"Karate Stretching"

Dr. Bruce Duncan

INTRODUCTION
Some of the best exponents of Karate in the world share a common ability - flexibility - and it is obtainable by all.

Almost all athletes in any sport would wish to improve in this area and this article
aims to build on your own knowledge base and to do just that. If you are looking to improve your karate in general and your fighting ability in particular, look no further than improving your flexibility. Unfortunately there is no magic pill or overnight fix in this regard - yet there are more effective ways to stretch than others.

BENEFITS
Whether you have been training for a while or just beginning, you will know flexibility is important for your kicking ability. What may not have occurred to you is that it is extremely important to have good flexibility in your supporting leg as well as your kicking leg, and that is why some of you find it easier to kick with your non dominant leg.

Flexibility helps not just the reach of your kicks but also the power of your kicks. Imagine being able to hold your leg up in the air with a minimum of effort rather than using all your effort just to stretch your tight hamstrings and adductor muscles. You could then use the antagonists to these muscles - the hip flexors, quadriceps and adductors - to deliver a powerful blow to your opponent. Being generally flexible helps your fluidity of movement - very important for both kata and kumite.

Having spinal flexibility helps your general ability to move well and stay healthy but also helps your ability to 'coil' and 'uncoil' - to torque yourself - to deliver power to both hand and foot strikes. It also enables you to 'duck and weave' effectively and even to move well for such moves as throwing and grappling.

Of course alongside the benefit of improved performance, being flexible has the major benefit of injury prevention.

ANATOMY
There are three basic tissues to stretch in the body to gain flexibility - the muscles, the joint capsules/ligaments and the nerves.

Using the leg and hip as an example, the classic lunge stretch is a muscular stretch for the hip flexor muscle. This is performed by placing one foot forward and one foot back - the knee of the back leg is dropped to the floor, you lean forward keeping your trunk upright. You can feel a certain amount of 'give' with this stretching through the front of your hip - a nice stretch that feels good.

Lying on your back with soles of your feet together and knees stretched apart stretches your adductor muscles but is mainly a hip capsule and ligamentous stretch. This stretch has less 'give' - it has more of a solid end feel. It probably doesn't feel easy and is less elastic. Capsules and ligaments are much harder to gain flexibility through - it takes long thorough stretching to gain flexibility.

The classic hamstring stretch - sitting with one leg out straight and reaching forward to touch your toes - is actually as much of a nerve stretch (the sciatic nerve) as a muscular stretch. Bending the knee slightly takes the nerve off the stretch and makes it a pure muscular stretch. With your leg straight you know you are stretching the nerve with the tight feeling in the back of the knee - not in the belly of the hamstring muscle.

Nerves are more elastic than ligaments but less than muscles. Like ligaments they take a long time to gain length with stretching. Some researchers think it is not a good idea to strongly stretch the sciatic nerve immediately before exercise as it can upset the impulses going through it leading to less muscle control. They think it may contribute to hamstring strains. My view is that it is better to strongly stretch the nerve after exercise when you are very warm and beginning the cool down phase.

To summarise, muscles stretch easily and 'give' readily as you breath into the stretch. Capsules and ligaments are the least elastic and feel very tight to stretch. To gain flexibility they take long, strong and continuous stretching. Nerves are a little elastic but don't feel great to stretch. They also require long sustained stretching preferably straight after exercise.

My advice is to learn some anatomy to know the structures you are stretching - read books, go online, ask questions of knowledgeable people at your club or gym, study yoga, do a short course - its all fascinating information that can only be of benefit not just for karate, but in life.

HOW TO STRETCH
Most importantly be warm - your tissues won't gain in length unless they are warm and elastic. This means an adequate warm up that lifts your heart rate, reddens your skin and begins to lightly sweat.

Take a stretch in the desired muscle:

• be balanced, breathing easily and focus on nothing else besides the muscle
• make it a strong stretch that is just short of being painful
• keep breathing slowly and deeply
• listen to the feedback information from the muscle - it will let you know when you can take up some slack - generally after 15 - 20 seconds
• take up this slack and hold for a further 10 seconds or so
• slowly release the stretch and shake out the area

ORDER OF STRETCHING
If you have found that you have 'plateaued' in your flexibility gains, it may help to release certain areas of the body first, which then helps subsequent areas of the body to release. Try this order of stretching where one area leads to another - it can give added focus:

1. Lower back
2. Gluteal muscles and hip joints
3. Quadriceps
4. Hip flexors
5. Adductors
6. Calves
7. Hamstrings - last of all

Many athletes I have worked with have found this very effective to make flexibility gains. I watch many people try to stretch their hamstrings first yet there are many factors contributing to hamstring tightness including tight back, tight hips and tight adductors. Releasing them first enable you to get an almost pure hamstring stretch and hopefully the most effective and lasting release.

It is beyond the scope of this article to go through all the various stretches that are effective. I trust that you already have a good list that is relatively effective for you. What I am asking of you is to think about the process with more depth.

WHEN TO STRETCH
The short answer to this question is as often as possible - preferably everyday - even for a few minutes stretching your tightest areas.

The most effective time is when you are the warmest, for example, immediately after class. Find an 'out of the way' area on the tatami (making sure this is o.k. with Sensei) or somewhere else in the dojo. Spend some quality time doing really strong stretching especially on the tissues you feel you need improvement in. This is the time you will make the most lasting gains in your flexibility and it will help reduce soreness, aiding your recovery.

OTHER TIPS

• Perhaps get a group of fellow students together to help each other - partner stretching is how many international athletes gain flexibility.
• You could hold small workshops each week where one of you introduces a new stretch that they have researched.
• If you get the opportunity to lead the warm-up of a class, try to incorporate stretching into the activity, for example:
  • pulsing on the balls of your feet (which works the calf muscles) followed immediately by stretching the calves.
  • performing some squats and leaps (working the gluteals and quads) followed by stretching these muscles etc.

CONCLUSION
Flexibility, along with power, coordination and concentration is one of the great gifts of practicing karate. To enhance this gift with some extra knowledge and time will go a long way to improving not only your karate but also your fitness and health in general.

Dr. Bruce Duncan is a registered Osteopath and director of North Carlton Osteopathy in Melbourne, Victoria. He has worked with many local, national, international and Olympic athletes. He is 1st Dan black belt in karate. Click here for more details about North Carlton Osteopathy.

FURTHER READING
Anderson B; Stretching, shelter, Bolinas Ca.