The "PE Class" Mentality
If you walk into any gym, you will see people sitting on the mats, holding a hamstring stretch for 60 seconds before they head over to the squat rack. They believe they are "loosening up" to prevent injury.
Physiologically, they are destabilizing their joints and sedating their nervous systems.
The Evidence: Weaker and Slower
The most comprehensive review on this topic comes from Simic et al. (2013), published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. Researchers aggregated data from 104 different studies to determine the acute effects of static stretching on performance.
The Results:
- Maximal Strength: Reduced by 5.4% on average.
- Explosive Power: Reduced by 2.8%.
- Speed: Reduced significantly in sprinters.
The study concluded: "The usage of static stretching as the sole activity during a warm-up routine should generally be avoided."
The Mechanism: The Rubber Band
To understand why this happens, picture a rubber band.
- Performance: To shoot a rubber band across the room, you want it tight. This creates Elastic Potential Energy.
- Stretching: If you pull that rubber band to its limit and hold it there for 2 minutes, the material degrades slightly. It becomes loose. When you finally try to shoot it, it flops.
Neurological Inhibition: Beyond the mechanical looseness, there is a neural component. When you hold a deep stretch, your Golgi Tendon Organs (GTOs) send a signal to your spine to relax the muscle to prevent it from tearing. This inhibits the motor neurons. When you stand up to squat, your brain is still sending that "relax" signal, making it harder to recruit maximum muscle fibers.
But Doesn't It Prevent Injury?
This is the final defense of the stretcher. Unfortunately, the data doesn't support it. A systematic review in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (Lauersen et al., 2014) analyzed 26,610 participants.
- Stretching: Found to have no statistically significant effect on injury prevention.
- Strength Training: Reduced sports injuries to less than 1/3.
The WellFact Protocol
We aren't saying you shouldn't be flexible. We are saying you are doing it at the wrong time.
- Warm Up (Pre-Workout): Use Dynamic Stretching. This means moving while you stretch. Leg swings, arm circles, walking lunges. This increases muscle temperature and blood flow without inducing relaxation.
- Cool Down (Post-Workout): Use Static Stretching. Now that the heavy lifting is done, you want to relax the nervous system and lengthen the muscle fibers. This is the time to touch your toes.