Extreme Muscle Fascia Stretching

[B.E.N.]

I know there has been some back and forth on this in previous posts.

I stretch (simply becuase it makes me feel better) but have not taken it to extremes to stretch the fascia. I found this interesting.

http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/conten...ract/75/3/1263

Intelligent thoughts/comments?

[Phate]

this is really interesting, is that the full article cause i'd like to see the full study and read all the tests and data. i know experienced bodybuilders use sytherol oil injections to alter the size of shape of their muscles for a short period of time and i've also heard that it can be used to stretch the fascia to make more room for growth.

[MuscleScience]

This study is in quail, They stretch these birds muscles to levels that are not physiologically or ethically possible in humans. You have to take animal studies like this with a grain of salt. Plus this paper is from 1993 there has been a lot of research in the past five years. I dont think you can draw a direct correlation to this with it working in humans.

[Phate]

i agree, thats why i wanted to see all the tests and data, i was going to run it by a couple physiology and anatomy professors i know to see what they thought.

[B.E.N.]

This study is in quail, They stretch these birds muscles to levels that are not physiologically or ethically possible in humans. You have to take animal studies like this with a grain of salt. Plus this paper is from 1993 there has been a lot of research in the past five years. I dont think you can draw a direct correlation to this with it working in humans.

http://www.discussbodybuilding.com/A..._180192/tm.htm

Apparently extreme stretching is something Arnold also did.

Thoughts?

[MuscleScience]

Practically everything there is factually correct at least as far down as I read. The one point I would contend is that these animals are being stretched to a point that puts them past physiological range of motion, and into the pathological range. These are ROM that would typically cause injury to the muscle which would elicit muscle growth and repair.
In order to put a person into a ROM such as those it would not be a passive process. typically the forces required to get a ROM such as these are what you would see in on field injuries, falls, crashes, ect. Now I would also say that its not impossible that through progressive stretching over time that extreme ROM couldnt be achieved. It may very well have some benefit. The evidence is still up for debate. About three years ago a bunch of stretch related papers came out from some very good labs that had all kinds of implications that challenged current theories and practices. For anything stretch related as far a lit review the best stuff is really in the last five years, accept for some of the land mark papers of course. So if you do a lit search keep it recent because a lot of labs our working on this right now.

The idea of fascia stretching is someone different that hypertrophy via stretching. The basic theory is that the fascia is a physical barrier that puts a mechanical stress on the muscle and limits its growth. Fascia is a matrix of connective tissue that is basically a sock around a muscle. There is a technic called rulf or rolf, I am not real sure how its spelled but this technic is specifically amid at stretching the fascia.