Stretching really can make you more flexible, but your progress will often seem slow. As I've previously explained, there are really two results of stretching. We usually think about gaining flexibility in the long term, but you can also unlock a dramatic amount of short-term flexibility if you know how. Today I'll show you a few techniques that work surprisingly quickly and well, known as "PNF" or "PAILS and RAILS."
But before we get into that, I just want to be clear that flexibility is not a contest and definitely not a race. I think about stretching in the same way as strength training or any other fitness pursuit. If somebody wants the most “optimal” strength training routine, I would tell them not to overthink it, just get into a habit, and be consistent. It’s not a good idea to get too excited about any one method or guru that claims to have all the answers; chances are they don’t. The same applies to stretching.
Gaiam Essentials Yoga Block, 2 Pack, and Yoga Strap Set $18.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $18.99 at AmazonYou would think there are only one or two ways of stretching. But there are, in fact, many—and the proponents of each will argue that their way is best. The definitions of each aren’t always agreed upon, which makes for yet more arguments. So I’ll give you a rundown of some of the most commonly used terms, and what to know about them.
Dynamic stretching is when you move into and out of a stretch, or you can think of it as actively moving through a range of motion. This is done as an active stretch; for example, kicking or raising your leg as you run.
Loaded stretching is when you use a weight or force to pull yourself further into a stretch (for example, holding a dumbbell while bending forward as if to touch your toes). For safety, you should make sure the weight isn't too heavy and that you are always in control of it.
Active stretching is when you use your own muscles to get into position to stretch: for example, standing on one leg and lifting the other. You’re contracting the muscles opposite the ones you are trying to stretch.
If you try to figure out which type of stretching is “best,” you’ll go down a deep, deep rabbit hole. Before trying PNF stretching, I spent a lot of time on contortionists’ blogs and the depths of Google Scholar, and I can’t promise that I’ve figured it all out. There seem to be advantages to each type of stretching (even ballistic), and most people who train for flexibility use more than one type.
How to do PNF or “PAILs and RAILs” stretching
The technique I tried is the one that’s supposed to be the most effective but also not for beginners. (Did I let that stop me? No.) It’s called “hold-relax with agonist contraction.” And man, it really works. If you want to try this at home, I would advise you to read up a bit first, and to make sure the stretches and the contractions are both gentle, like no more than a 5 out of 10 intensity. They’ll still work this way, and you’ll reduce the chances that you’ll be sore the next day or, worse, pull a muscle.
I held the stretch passively for about 10 seconds (ie, normal stretching).
Then I used the opposite muscle to pull myself deeper into the stretch, and held that for about 20 seconds.
I then did the same thing with a front split/kneeling lunge stretch. I am, you may recall, nowhere near being able to do a split. So I did 10 seconds of the stretch, then for 10 seconds I drove my front heel and my back knee into the ground, as if I were trying to stand back up. Then for the final step I used my leg muscles to pull myself deeper into the stretch. This one was strange: my hip flexors relaxed as expected, but my hamstrings just hurt. It was like they were saying “we’ve done enough already! Go easy on us!” So I eased up.
Last one: a standing quad/hip flexor stretch. This is the one you see runners doing where they stand on one leg and hold the other heel near their butt. I did the stretch as usual for 10 seconds, then grabbed hold of my ankle and tried to pull my foot and knee forward (contracting my quads and hip flexors). Then I contracted my butt and hamstring to bring my heel farther back and–yep–I was able to easily touch my heel to my butt, where I hadn’t been able to do that in the first stretch. I took a video of this one, which demonstrates the technique pretty clearly (note that the video is 4x speed):
Why PNF stretching works
Stretching isn’t just about how far your muscles can stretch; it’s also about how far your nervous system will let them stretch. Stretching techniques like PNF address the nervous system factor.
The actual story is probably a bit different, since you can trigger this phenomenon even with a gentle stretch (remember, we only need a 5/10 stretch here). But that’s why PNF has you contract the muscle you’re about to stretch. This makes your body want to relax that muscle. So you immediately go back into the stretch, and boom, you’re able to relax that muscle more.
There is research suggesting that a PNF stretching routine can be better for long-term flexibility than just doing static stretches. The dramatic increase in range-of-motion you get from a PNF session only lasts a few minutes, but if you keep doing it consistently, over weeks and months you should be able to get further and further into the stretch.
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