Dynamic drives

Muscle & Fitness, July, 2009 by Jim Stoppani, Mark Thorpe

Duffers take note: When warming up for a day on the links, dynamic stretching beats static stretching hands up and down. A study published in a recent issue of The International Journal of Sports Medicine analyzed golf-swing performance with a 5-iron within 30 minutes after warming up with dynamic stretching, static stretching or no stretching. The results were as definitive as a Tiger Woods' victory. Dynamic stretching produced greater clubhead and ball speeds as well as straighter swing paths than either static or no stretching.

Take-Home Tip: The old stretch-and-hold method has its place in injury prevention, but for enhancing sports performance and generating power specifically, focus on dynamic stretching exercises in your pre-game warm-up.

(THIEME-CONNECT.COM/EJOURNALS/ABSTRACT/SPORTSMED DOI/10.1055/S-0028-1103303)

EDITED BY JIM STOPPANI, PHD, AND MARK THORPE