Are you stretching correctly? Fitness experts break down what to do pre- and post-workout

Participants takes part in an outdoor gym class led by personal fitness trainer Richard Lamb, during an outdoor gym class in London, Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

As you head into the gym, you likely already have a workout plan in mind. Maybe you’re taking a light jog on the treadmill, or you’re working on some bicep curls on arm’s day. To get the most out of your gym session, consider first how you start and end your workouts.

Muscles need time to warm up, and stretching helps circulate more blood to those areas, allowing for a greater range of motion and flexibility. More flexibility increases performance, especially when doing actions that require bending, contraction and pulling. Stretching also helps lower the risk of injury.

“A lot of people like to jump right into the workout, but stretching before and after is what’s going to determine how effective your workout can be for today and the next time you do it,” said Whitney Houlin, a personal trainer and director of training and fitness at WeGym in West Hartford, Connecticut.

If you want better results or are hitting a plateau in your fitness journey, try adding dynamic and static stretching to your next workout.

Dynamic vs. static stretches

Dynamic stretching involves moving a joint through its full range to increase flexibility, Houlin said. Static stretching involves holding a single position for several seconds.

Static stretches can be passive or active. Active static stretches involve working a muscle while using other muscles to hold the stretch, Houlin said, such as lifting a leg in front of you using leg and core strength. Passive static stretches involve extending a muscle using gravity or other stretching tools. This technique can look like folding forward to stretch the hamstrings, allowing gravity to pull the upper body down.

What stretch is best before a workout?

Researchers have produced conflicting results when it comes to the best pre-workout stretch. For example, a well-cited August 2003 study showed evidence of static stretching for warm-ups worsening muscle performance, while a November 2019 review found the opposite, with static stretches boosting muscle strength for the average person getting into shape.

More recently, researchers have been warming up to dynamic stretching. An October study looking at athletic performances found dynamic stretches were better for pre-workout than static stretching because they reduce the risk of injury. An April review of workout routines found dynamic stretching produced a greater range of motion in the lower limbs along with improvements in force and power in those areas.

Physical therapist Dr. Mario Mejia recommended dynamic stretching before a workout because it prepares the body for intense activity. The active movements in dynamic stretches mimic the same movements you’re going to impose on the body when exercising.

“I’m a big dynamic stretch guy because that’s how we move,” said Mejia, who serves patients at Fox Rehabilitation in Rockville Centre, New York. “If you’re healthy, you’re never really standing still.”

Likewise, people at the gym are not usually holding one position — they often perform compound movements such as running and squats that require moving multiple joints at the same time. Dynamic stretches create the range of motion needed for these active movements and increase nerve activity in the muscles, readying them for movement. Mejia recommended taking five to 10 minutes to perform dynamic stretches before a workout.

Recommended dynamic stretches

One of Houlin’s favorite dynamic pre-workout stretches is what she calls the world’s greatest stretch. “It’s one of my very favorite ways to warm up. It’s a good universal one too for lots of different exercises,” she added.

Starting from a standing position, hinge at the hips and walk your hands out into a plank position. Be mindful to engage your core for stability and balance. Next, step a foot next to one hand like a big runner’s lunge and lift the other hand off the floor. When you rotate the upper body, the dynamic stretch will give a nice twist through the midsection. Afterward, put your hand back on the floor, step the foot back to a plank position and walk your hands back to the feet to roll yourself back up to standing.

A second stretch Mejia recommended is alternating between forward and reverse lunges. Additionally, half-kneeling windmills help with spine rotation, build core strength and stabilize hips and shoulders.

To do a half-kneeling windmill, you’ll want to get into a half-kneeling position with one leg behind and the other leg in front. Take a kettlebell in the same arm as the leg in front of you and raise it overhead. Your gaze should stay on the kettlebell, not in front. Push hips back on the same side holding the kettlebell and lower the opposite forearm to the ground before driving your knee down to return to the initial position.

What stretch is best after a workout?

Static stretches are best after a workout to get the body back to a state of rest, Houlin said. Cooldowns after high-intensity activity helps gradually bring the heart rate, body temperature and blood pressure back down to normal.

“Stretching the muscles I just exercised gets blood flow back to those muscles to start the muscle repair process,” she said. Additionally, Houlin emphasized performing stretches that target the muscles stressed out during exercise.

Mejia added that static stretching at cooldown also increases muscle elasticity, reducing the chances of muscle pain and stiffness. “During an activity like running, you are contracting and elongating muscles for a sustained period of time,” he said. “When you hold a static stretch at the end of a workout, you’re stretching the muscle fibers from their origin to the insertion.” Origin refers to a site where the muscle attaches to a bone that remains stationary during a contraction, and insertion refers to a site where a muscle attaches to a bone that moves during a contraction.

Recommended static stretches

The pigeon pose is a static stretch Houlin highly recommended for post-workout. You’re on the ground with your front leg in a 90-degree bend at the knee with the back leg extended behind you. She said it’s a great stretch for hip flexors and glutes.

Mejia recommended hamstring stretches, calf stretches and a standing quad stretch. The quad stretch targets the quadriceps and hip flexor muscles as you stand on one leg and bend the knee of the other leg while grabbing the opposite foot, pulling it toward your rear.

You should hold each static stretch for 15 to 30 seconds for two to four sets, Mejia said. “This is adequately enough to produce the elongation effect and improve range of motion.”

Jocelyn Solis-Moreira is a New York-based freelance health and science journalist.