to keep the muscle in place.

Not many people know, but fascia can hold back muscle growth. Just imagine the situation - you are actively working in the gym, eat plenty of food, your muscles want to grow, but they do not have such an opportunity, something is holding them back. And this something is a rigid fascia that does not allow the muscle to expand. This phenomenon can be compared to squeezing a large chest pillow into a small pillowcase.

Conclusion: Muscle size will not change no matter how well you train or eat. the connective tissue around your muscles is highly compressed.

The best example of this phenomenon is the calf muscles. The lower leg is simply riddled with fascia, thanks to doing a lot of walking work and lifting duties heavy weight. It is because of the "clogging" on the fascia that many athletes cannot develop impressive calves. The way out in this situation is stretching exercises.

In the process of stretching (under certain conditions) You can stretch the fascia and give the muscles more room to grow. Now I will give out one of the main secrets of bodybuilders - the key to effective stretching of the fascia is. The best time to stretch is when your muscles are as engorged as possible. In the process of extreme pumping, the muscles press on the fascia (from the inside, as if bursting it). At this time, you seriously increase the pressure on the fascia, which can lead to its expansion.

Note (secret secret):

One of the main reasons that Arnold Schwarzenegger had an incredibly developed chest was that he ended her workout with dumbbell sets - an exercise that accentuates the stretched position of the pectoral muscles. He bombed his chest in pumping mode (filled her with blood) and then laid down on horizontal bench and did the wiring, keeping the stretch in the lower phase. This allowed him to acquire XXXL-sized breasts :).

Fascial stretching is somewhat different from the usual, but it is it (the first) that gives the most impressive results. When you stretch the fascia, you should feel powerful pulling pains and pressure - this is the muscle working against the fascia. Make sure you are not stretching in a way that will cause your muscles to tear or cause injury.

You will quickly learn to feel the difference between good and bad stretching. The main rule here is a stable stretch, and not a feeling of acute pain. Hold each stretch for at least 20 before 30 seconds. This will give you time to "engage" the fascia in the area.

Note:

Remember, if the muscles are not “pumped”, then the stretching will proceed easily and calmly, otherwise the stretching will be quite difficult.

To sum up the whole bullshit part: one set of stretches after each set that you do per muscle group, in addition to the obvious benefits in developing flexibility, can have an incredible effect on your muscle size and their ability to grow further.

Well, it's time to move on to the practical part, namely ...

How to properly stretch your muscles: the best stretching exercises

I would like to start this subchapter with a visual component that clearly demonstrates the phenomenon of muscle stretching. Compare two images that show one muscle group – biceps shoulder.

As you can see, the first one is much shorter and slightly runs over, the second one is a stretched, long biceps. It turns out that the longer it is, the more space for growth, so it can grow more powerful (higher, more voluminous).

Not many people know how to properly stretch their muscles, and all this is due to ignorance of the basic postulates and recommendations, which include:

• warming up (raising body temperature) before anaerobic training and stretching is the main rule;
• Stretch all major muscle groups (especially active those that you have to work on in training), systematically moving from one to another;
• stretching should be done after a warm-up and after a workout, and if you work in the pumping style, then after each set;
• studies have shown that best time retention stretching is a period in 30 seconds;
• you should approach the extended position slowly and carefully, without sudden movements;
• breathing during stretching should be slow and deep;
• only after the expiration 4-6 weeks from the start of stretching, your body will agree to increase flexibility;
• 3-5 Minutes of stretching after your workout will flush out the lactic acid residue from your muscles and return them to their normal routine for daily activities.

As examples of stretching exercises, we will consider two types of stretching: active with weights and static. Let's start in order.

No. 1. Active stretching with weights

It consists in the fact that you perform your usual training program, but with a small "BUT" - the muscles work only in a fully stretched position. The following visual will serve as a good example:

Dumbbell layout on an inclined (angle up) bench to stretch the muscles of the chest.

Pullover with a dumbbell for the broadest.

Bending with a barbell while sitting (Scott's bench) for biceps.

French bench press for triceps.

Shrugs for shoulders and trapezium.

For hamstrings and lower back.

Lunges for quadriceps.

Raises on socks for the calf muscles.

Each of these exercises will allow you to drop the weight all the way down and really feel a deep stretch in the target muscles with every rep. The effect of stretching can be increased by delaying (for a few seconds) in the bottom position.

Note:

Human muscles can stretch up to 150% its length.

Next in line is…

No. 2. Static stretch

A classic of the genre, familiar to most people visiting the gym / fitness rooms. Static stretch You do to the point of discomfort, and then hold the state of "pulling" for 30 seconds. Once your body gets used to this procedure, it will raise its pain threshold, allowing you to stretch deeper and longer.

Here are some exercises you can do while exercising (before/after/during):

Big and small chest muscle(hull rotation, failure of m / y supports, stretching with a Swedish wall).

back muscles (hanging on the crossbar, tilting the body to the side while holding the support, praying on the knees).

Muscles of the neck and shoulders (tilts to the sides, horizontal adduction, lock behind the back).

Arm muscles: biceps and triceps (vertical stretch, hanging on the bar with a supinated grip, hyperextension of the arm behind the head).

Muscles of the arms: forearms and hands (frontal extension of the fingers, flexion of the fingers from the lock position, flexion of the fingers of the hand with the help of the other).

Leg muscle group: quadriceps (knee flexion, hip flexion with knee support) and biceps femoris (hip extension with knee extended).

Muscle group of the leg: leg muscles (pulling arms to legs while sitting, stretching with emphasis on the heel).

Abdominal muscles: straight / oblique (lying on the stomach with emphasis on the elbows, side slope with support for the support, bridge, tilts to the side while holding the body bar).

Actually, these are all stretching exercises. , which I would like to talk about, and which will be enough for your eyes to properly perform the tricks :).

Afterword

Many underestimate stretching and rarely use it in their training program. However, you, my dear readers, now know what its strength is, and why this tool should be in the arsenal of people who want to build good muscle volumes.

That's all, I'm glad that you spent this time with benefit and one more step advanced towards your goal - the embossed body of your dreams!

PS. Don't forget about feedback through the comments, always glad to hear from you.

P.P.S. Did the project help? Then leave a link to it in the status of your social network - plus 100 points to karma, guaranteed.

With respect and gratitude, Dmitry Protasov.