Static Stretching

Should I Static Stretch?

I get asked about stretching all the time. Here are some thoughts. At the bottom of this email is a link to my baseball specific warmup.

Stretching before sport performance or lifting weights isn’t always necessary, and in some cases, it might even hurt your performance—but warming up properly is essential.

Here's the breakdown:

✅ What you should do before lifting:

• Dynamic warm-up (highly recommended):

  • Increases blood flow to your muscles

  • Activates your nervous system

  • Prepares your body for the specific movements you're about to do

• Examples:

  • Arm circles, leg swings, bodyweight squats, band pull-aparts

  • Light sets of your lifting movements (e.g., bodyweight or lighter barbell reps)

  • Sport specific movements (e.g., sprints, bands, jumping, kicking)

❌ What you don’t need before lifting:

• Static stretching (like holding a hamstring stretch for 30 seconds)

  • Can temporarily reduce strength and power output

  • Better for after workouts to help with flexibility and recovery

Summary:

• Dynamic stretching and warm-ups = Yes

• Static stretching before lifting or sport performance = Skip it

• Static stretching after lifting = Great for cooldown and flexibility

If you want my baseball specific warmup click here.

-Dr. Caleb

P.S. Static stretching before sport performance or exercise has not been shown to reduce injuries in baseball players.