12 Benefits of Stretching | Backed by Science & Research

12 Benefits of Stretching – Backed by Science
The truth about how stretching and flexibility training really prevents sports injuries and improves athletic performance.
by Brad Walker | First Published November 30, 2012 | Updated June 26, 2023
A USA Track & Field (USATF) research study of 2,729 volunteers set out to answer the question: Does pre-exercise stretching prevent injury in runners?
Here’s what they found…
When adjusting for all potential risk factors, there remained no significant difference between the two stretching groups.
When comparing injuries which prevented running in excess of 1 or 2 weeks, there is no significant difference between the stretch and no stretch groups whether adjusting for other risk factors or not.
There was no statistically significant difference in injury rates between the stretch and no stretch groups for any specific injury location or diagnosis.
And finally; over a three-month period there was no statistically significant difference in injury risk between the pre-run stretching and non-stretching groups. Stretching neither prevented nor induced injury when compared to not stretching before running.
So it’s no surprise that I’m often asked: Is there any scientific evidence that proves stretching will prevent a sports injury (or make me a better athlete)?
But before you give up stretching altogether, let me ask another question. Is there any scientific evidence that doing strength training immediately before playing sport will prevent sports injuries (or make you a better athlete)?
While the research is limited, it doesn’t mean that strength exercises aren’t beneficial, or don’t have a place in your training program. And the same applies to stretching and flexibility training.
While doing a few hamstring stretches before running onto the field or hitting the gym will not prevent injury (which is exactly what the USATF study did), the same can be said for push-ups, or bicep curls, or any other strength exercise. But stretching, just like push-ups, was never meant to be used in this way, and this is where the so-called scientific research falls short.
The research is flawed
I know this may seem like a bold or arrogant claim, but I’m not the only one who is a little cautious when it comes to research findings. Greg Nuckols, in his article, When To Trust Research Findings, begins by saying…
“Many published studies reach incorrect conclusions. By one famous estimation, most published research findings are false, and in projects designed to directly replicate landmark studies, replication rates of positive findings are often below 50%.”
But before we go on, let me explain what I mean by… The research is flawed!
Transcript from video (click to open)
Hi, I’m Brad Walker. A few weeks ago I published an article titled, “Proper Stretching” with the subheading, “That’s NOT how you use stretching.” And in that article I made the comment that some of the research on stretching and flexibility is flawed. And that drew a couple of comments. So I wanted to take a few minutes and just explain more fully what I mean by… the research is flawed.
But before I do that, I just want to comment on a couple of mistakes that I see a lot of people making when they are interpreting scientific research or research studies.
The first mistake I see is that a lot of people only read the conclusion of the research study and this is a big mistake. Now I can understand it because a lot of studies that are published online will only show you the conclusion or sometimes even just an abstract of the conclusion. And then to read the full story, you have to pay to actually access it. So I can understand why a lot of people only read the conclusion. But the problem with that is that there’s no context to where the conclusion came from. So you don’t know exactly how the study was conducted. You don’t know the methods used. You don’t know the procedures that went into the study. And reading the conclusion without knowing all that is like taking it totally out of context. So firstly if you are going to try and interpret a research study, make sure you read the whole thing.
The second mistake I see a lot of people making, which is related to the first mistake, is that most people just regurgitate what someone else said about a research study. And guess what? That person probably only read the conclusion.
So it’s really important when you are interpreting research studies to make sure you look at the whole study. Read the whole thing and get the context of how the study was put together. And how this study came about and what they were trying to achieve in the first place.
So let’s get back to my comment about a lot of the current research on stretching and flexibility is flawed. Now, let me explain that by giving you a bit of a story or an illustration. Imagine that you’re about to run onto the sports field and it doesn’t matter what sports. It could be soccer, football, baseball, basketball. It could be cycling or swimming. Just imagine you’re about to run onto the field and the coach says to you… “Hey, you should do three sets of sit-ups, three sets of push-ups and three sets of lunges before you run onto the field.” And you go, well why should I do that? And the coach says… “Well that’ll make you a better athlete and that will prevent injury.”
Well I don’t know about that. And I think anyone who’s got a little bit of knowledge about strength and conditioning or sports coaching will know that doing a few push-ups before you run under the sports field isn’t going to help. And if you did a study where you had one group who did those exercises before they ran onto the field and another group who didn’t. I can pretty much guarantee that the results you would get would show no significant difference between the two groups. And essentially that is what a lot of the studies on stretching and flexibility are doing. They take in two different groups. They’re getting one group to do a few stretches before they run onto the sports field.
So they’ll, for example, do a few hamstring stretches, do a few calf stretches, maybe a few quad stretches, and then go and play their sport. And then what the researchers will do, look at the two groups after they play their sport, they’ll compare performance. They will compare injury rates and so forth. Some of these studies are done over a short period of time, maybe only six weeks. Some are conducted over a longer period of time, like six or 12 months. But in the end what happens is that there’s no real significant difference between the two groups. So whether they stretched before exercise or they didn’t, there’s no particular benefit or no particular perceived benefit.
But the problem or the flaw comes because that’s not how you use stretching. You don’t just do a few stretches before you run onto the sports field and expect that you’re going to be a super athlete or bulletproof to injury. That’s NOT the way you use stretching.
So if that’s not the way you use stretching (and this is separate to a warm-up of course; as part of a warm-up you do use stretching, but that’s not what we’re talking about here). We’re talking about the research studies that have been conducted on stretching and flexibility. And nine out of 10 of them follow this type of procedure. Two groups of people, a stretching group and a non-stretching group. Do a few stretches before you run on the field. See what the differences are after you play a sport.
So if that’s not how you use stretching, how do you use stretching? Well, as I explained in the article, you use stretching in exactly the same way as you use strength training. So for example, a coach, a strength coach would look at the athlete, look for weaknesses, look for imbalances. Look for areas where a specific strength is important to that person’s sport. And then they design a routine or strength routine to compensate for those weaknesses, those imbalances and so forth. And over the long term, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months. Those strength improvements will help the athlete.
And it’s exactly the same with stretching. The coach looks at the athlete, they look for weaknesses, they look for imbalances, and they look for areas where stretching or improved flexibility will help their sport. And then they design a stretching routine or a stretching program that the athlete uses to improve those weaknesses and imbalances. And over the long term, again, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, hopefully those imbalances go away. Those weaknesses go away and therefore that translates into improved performance on the field and a reduction in injury.
So when I said that a lot of the research is flawed, I meant that the way the research is carried out is flawed. So this is unfortunate because it gives people the misconception that stretching is of no benefit at all. And that’s certainly not the case.
So I hope that’s cleared things up a little bit. I want to make one point before I finish up. And that is, I’m in no way against scientific research or scientific studies, they’re very valuable, but they have to be used in context. Or in proportion with all the other research and all the other anecdotal type evidence that can be gained.
So I hope that’s helped. I hope you’ve enjoyed the further explanation. What I will do is I’ll make sure I include a link to that original article somewhere on this page so you can go and read it if you want to. In the meantime, stay healthy, keep stretching and God bless. Bye for now.
What does the research actually say?
In an attempt to measure the benefits of stretching, researchers have tried to use stretching in the same way as the examples above. They have tried to measure the effects of doing a few stretches before playing sport (acute stretching), and when the results of their research suggest that no benefit was gained, they make the wrong assumption that ALL stretching is not beneficial.
These sorts of blanket statements are a miss-interpretation and a gross exaggeration of the research, and are very miss-leading as to what the research actually says.
Although the author only makes reference to one study, I can assume he’s referring to any number of studies that have been done over the last 10 to 15 years on the effects of acute stretching immediately before exercise.
Now I’m the first to admit that stretching is no miracle activity. Stretching is just one part of a holistic health and wellness plan: An often-neglected part, but all the same, just one part. So, I do my best to keep a level-headed perspective of what stretching can and can’t do. So, what has the research proved so far?
Shrier, I. (2005) When and Whom to Stretch? Gauging the Benefits and Drawbacks for Individual Patients. The Physician and Sportsmedicine. 33(3):22-6.
“Since the early 1980’s, stretching has been promoted as a method to prevent injury and improve athletic performance. Although research suggests that this may be true for regular stretching performed every day, an isolated act of stretching immediately before exercise likely has no effect on injury prevention and actually impairs performance in strength and power sports.”
“Improvements in force, power and running speed are noted following regular stretching, in marked contrast to acute stretches performed immediately prior to exercise, which tend to yield opposite effects, (though acute stretching is helpful in certain situations, particularly where the benefits of increased ROM outweigh the limits to force and power production).”
“Stretching immediately before exercise is deemed ineffective in preventing injuries and also reduces force and power by about 2% to 5%. Regular stretching over weeks yields opposite effects, increasing force and power by about 2% to 5% while improving running speed by about 0.06 second during a 50-yard dash.“
So regular, consistent, long-term stretching (chronic stretching) can prevent injury and improve athletic performance, but doing static stretches immediately before power based activities like running, jumping and sprinting (acute stretching) can have a detrimental effect on explosive power and speed.
In other words: Doing a specific type of stretching, in a specific way, immediately before another specific activity, can have a negative effect on athletic performance.
NOT that “all stretching has no value.” Anyone who makes a comment like this either doesn’t know how to interpret a research study (or maybe they’ve never even read the research and are just regurgitating what they’ve heard someone else say), or they have an ulterior motive.
“This study suggests that chronic static stretching exercises by themselves can improve specific exercise performances. It is possible that persons who are unable to participate in traditional strength training activities may be able to experience gains through stretching, which would allow them to transition into a more traditional exercise regimen.”
“Warm-up also appears to reduce the incidence and likelihood of sports-related musculoskeletal injuries. Improving flexibility through stretching is another important preparatory activity that has been advocated to improve physical performance. Maintaining good flexibility also aids in the prevention of injuries to the musculoskeletal system.“
Warning! Be very wary of anyone who tells you that doing a few stretches before your next game will make you sports injury bullet-proof or turn you into a super athlete. However, taking 5 minutes to do a few stretches both before and after each workout will improve your flexibility over the long term. And if you’re consistent, in a month or two you’ll find that you have a greater range of movement; you’ll feel more fluid and relaxed; you’ll be less susceptible to muscle strains and pulls; and you’ll be enjoying your sport more too.
Try telling these athletes that stretching isn’t important
While some coaches and trainers still cling to an outdated form of athletic preparation called specificity (see below) most athletes, coaches and trainers today, and especially those at the top of their sport, include flexibility training as a regular part of their preparation. Here are a few examples of athletes who recognize the benefits of stretching.
Usain Bolt
8× Olympic Gold Medal winner
Michael Phelps
23× Olympic Gold Medal winner
Tom Brady
6× Super Bowl champion
Tiger Woods
81× PGA Tour wins
Lebron James
3× NBA champion
Peter Sagan
3× World Road Cycling Champion
A strength training comparison
By the time I got to university in 1990, I’d already developed a keen interest in the field of sports coaching and athletic training. I was at university studying health science in sport and exercise, and I’d eagerly devour any new research I could get my hands on about how to train athletes more efficiently and effectively.
As I read through the latest and most advanced training methods other coaches and researchers were using, I started to notice a number of research articles emerging about this new form of training called: Strength and Conditioning.
Now I know this may seem quite odd to anyone who has worked in the strength and conditioning industry for less than 20 years, but stick with me because as you read through the rest of this article you’ll start to see a lot of similarities between what was happening in the strength training industry 25 years ago, and what’s happening with stretching and flexibility today.
Previous to the mid 1980’s, the only people who did strength training, or lifted weights, were body builders, and the thought of any other athlete lifting weights was ridiculous.
There were a few exceptions, but for the most part the accepted method of training at the time was: Specificity! In other words; if you were a runner, you ran. The thought of lifting weights or performing other non-running activities was just plain crazy.
As athletes and coaches started to experiment with different types of strength training a vicious debate developed about the proposed benefits of such an activity. One month there would be articles praising the benefits of this new revolutionary training method, explaining how athletes would now be able to run faster, jump higher and do away with sports injury.
Then the next month another article would come out exposing strength training as a waste of time; an activity that did more harm than good, and would only serve to slow athletes down and cause more injuries, not less.
Does this sound familiar? Are you hearing similar comments regarding stretching and flexibility training? So what happened with strength training?
Over time, coaches, athletes and researchers discovered how to use strength training for the greatest benefit to the athlete. They discovered what worked and what didn’t and kept modifying their training until they came up with guidelines for effective strength training.
So… How does stretching prevent injury and improve performance?
If doing a few stretches before playing your sport isn’t going to help; how do you use flexibility training in a way that will prevent injuries and make you a better athlete?
The short answer: In exactly the same way as you would use a strength training program.
When designing a strength training program, the trainer first assesses the player for weaknesses, imbalances and areas of their game or performance that need improvement. The trainer then designs a program that works to improve these areas, and over the long term, these strength improvements translate into improved athletic performance and a greater resilience to injury.
And the same applies to flexibility training.
When designing a flexibility training program, the same approach is taken. The player is first assessed for weaknesses, imbalances and areas of their game or performance where flexibility is important and needs to be improved. The trainer then designs a program that aims to improve these areas, and the program is applied over the long term. As the player’s flexibility improves, so does their athletic performance and their resilience to injury.
12 benefits of stretching
Apart from the immediate and most obvious benefit of improving flexibility, mobility and range of motion there are quite a number of other benefits that regular, consistent stretching brings, including:
Improves freedom and ease of movement (bend, reach and turn further);
Reduces aches, pains and stiff, tight muscles and joints;
Improves sporting performance;
Reduces the susceptibility to soft tissue injuries like muscle and tendon strains;
Reduces fatigue and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS);
Improves posture;
Develops body awareness;
Improves co-ordination;
Promotes circulation;
Increases energy; and
Improves relaxation and stress relief.
Transcript from video (click to open)
Emily: So, tell me, because you know, a lot of people like stretching is a periphery, like something, like they do their workouts, they have an office job or whatever it is. And like maybe they stretch if they have a couple extra minutes, but it’s not a priority for a lot of people. So, can you just share with us, like what are the top reasons people need to stretch their bodies?
Brad: Yeah, look unfortunately for a long time, stretching has always been that thing that people do. If they’ve got time at the end of their workout, fortunately over the last few years, I’m actually seeing quite a shift in people’s mindset towards stretching and flexibility. I think for a long-time people have been focused on the hard-core sort of training, the no pain, no gain mentality you know, always pushing to the limits, always trying to, you know, lift heavier weights, run further and faster. And you know, over the last few years, it’s all about doing more, you know, trying to sort of fit more to your workout. Over the last few years, I’ve seen quite a shift towards recovery and rehab and longevity. And as people start to get older, they start to tighten up a little bit and they look at what they’re doing now, maybe it’s playing their favorite sport or whatever they like to do to keep active and keep healthy.
And if they’re starting to think, long-term, they’re thinking, well, you know like you said, you’re 46, I turned 50 next year. As people start to get older, they start to think, well, you know, I want to be able to continue this active lifestyle that I’m living. And people are starting to recognize that flexibility is a really important part of longevity. Being able to stay active and keep active into your older years. And fortunately, you know, people are starting to ask questions about stretching and flexibility now that they weren’t asking 10 or 20 years ago. So, that’s been a really positive for me. I’ve been in this industry for well over 30 years now and I’ve pretty much dedicated that entire time to stretching and flexibility. And for a long time, I found it very hard to engage people in conversations about stretching and flexibility and range of motion, and just keeping your ability to be able to bend and turn and twist and move and reach.
And you know, for a long time, people weren’t really interested. They’re only interested in pumping more weight or doing the next high intensity interval training session or whatever else. So, it’s been really exciting over the last few years. Now there’s actually been quite an explosion in stretching services now being offered as standalone services. Over the last few years, I’ve been working with a company that sets up stretching studios and a little bit like a massage. You can go in do some time with a therapist and they’ll lay you out on a bench, assess you for any weaknesses or imbalances or tight spots you may have. And then now create a stretching program that’s tailor-made to help you with your particular tight spots and imbalances. So, it’s really encouraging to see those sorts of things happening. I know a lot of personal trainers and sports coaches, etc., are now offering stretching as a standalone service.
So, you know, a lot of personal trainers, just as you would book a session with a personal trainer to work in, a lot of personal trainers are now booking sessions with people just to stretch, and they might, lay on the floor for an hour with their client and go through a whole range of different stretches for them. So, it’s really encouraging to see this sort of shift in mindset and people becoming more interested in what stretching can do for you. I mean, some of the most obvious benefits are you know, it increases flexibility and range of motion, which just means that you can move around a lot easier, you can get in and out of the car a lot easier, you can go up and down stairs and you can get up from being seated for a while, a lot easier.
And all this leads to things like a reduction in aches and pains and, and stiff tight muscles. A lot of us live a fairly sedentary sort of life now. We spend a lot of time sitting and, in those positions, our muscles and joints, they just tighten up and constrict over time. So, having some sort of regular flexibility program is able to, you know, will help you reduce those tight spots that we normally experience just from our day-to-day activities. I mean, that’s just the start of it for athletes. You’re looking at things like long-term stretching has been shown to improve sporting performance, it’s been shown to reduce muscular tenderness injuries. Doesn’t necessarily reduce all sports injuries, for example, a sprained ankle doesn’t really matter how much stretching you’re going to do.
You know, if you fall in a hole or a ditch and you sprain your ankle you know, nothing is really going to help that, but as far as muscular tenderness injuries, things like strains, muscle strains and pulls, and those sorts of things long-term stretching has been proven to help reduce those sorts of injuries. It helps with recovery just reducing stiffness and tightness that you may get from a tough workout. If you incorporate stretching as part of your cool-down and in an ongoing recovery process, it will help to reduce that stiffness and soreness that you get. In regards to just, you know, general sort of benefits for stretching and improved flexibility it helps improve posture, it helps improve just your body awareness, just being aware of where your body and your limbs are. It can improve coordination. Stretching promote circulation, increases energy and one of my favorites is that it just helps improve relaxation and stress relief. So, we all need a bit of that these days, so, anything that helps to reduce that stress is a great thing.
A 2020 study concluded that 12 weeks of passive stretching can improve blood flow and improve your heart health. The study also concluded that stretching can reduce problems in a person’s vascular system and decrease the risk of events such as heart attack and stroke.
“The present study clearly demonstrates that 12‐week PS training is effective in improving vascular function and decreasing stiffness of the directly involved arteries (i.e. femoral and popliteal arteries of the stretched limbs) and the arteries not directly involved (i.e. contralateral femoral and popliteal arteries and brachial artery) in PS training. PS has been shown to be an effective means to improve vascular function, with practical implications for its use as a novel non‐pharmacological treatment for improving vascular health, reducing the overall cardiovascular risk, especially in individuals with limited mobility.”
Emiliano Cè, PhD, an author of the study, says that doing stretching could be beneficial for the vascular system during extended periods of confinement, (due to COVID-19).
This new application of stretching is especially relevant in the current pandemic period of increased confinement to our homes, where the possibility of performing beneficial training to improve and prevent heart disease, stroke, and other conditions is limited.
A 2021 study in the International Journal of Sports Medicine found that long-term passive stretching decreases heart rate and improves arterial elasticity.
“Researchers found that long-term passive stretching decreases heart rate and improves arterial elasticity. Arterial stiffness is an important indicator of cardiovascular health. Stiffness of arteries naturally occurs with age and is exacerbated by poor nutrition and habits (smoking & drinking) leading to plaque build up and additional hardening. Consistent stretching was shown to increase elasticity of the arteries, therefore decreasing stiffness. Due to this, researchers concluded that, “stretching seems to represent a safe, easy, and effective form of exercise with cardiovascular implications.” The study found that these cardiovascular benefits decreased and returned back to baseline levels six weeks after participants stopped stretching consistently.”
Another 2020 study in the Journal of Physical Activity and Health concluded that stretching is also beneficial for reducing blood pressure.
“An 8-week stretching program was superior to brisk walking for reducing blood pressure in individuals with high–normal blood pressure or stage 1 hypertension.”
Stretching is not a quick fix
Remember, stretching is not a quick fix. The benefits of stretching are only attained when flexibility training is applied professionally and diligently over an extended period of time. And there are no magic stretches. Doing one or two stretches every now and again isn’t going to help. And doing the same stretches over and over again isn’t going to help either.
Want to get more flexible?
Grab a copy of the Ultimate Guide to Stretching & Flexibility below...
While the recommendations on this page are a good place to start, you'll get a lot more benefit when you add the right stretches to your training program. With the Ultimate Guide to Stretching & Flexibility you'll...
Do away with stiff, tight muscles and joints;
Improve your freedom of movement;
Get rid of injuries, aches and pains;
Improve your sporting performance; and
Take your flexibility to the next level.
You'll get 135 clear photographs and 44 video demonstrations of unique stretches for every major muscle groups in your body. The DVD includes 3 customized sets of stretches (8 minutes each) for the Upper Body; the Lower Body; and the Neck, Back & Core. Plus, you'll also learn the 7 critical rules for safe stretching; the benefits of flexibility; and how to stretch properly.
About the Author: Brad Walker is often referred to as the "Stretch Coach" and has even been called the Stretching Guru. Magazines such as Runners World, Bicycling, Triathlete, Swimming & Fitness, and Triathlon Sports have all featured his work. Amazon (author page) has listed his books on five Best-Seller lists. Google cites over 100,000 references to him and his work on the internet. And satisfied customers from 122 countries have sent 1,000's of verified customer reviews. If you want to know about stretching, flexibility or sports injury management, Brad Walker is the go-to-guy.
Disclaimer: The health and fitness information presented on this website is intended as an educational resource and is not intended as a substitute for proper medical advice. Please consult your physician or physical therapist before performing any of the exercises described on this website, particularly if you are pregnant, elderly or have any chronic or recurring muscle or joint pain.