근력운동을 망치는 운동 전 습관은...?

안녕하세요🥳

여러분들은 운동을 하러 헬스장에 도착하면 무엇을 제일 먼저 하시나요? 

대부분 사람들이 데스크에 앉아 있는 트레이너들과 가벼운 인사를 나눈 뒤 운동 할 준비들을 할 것입니다. 예를 들어 누군가는 옷을 갈아 입고 누구는 기계적으로 관절부터 쭉쭉 잡아 당기는 분도 있을 것이며 러닝 머신 먼저 올라가는 분이 계실 것입니다.

이번 포스팅에서 다룰 주제는 바로 ‘워밍업’입니다. 쉽게 말해서 스트레칭에 관한 이야기를 해볼까 합니다.

 

(근육을 강제로 이완하는 스트레칭)

 

본 운동을 잘 수행하기 위해서는 경직된 근육과 관절을 풀어주고, 심박수를 천천히 올려 전신에 충분한 피가 돌게 해주어야 합니다. 

여러분은 스트레칭 하면 어떤 모습이 먼저 떠오르시나요? 아마 대부분의 분들이 팔,다리 또는 허리 등의 관절을  잡아 쭉 늘려주는 모습을 떠올릴 것입니다. 

이렇게 외력을 줘서 수동적으로 관절과 근육의 이완을 시키는 스트레칭을 정적 스트레칭이라고 합니다.

스트레칭이라 하면 이런 정적 스트레칭이 먼저 떠오를 정도로 운동 전 필수처럼 여겨지던 행동이 우리의 본 운동을 망치고 있다면 충격적이지 않나요? 

운동 전 지나친 정적 스트레칭은 단기적으로 보았을 때 근육의 순발력과 탄성 에너지를 감소 시키게 되면서 중량과 볼륨 훈련을 진행함에 있어 방해가 될 수있다고 알려졌습니다.

몇몇 연구에서는 장기적으로 진행하는 운동 전 정적 스트레칭의 과도한 사용은 관절의 안정성에 기여하는 인대와 힘줄의 손상 혹은 변형의 원인이 될 수 있다는 결과가 나왔습니다.

또한 얼마나 오랫동안 스트레칭을 진행 하느냐에 따라 교감 신경계와 부교감 신경계의 우세 정도가 달라졌는데, 정적 스트레칭을 진행하게 되면 우리 신체가릴렉스 모드로 바뀌게 되고, 이는 수행 능력과 근력적인 부분에 있어 부정적인 영향을 끼치게 됩니다.

최악의 경우에는 근력과 순발력이 5~15%정도 저하되는 효과가 30분까지 이어진다고 하니 뒤통수가 얼얼하지 않으신가요?

하지만 본 운동을 실시한 후 진행하는 정적 스트레칭은 긴장한 근육을 안정시키고 회복을 빠르게 도와줍니다. 저희가 순서를 잘 못 알고 있었던 것이죠.

이러한 정적 스트레칭을 할 때 주의할 점이 있습니다. 너무 과도하게 외력을 주어 아플 때까지 당기면 안된다는 것이죠. 

몇몇 분들은 그 느낌을 ‘시원하다’ 인식하여 근육에 부상을 입기도 합니다. 특히 주의해야 할 점은 소염진통제나 근육이완제를 복용했을 때 입니다.

근력 운동을 하다 가벼운 부상을 입었을 때 심심치 않게 접하는 약이 근육이완제 입니다.

이러한 약들은 감각을 둔하게 만들어 통증을 늦게 느끼기 때문에 각별한 주의가 필요하죠.

정적 스트레칭은 강하고 빠르게 하면 안됩니다. 단어에서 그러하듯 느리게 당기고, 이완 상태에서는 10초 이상 유지해줘야 효과를 볼 수 있습니다.

 

그렇다면 운동 전에는 어떤 스트레칭을 해야 할까요?

운동 전에는 정적 스트레칭의 반대 격인 동적 스트레칭이 좋습니다.

근육과 관절을 외력을 주어 늘리거나 반동을 이용해 늘여서는 안되고 관절의 자연스러운 가동 범위까지 실시해주는 것이 좋습니다. 

예를 들어 벤치프레스를 하기 전 매우 가벼운 무게를 이용하여 넓은 가동 범위로 여러 번 반복 해주는 것이나 점핑잭(팔 벌려 뛰기), 워킹 런지 등이 대표적이라고 할 수 있겠습니다.

근성장을 위한 근력운동이 주 목적이라면 10분 정도의 가벼운 유산소 운동이나 계단을 오르는 것 또한 도움이 될 수 있습니다. 하지만 이럴 경우 전체적인 관절이 가동 되는 것은 아니므로 이후 필요한 관절 마다 동적 스트레칭을 실시 해 주시는 것을 권장 드립니다.

저 같은 경우는 집에서 헬스장까지 걸어서 10분 내외의 거리이기에 여유로운 날은 걸어서 헬스장에 갑니다. 그 후 동적인 스트레칭과 본 운동 전 워밍업 세트를 같이 해주고 있습니다.

동적 스트레칭은 일반적으로 작은 동작에서 큰 동작으로 실시하는데 5분 정도면 적당합니다.

 

그럼 이제 일반적인 생활 체육 기준에서의 운동 순서를 정리 해 볼까요?

1.     여유가 되면 가벼운 10분 내외의 유산소 운동

-        몸이 고정되어 있는 자전거나 스테퍼 보다는 빠르게 걷는 것을 추천 드립니다.

2.     가벼운 동적 스트레칭과 워밍업 세트 진행

3.     본 운동 (필요에 따라 운동 후 유산소를 더 하셔도 무방합니다.)

4.     정적 스트레칭

이런 순으로 진행하게 된다면 부상 위험도를 현저하게 낮출 수 있을 겁니다.

 

오늘은 저희가 쉽게 오해할 수 있는 정적 스트레칭에 대해 포스팅을 해봤는데 도움이 되셨으면 좋겠습니다.

다음에 더 좋은 글로 찾아 뵙겠습니다 감사합니다. 🙇🏻

 

 

Hello! 🥳
When you arrive at the gym, what’s the first thing you do? Most people probably greet the trainers at the front desk before getting ready for their workout. Some might change into their workout clothes, others might start stretching their joints, while some might head straight for the treadmill.

In today’s post, I want to talk about a key aspect of any workout: the warm-up. More specifically, I’ll be focusing on stretching.

Stretching to Relax Muscles

Before diving into your main workout, it’s important to loosen up stiff muscles and joints and gradually increase your heart rate to ensure proper blood circulation throughout your body. When you think of stretching, what image comes to mind? Most people probably imagine pulling or extending their arms, legs, or back to stretch their joints. This type of stretching, where external force is applied to passively extend muscles and joints, is known as static stretching.

Static stretching is so commonly associated with warm-ups that it might shock you to learn that this traditional approach could actually be detrimental to your workout performance! Studies have shown that excessive static stretching before a workout can temporarily reduce muscle power and elasticity, hindering your strength and volume training.

Some research suggests that regularly overusing static stretching before exercise can damage or weaken ligaments and tendons that contribute to joint stability. Additionally, the longer you hold static stretches, the more your autonomic nervous system shifts into "relaxation mode," which negatively impacts strength and performance.

In the worst-case scenario, muscle power and explosiveness can drop by 5-15%, and this effect can last for up to 30 minutes! That’s quite a shock, isn’t it? However, when done after a workout, static stretching helps relax tense muscles and speeds up recovery. It turns out we’ve been doing things in the wrong order!

When doing static stretching, there’s one key thing to keep in mind: don’t stretch to the point of pain. Some people associate the sensation of "pain" with a good stretch, which can lead to muscle injuries. This is especially true if you’ve taken anti-inflammatory medication or muscle relaxants, which dull your senses and make it harder to feel pain.

Static stretching should be done gently and slowly, and you need to hold the stretch for at least 10 seconds to experience its full benefits.

So, What Type of Stretching Should You Do Before a Workout?

Before exercising, it’s better to do dynamic stretching instead of static stretching. This involves moving your muscles and joints through their natural range of motion without forcing them or using momentum to stretch them. For example, before doing bench presses, you could use a very light weight and go through a full range of motion multiple times, or you could do jumping jacks or walking lunges to get your body moving.

If muscle growth is your primary goal, you could also benefit from 10 minutes of light cardio, like climbing stairs. However, since this won’t fully engage all your joints, it’s best to follow it up with dynamic stretches for any areas that need extra attention.

Personally, I live about 10 minutes from the gym, so on days when I’m not in a rush, I walk there. Once I arrive, I combine dynamic stretches with warm-up sets before my main workout. In general, dynamic stretching should move from small to large motions, and five minutes of this is usually enough.

A Suggested Workout Routine for General Fitness

Let’s break down a general fitness routine in order of sequence:

1. If possible, start with around 10 minutes of light cardio.
   • I recommend walking briskly rather than using stationary bikes or steppers.
2. Follow up with light dynamic stretches and a warm-up set.
3. Begin your main workout. (If necessary, you can add more cardio after your strength training.)
4. Finish with static stretching.

By following this sequence, you’ll significantly reduce your risk of injury.

Today’s post covered static stretching and how we’ve misunderstood its role in our workouts. I hope you found this information helpful. I look forward to sharing more useful tips in future posts. Thank you! 🙇🏻