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Archive for “Scar Tissue” Tag

Young Athletes & Mobility

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Some time ago, I did an interview with Eric Cressey on ‘Young Athletes & Mobility Training’…

 


… You’re about to understand why Eric is considered one of the VERY best in the world:

 

BG: Eric, what is the difference between ‘Mobility’ & ‘Flexibility’ and when in a training program do each apply

 

EC: Those are great questions, Brian; very few people understand the difference – and it is a big one.

 

Flexibility merely refers to range of motion – and, more specifically, passive range of motion as achieved by static stretching. Don’t get me wrong; static stretching has its place.

 

I see it as tremendously valuable in situations where you want to:

 

  1. Relax a muscle to facilitate antagonist activation (e.g. stretch the hip flexors to improve glute recruitment)
  2. Break down scar tissue following an injury and/or surgery (when the new connective tissue may require “realignment”)
  3. Loosen someone up when you can’t be supervising them (very simply, there is less likelihood of technique breakdown with static stretching because it isn’t a dynamic challenge)

 

However, the principle problem with pure flexibility is that it does not imply stability nor preparedness for dynamic tasks.

 

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