The Stark Reality of Stretching: An Informed Approach for All Activities and Every Sport

This book is the best so far which I have come across and I borrowed it initially from my current physio (not in the above category). I was amazed when I sat down to read about the biomechanics of the body and also about how to take the time to learn the stretch.

For years I have done callanetics and I find out that one of the exercises involving the ballet bar, which is similar to the hurdle stretch can actually damage the nerves in the lower back which then become irrepairable. I now have problems with my back which is possibly due to this!

The book is laid out well with diagrams and full explanations on movements/joints/muscles etc. Well worth buying.


Cautious but sensible and well grounded advice.   January 28, 2005
Simon Fraser (England)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

The book concentrates on the lower part of the body, and after an explanation of how muscles work and are attached to the skeleton, he goes on to describe different ways of stretching the major muscle groups in the lower body, and common ways of doing things incorrectly. The author does seem a bit dismissive of other methods of stretching, concentrating solely on static stretches, but that may be because he's trying to get a point across.

The author explains why doing things like the hurdler's stretch is a bad idea (it puts stress on the ligaments on the inside of the knee, weakening it) He points out why bending forward to touch your toes isn't a worthwhile hamstring stretch - if you lean forward, your hamstrings are trying to stabilise your pelvis, so you're actually trying to stretch them while they're tense and partially contracted. I also liked the remarks about sitting on the floor and reaching forward - that if you grab your toes, the effect on your calf muscles means that instead of stretching your hamstrings, the stress is moved to the tendons around the back of the knee instead. Since the tendons are inelastic, that increases the chances that any apparent lengthening will just be the weaking of the tendon insertions.

The most important message in the book is to give some thought to what you're doing. Most people seem to stretch and do gym exercises by copying the large movements, and missing the point of the exercise. By applying a bit of thought as to what you want to do, and how the body works, we can make things much safer and more effective.

Read this along with Thomas Kurz's "Stretching Scientifically", and you'll get a lot better at your warm-ups and flexibility.