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PAGE 2D
BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2016
Taking care of your primary asset
As simple as ABC (part 2)
Last month’s column delved into
the elements of gaining flexibility.
It's good to know the ‘how’
aspects but now we get into the
specific benefits
that come from a
quality stretch
ing protocol, the
“why.”
Any potential cli
ent of mine receives
a handout listing 14
benefits for cardio.
12 for strength
training and 11 for
stretching.
Let’s jump into
some of those 11.
Avoid the noid
One of the badges of honor that
weightlifters wear is the level of
soreness in the muscles they expe
rience the next day.
There is a mindset that the more
stressed out one feels afterward
must directly relate to the “quality”
of that previous day’s workout.
In actuality, when you introduce
a stretching regimen during your
workout, several physical positives
occur.
You increase blood flow, back
out the unnatural tension of the
fibers and speed up the recovery
cycle, the result of which is a sig
nificant reduction of any discom
fort the next day.
You will be aware of yesterday’s
efforts but your day-to-day activi
ties will go on unimpeded.
In particular, older clients who
are returning to the gym after years
(or decades) on hiatus are very
concerned about not stressing (or
hurting) themselves.
It seems they all have a story
to tell of a friend who received an
introductory session at some gym.
the aftermath being that, the next
day, they could barely get out of
bed.
When that first morning arrives
following an introductory workout
that included a stretching protocol,
they are pleasantly surprised to not
be encumbered by tight or sore
muscles.
‘I’m stronger?’
Muscles and tendons that are
more flexible have a higher
level of functionality.
Working in a gym allows
me the opportunity to see the
younger generation “go for the
gold.” challenging themselves
to lift more and more iron.
For instance, the level of
weight that can be engaged
with a freestanding squat is
quite impressive, far beyond
my present or past abilities.
But if you asked those same
individuals to perform a
stretching kick, getting the leg
past parallel might prove a stem
test.
The stretching kick, which I call
a “Rockette,” requires you to kick
your straight leg up as high as pos
sible. The limiting factor will be
the tightness of your hamstrings,
lower back and gluts.
Fortunately, I can still generate a
“Rockette” where my knee touch
es my front deltoid every time
(after I have warmed up of course).
Being able to extend your range
of motion (ROM) to that elevation
allows more power to be gen
erated. The muscle/tendon com
plex now has a superior ability to
maneuver, strike or drive — you
choose the verb.
This improved physical nature
allows you to generate more power
in weighdifting as well. Or. to give
you a visual, what was the last
movie you saw where the body
builder beat up the martial artist?
The biggest difference between
those two disciplines is arguably
flexibility.
Unwind
Remember, all movement is
contraction-based.
Every action of your body, from
the time you wake up to the time
you go to bed, is produced by the
tensing of muscles. If you only
stretch when you work out, you
are limiting the true benefits of
flexibility training.
Range of motion techniques
must be incorporated consistently,
teaching your body to destress as
well as advancing it to a new level
of proficiency.
When you relieve the tension
in your muscles and tendons with
daily stretching, you are regularly
releasing the unnatural tightness
in your body and enhancing the
functionality of those fibers.
This destressing of the body not
only produces physical benefits but
also translates to a mental advan
tage.
The stress I’m referring to is the
day-to-day pressure of life: pay
ing the monthly bills, shouldering
the responsibility for an elderly
parent, driving to and from work
through rush hour traffic, doing
those everyday tasks that occur
over and over again with persistent
regularity. I liken that type of stress
to rust. It wears on you over time.
One of the ways to address that
strain is to stretch daily.
Those moments in time will pro
vide a valuable interlude from the
day-to-day.
Do no harm
Once your body understands its
newly acquired abilities, sudden
movements, be it driving that ball
off the first tee or bending down to
pick up your grandchild, are less
likely to cause injury.
When you practice flexibility
training on a regular basis, you
are building a “memory in the
muscle.”
You are teaching your muscle/
tendon complex the recognition
they can extend to a wider range.
Once you are warmed up (a very
critical step, especially for us baby
boomers) your body can function
at a higher level. I could even argue
that the first visible sign of an
aging body is the loss of flexibility.
A possible explanation
Other benefits include increased
neuromuscular coordination,
decreased lower back pain, reduced
joint degenerative progression
and improved posture awareness,
almost completing the list.
So, if the roll call of advances
is so extensive, why do you see
minimal attention directed toward
ROM? My theory is as follows.
Because my clients experience
all the benefits that accrue from
stretching, more times than I can
count they will ask me, “Why
don’t more people stretch?”
I believe it is because the fit
ness industry has no consensus of
opinion.
There are people that say you
should stretch before you work
out while most recommend its best
afterward.
Do you hold a stretch for five to
10 seconds or extend the time to 30
seconds or more?
There is a technique promoted
called Active Isolation Stretching
that teaches you should hold the
stretch for under two seconds.
Does static or ballistic tech
niques give better results?
Litde wonder the fitness “pow
ers that be” have not yet coalesced
around one standard.
Now you know
Be they a 20-year-old all-star
athlete or a 70-year-old grand
mother, my goal is to open the door
to an understanding that everybody
should incorporate some stretching
protocol in their lives.
If you want to see what my cli
ents have to say about this subject,
visit my website and click on ‘Tes
timonials’ so you can appreciate
what people from 40 to 90 say
about the importance of taking
care of their primary asset.
It will enlighten and inspire you.
Good luck and good health!
Rick Almand trains out of Any
time Fitness (Winder and Auburn
locations) or at your home. Fie
can be contacted at 404-312-9206
(or) Rick@UltirnateBest.net. His
website is BabyBoomersSurvival-
Guide.net
Farm Bureau
donates to
food banks
Barrow County Farm
Bureau members recently
donated to the Georgia Food
Bank Association during the
statewide “Harvest for All”
campaign coordinated by
the Georgia Farm Bureau
Young Farmer Committee.
“People going hungry is
not only a problem in other
countries or other states. We
have families right here who
are struggling to find their
next meal,” said Ray Fowl
er. Barrow County Farm
Bureau president, in a news
release.
“The ‘Harvest for All’
campaign is one way Farm
Bureau works to improve
the lives of people in our
local community.”
Georgia Farm Bureau’s
2016 statewide campaign
raised $20,000, which was
presented to Georgia Food
Bank Association (GFBA)
regional produce sourc-
er Dustin Lard during the
bureau’s annual convention
on Jekyll Island.
The GFBA uses donat
ed dollars to purchase
high-protein, low-cost foods
like chicken and peanut but
ter and to offset the costs of
various outreach programs
like mobile pantries. Manna
drops and backpack pro
grams.
The GFBA also uses
donated funds to cover
costs associated with col
lecting and distributing food
donations through its vari
ous outreach programs. The
GFBA will distribute the
funds to eight regional food
banks around the state. For
more information about the
Georgia Food Bank Asso
ciation go to http://georgi-
afoodbankassociation.org./
Technical
College
For more information about our gradtuiiojirates, the mediai^Wi
program, and other important information, please v
http://wwwJaniertech.edu/GF] a^S
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