Stretching
 

An interesting study

Is Stretching All It’s Cracked Up to Be?

INVESTIGATORS have begun two large studies of stretching, asking about its effectiveness in much the way scientists might ask about a new drug or medical device. They’re actively recruiting thousands of volunteers to participate, in the United States and elsewhere, and randomly assigning participants to use the method, or not. That is the only way, researchers say, to detect the subtle effects that most treatments and exercise interventions might be expected to evoke.

The studies are being done independently, one by researchers based in Norway and Australia and the other by a group in the United States.

The studies are not identical, reflecting perhaps the different views of stretching worldwide. People in Norway and Australia stretch for different reasons than people in the United States and do slightly different stretches. Yet exercisers and coaches everywhere, the researchers report, tend to have passionate convictions about the merits of stretching, or lack thereof.

Researchers say those strong feelings pro and con show in themselves that it will take a large study to see what, if anything, stretching really accomplishes. If stretching were remarkably effective, athletes would notice its effects right away and everyone would agree on when to stretch and what stretching does.

The study in Norway was the inspiration of Dr. Andy Oxman, a senior scientist at the Norwegian Knowledge Center for the Health Services. He had just completed what he calls a public clinical trial. It was a sort of reality show on public television that asked whether the nutritional supplement Valerian helped with insomnia; 405 people signed up to receive Valerian or a placebo and reported on their sleep by logging onto a Web site. Some participants insisted that because they slept so well they were taking Valerian. Or they said they knew they had taken the placebo because their sleep didn’t improve.

continues

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/07/he...on/07Best.html

Actually, I'm more interested in the Valerian trial. Sadly, the snippet given in the article confirms pretty early on that it has no noticeable affect on sleep. Booooo!

I've got some sleeping tablets to pick up tomorrow. Yay!
Just to get me through a tough period - I'll be back to late nights on here again before you know it :)

I used to take valerian to help me sleep. These days I just take mercyndol. It's much more effective although in my current state, I'm keeping the drug taking to a minimum of course.

Speaking of stretching. I am.

Zopiclone for me for the next week or so (Lunesta in the US)
Trust me, only someone with years of sleep issues - and/ or sleeping on an office sofa - could be as happy as I am now, knowing I can pick up that prescription tomorrow.

The only thing that would make me happier would be having enough money to rent a hotel room for the weekend, and taking Diz. Me and the Diz cat sleeping and dozing and relaxing for three nights would be bliss.

There are some hotels that allow pets here. Are there any over there?

There are - the money is the thing that's missing :)

I just want to take the opportunity to call "total bullshit" on the above sentence, thus the entire flawed premise of this "study" which, btw, doesn't even test something standardized.

Flint, let's apply for a grant to study "Cracking. Is it all it's sketched out to be?"

:)

Sure it can be standardized. It is not rocket science. One group follows a specific set of instructions on stretching, the other forgoes it and just runs. There is a lot of information out there which supports or disputes the notion of stretching as a way to prevent injuries in sports.

But is the primary motivation for stretching to reduce injuries or to improve performance? I think in sports like ballet, gymnastics, and martial arts, people stretch to increase performance. I don't know about running.

Yeah, sure it "can" be, but I don't have any great confidence in the way they are describing it, "Some people do it some way and some people do something else so we're, like, just do whatever, you know, or not, or whatever you feel like, and then report back to us, like, whenever, next week or something because you should see 'immediate' results anyway..."

I thought stretching just increased flexibility and improved bloodflow :3
I do it before trampolining.

I still do it before running or a match. Mostly lower extremities only.

One in particular? ;)

I can't be arsed to stretch. Never did me any harm.