Flexibility

Dr. Asok Kumar Ghosh

Professor, Sports Centre, University
of Malaya

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 Introduction
Flexibility is a component of fitness measured by sport
scientists and physiotherapists to gain an impression of a
person’s physical capacity.
To date, research has not revealed a clear and accurate
relationship between the effect of flexibility on muscular
performance, or on an athlete’s susceptibility to injury.
 Several well controlled studies have shown trends between
flexibility, performance and injury, or have identified a single
factor correlating to an injury outcome.
The concept of flexibility is often loosely used in the context
of describing the movement of a dancer or gymnast when they
can perform the splits or bend over backwards, but the
elements of flexibility need to be defined.

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 What is Flexibility?
 Definitions of ‘flexibility’ vary in the literature but basically
address the range of movement possible of a joint.
 ‘Flexibility is the amount of movement of a joint through its normal
plane of motion.’(Knapik et al. 1992)
 ‘… three different aspects of flexibility, namely active joint mobility,
muscle tightness and ligamentous laxity can be distinguished.’(Lysens
et al. 1989)
 ‘… flexibility is specific to a given joint or movement.’(Shellock and
Prentice 1985)
 ‘Flexibility refers to the extensibility of a muscle-tendon unit and is
correctly referred to as muscle flexibility’ (Stanish et al. 1990)

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 Flexibility Constraints
Active and Passive Restraints: mechanisms of resistance to
movement and flexibility have four headings:
Neurogenic constraints which include voluntary and reflex
control of the muscle-tendon unit.
Myogenic constraints include the passive and active resistive
components of the muscle, which may interact if the muscle is
active.
Joint constraints include the resistive forces of the joint capsule,
ligamentous and cartilaginous structures and the specific
anatomy of the joint.
Skin, subcutaneous connective tissue and frictional constraints
interact to provide differing resistances through the full range of
movement.

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 Neurogenic Constraints
When the neural system is intact, resistance to movement
is effected relative to the speed of movement or the
stretching effect on connective tissue.
Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF)
stretching exercises have been developed to reduce the
neural resistance to stretching exercises thus facilitating
gains in joint range (Wilkinson 1992).
In athletes with conditions such as cerebral palsy, the resting
muscle tone is affected and there is significant resistance to
movement. This can lead to joint contractures and limited
joint range. Flexibility assessment measures need to be
modified for athletes with neurological disorders.

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 The Physiology of Flexibility
 Muscle spindles, located within muscle cells,
protect the muscle from injury. They sense how
far and fast a muscle is being stretched and, when
activated, produce the myotatic stretch reflex.
This reflexive action causes the muscle to contract
to prevent overstretching the joint. For example, if
you are lying on your back performing a
hamstring stretch, at the maximum of your
flexibility your leg jumps and twitches. At this
point, the muscle spindles have been activated
and are telling the muscle to contract to prevent
any further stretching.
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 How to perform a PNF stretch?
The muscle group to be stretched is positioned so that the
muscles are stretched and under tension. The individual
then contracts the stretched muscle group for 5 - 6 seconds
while a partner, or immovable object, applies sufficient
resistance to inhibit movement. Please note; the effort of
contraction should be relevant to the level of conditioning.
The contracted muscle group is then relaxed and a
controlled stretch is applied for about 20 to 30 seconds.
The muscle group is then allowed 30 seconds to recover
and the process is repeated 2 - 4 times. Refer to the
diagrams below for a visual example.

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 Examples:
The athlete and
partner assume the
position for the
stretch, and then the
partner extends the
body limb until the
muscle is stretched
and tension is felt.

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 Examples:
The athlete then
contracts the stretched
muscle for 5 - 6
seconds and the partner
must inhibit all
movement. (The force
of the contraction
should be relevant to
the condition of the
muscle. For example, if
the muscle has been
injured, do not apply
a maximum
contraction).
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 Examples:
The muscle group is
relaxed, then
immediately and
cautiously pushed
past its normal
range of movement
for about 20 to 30
seconds. Allow 30
seconds recovery
before repeating the
procedure 2 - 4
times.
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 Myogenic Constraints
Within the muscle tendon unit, there are also passive and active
components. The active component is a result of crossbridge
interaction between the actin and myosin filaments within the
muscle fibre, which is influenced by the position of the joint and
neural influences (Stanish et al. 1990).
Other resistance to muscle extensibility has been referred to as
‘muscle stiffness’ (Wilson et al. 1991b, Hutton 1992). Stiffness
reflects the capacity of a muscle to absorb or dissipate forces such
as the stress of force production from muscle activity.
The effect of muscle stiffness is most relevant in the mid range of
motion where there is significant overlap of the actin and myosin,
rather than at the extremes of muscle-tendon range, where
connective tissue limitations are more influential.
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 Joint Constraints
The configuration of the joint can significantly affect the
movement possible.
Multi-dimensional ‘ball and socket’ joints such as the shoulder
and hip are restricted by factors such as the depth of the
acetabulum, as well as ligamentous and capsular restraints.
Mortice joints such as the ankle and hinge joints or the
proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints in the hand are limited in
mobility by the joint architecture.
As the bony anatomy of a joint cannot be altered
conservatively, it is important to determine the ‘end feel’ or
limitation to joint movement, so that techniques for improving
joint range are developed.

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 Flexibility and Performance

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 Flexibility is most often thought of as a component of
physical fitness which is important for prevention of athletic
injury.
To improve flexibility, it is necessary to elongate the active
and passive constraints which limit joint range of motion
through various stretching exercises.
The viscoelastic properties of these constraints allow
permanent deformation following force application over time,
thus increasing the resting length of the tissue.
The increase in athletic performance which can be achieved
through stretching and improved flexibility, however, is much
too often overlooked or unknown.

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 Injury prevention and athletic performance are inherently
linked, although in a somewhat concealed manner.
The implications of injury on participation in training and
competition are obvious and are partially dependant upon
the severity of the injury.
 Athletic performance may decline following injury due
to physical and psychological factors, with lost training
time, eventually resulting in poorer performance.
By reducing the occurrence of injury with stretching, we
essentially provide an opportunity for enhanced
performance.

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 Stretching during Warm-up: Its Effects on
Performance
Athletes, from recreational through to elite, commonly
perform stretching exercises as part of a warm-up routine.
Although long term gains in flexibility are not generally the
aim of warm-up stretching, the short term gains are profitable.
Commonly thought of as an important aspect of preventing
injury, stretching during warm-up also plays a role in
improving athletic performance.
Many beneficial physiological mechanisms achieved during
warm-up are temperature dependant and it is possible that
stretching to improve flexibility is partially responsible for
these mechanisms.

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 Stretching during Warm-up: Its Effects on
Performance
During a single static stretch, a slow eccentric contraction of
the muscle occurs which causes a rise in muscle temperature
due to increased blood flow.
Chemical contractility of the muscle is then enzymatically
enhanced, maximising the power of subsequent positive work.
Muscle contraction is faster and more forceful when the
muscle temperature is elevated.
Improved blood flow, substrate delivery, metabolite removal,
oxygen availability and neural function are also claimed to
result from increased tissue temperature, playing a role in
enhanced performance following warm-up activities and
stretching.

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 Flexibility and Maximal Strength
Improvements in muscle strength are possible due
to improved flexibility.
Flexibility training program of the pectoral and
deltoid musculature increases shoulder joint
flexibility as well as producing a significant
improvement in 1RM concentric bench press.
Training of hamstring stretch, improve the
isokinetic eccentric and concentric torques during
knee flexion.
One possible explanation for improved athletic
performance and strength following flexibility
training is increased availability of free intracellular
Ca2+ .

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 Flexibility and Maximal Strength
Stretching exercises for the quadriceps and
hamstring muscles, increase in hip range of motion
(flexion).
Other benefits: Improvement in knee extension
speed, decrease in half relaxation time and increase
in stride frequency during a maximal stationary
sprint.
Reduced stiffness of the hamstring muscles allow
efficient application of quadriceps strength in
overcoming the external load.
The increased flexibility of the hamstrings
effectively ‘allows’ extension to occur more rapidly.

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