Best time for flexibility training

The most cost-effective flexibility training window is within 15 minutes after strength/endurance training, followed by the peak time of personal daily body temperature (2-4 pm for most people). However, regardless of individual differences and execution, talking about "best" is empty talk - the time that allows you to persist for a long time without causing sports injuries is truly your optimal solution.

The first time I came into contact with flexibility training was when I was practicing sprinting in school. At that time, I found it troublesome when the coach asked me to press my legs after running. I always wanted to take advantage of the morning exercises in the morning to do a few presses to deal with things. As a result, I directly strained my hamstrings during a 100-meter test. It took me two months to dare to touch the track. Later I realized that the perfunctory stretching without warm-up did not touch the threshold of effective training at all.

Why is the 15-minute window after training so popular? To put it bluntly, after you have just finished lifting irons or running, the temperature of your muscles is 2-3 degrees higher than the resting state, and the extensibility of muscle fibers and fascia is almost 1.5 times that of usual. Doing static stretching at this time will make the muscles more receptive, and you will not feel that kind of pain, and it can also relieve the delayed onset soreness after training. Every time I finish a deadlift, I have to stand on my toes and bend down to press 3 sets of hamstring muscles, each set for 30 seconds. I usually struggle to touch the ground, but now I can easily put my palms on the ground. The next day, my legs are rarely weak even when I go down the stairs. The effect is much better than half an hour of pulling at home on weekends.

Of course, it doesn’t mean that practicing at other times is useless. Different sports circles have different habits. For example, many people in the yoga circle recommend morning training, especially Ashtanga practitioners. Many people start training at 4-6 a.m., saying that after a full night's rest, the body does not feel tired during the day, and stretching can reach the deep fascia. This statement is indeed endorsed by many practitioners, but the premise is that you have to do a sufficient dynamic warm-up. If you just get out of bed and your body is as stiff as frozen meat, and you do splits at the waist when you get up, it is purely looking for injury. There are also many marathon and triathlon athletes who are used to doing dynamic stretching to move their joints before the game, and static stretching to relax their muscles after the game. They are all adjusted according to their own needs. There is no right or wrong.

As for the often-talked-about golden period between 2 and 4 pm, it actually follows the body's circadian rhythm. Most people's core body temperature is highest during this period, muscle viscosity is lowest, and reaction speed is quick. Even if they do not do a special warm-up, they are not prone to injury even if they do some light stretching. When I used to work at an Internet company, I was used to standing next to my work station and stretching my trapezius and iliopsoas muscles for 5 minutes during my fishing breaks at around 3pm. My shoulders and back pain were gone all afternoon. It was much more effective than wearing warm plasters. However, this time is not stuck. If you are a night owl who stays up late all year round and wakes up just after 2 pm every day, then your peak body temperature will most likely be moved to 7 or 8 pm. You cannot block other people's schedules and add trouble to yourself.

Let me talk about a very interesting thing. I used to have a nursing student who was very serious. After checking a lot of information, she found that stretching at 3 pm has the best effect. It turned out that she worked in a tertiary hospital, and 3 pm was the busiest time to receive new patients and change fluids. She couldn't find time at all. She struggled for two months without stretching even once, and the induration in her shoulders and neck became bigger and bigger. Later, I asked her to stand in the locker room to stretch her shoulders, neck and legs for 10 minutes after changing clothes every day. She used the locker as a support and did not need to lay out a yoga mat. She persisted for a month, and most of the squeaking problems when her neck turned were eliminated. You see, no matter how good the time is, if you can’t execute it, it’s all in vain.

Oh, by the way, no matter what time you choose, there are two minefields you should try not to step on: One is don’t do deep forward bends or twisting stretches just after eating, as this can easily cause breathing problems and affect digestion.； The other is not to do too strenuous flexibility training before going to bed. It can easily make your nerves too excited and cause you tossing and turning and making you unable to fall asleep. If you only have free time before going to bed, just do some gentle yin yoga movements. Don’t compete with yourself and insist on doing splits and spreading your hips.

In fact, at the end of the conversation, you will find that there is never an absolute standard answer to exercise. The so-called "best time" is just a reference option given by professionals. You can completely adjust according to the rhythm of your life: office workers who have no time will stretch their shoulders while waiting for the subway while commuting, gym goers will put stretching at the end of the strength class to save time, and those who are used to getting up early to practice yoga will continue to practice as long as they have warmed up enough. After all, training that can be sustained is truly useful training, right?