Despite conflicting evidence on it’s benefits, we think neglecting to stretch is a bad idea! The trouble is, because many of us dislike it, we don’t spend enough time or effort on stretching and then it doesn’t work – reinforcing our belief that it’s a waste of time. However, doing it properly may result in a very different experience. To understand why, you need to know a little about what stretching does. what happens when you stretch? When you first take, say, your calf muscle, into a stretch, muscle “spindles” located among the muscle fibers detect a change in the muscle’s length and report back to the spinal cord. The nervous system sends a message to the nerves governing these fibers to tell the muscle to contract, in order to take it out of the stretched position. This is known as the “stretch reflex.”
The Top 5 Most Efficient Forms of Cardio
Interval Training is simply THE most efficient type of cardio you can perform. You can get pretty much ALL the benefits of longer-duration cardio but without the long duration. Moreover, you don’t get the boredom, you don’t spend all your time doing it, and you don’t have nearly the risk of overuse injuries.
No-Crunch, No Sit-Up Abdominal Training – Get a Six Pack on Your Own Two Feet
Six pack abs…every guy wants ‘em. And trying to get them while lying flat on your back on the floor is NOT the best way to do it. When you take off your shirt, you want abs that scream POWER and working your midsection while on your feet is the best way to do it. Athletes don’t train or play flat on their backs (the good ones at least!)…and if you want a ripped midsection like an athlete, you have to train your core on your own two feet.
The “A” Factor
Many coaches and strength coaches who create weight-training programs for their teams tend to neglect emphasis on the area of the body that many fitness experts feel is paramount to athletic performance. The most overlooked, underrated part of the body with respect to competitive sports training is the midsection. For the purposes of this article, the midsection is defined as the abdominals, obliques, and lower-back muscles. The function of strong abs is not just to look good at the beach; a well-trained midsection is the “missing link” to modern sports training, and is crucial in taking your athletic ability to the next level and beyond.