Isolated Active Stretching

[danielson]

Hi, ive read and am applying the methods in Stretching Scientifically and understand the concepts of Isometric/PNF stretching and the advantages they bring to static stretching.

Ive recently read about Isolated Active stretching which involves a tensing of the antagonist muscle first eg the Quads if you want to stretch the hams, and then a very short 2 second passive stretch of agonist ie the hams. This process is then repeated 12-20 reps per muscle, aiming to increase the passive stretch range, but only ever in 2 second intervals.

The logic being with this method is to stretch the muscle before the body has a chance to invoke the Stretch Reflex, so the muscle has no chance to "fight back to its original shape", and so suggests a safer and just as effective method of stretching that Isometric/PNF types do.


I was wondering if anyone here has further opinions, good/bad of this method and possibly what Mr Kurz thinks to this method?

kind regards, Danny.

[Thomas Kurz]

Regarding Active-Isolated stretching: The proof of the pudding is in the eating. See results of the people who use that method. Compare photos of people promoting Active-Isolated stretching to photos of my customers posted at http://www.stretching.info/photos.html .

Active-Isolated stretching may be useful for something: perhaps at some stage of post-injury rehab, perhaps as one of the means of increasing static active flexibility. It is the least efficient stretching method as far as the gain in range of motion and use of time are concerned. See research articles quoted on pages 15 and 16 of “Stretching Scientifically” ( http://www.stretching.info/stretch.html ).