Fascial Stretch Therapy™
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Stretching 2.0
New ways to gain flexibility, improve performance, and protect against injuries.
Watch a group of elite runners warming up and you won’t see any of them bending over trying to reach their toes. Instead, you’ll see athletes moving their bodies to improve their range of motion, increase flexibility, and guard against injury. “Stretching has progressed to a more functional, dynamic method,” says physical therapist Chris Frederick, codirector of the Stretch to Win Institute in Tempe, Arizona. “It helps runners of all levels perform better.”
You may be familiar with dynamic warmup moves like butt kicks and high-knee marches. But physical therapists and trainers have developed other ways to stretch your body in a more functional way. Consider the upsides and downsides of these three new methods to decide which works best for you.
FASCIAL STRETCH THERAPY™
Unlike stretching that attempts to isolate and stretch specific muscles, fascial stretch therapy (FST) targets fascia, the connective tissue found in, around, and between joints. To stretch the fascia, a certified FST therapist gently pulls then moves the legs, arms, spine, and neck in a smooth motion at various angles to remove pressure between joints, release joint-lubricating synovial fluid, and improve flexibility of muscles. “The function of muscles cannot be separated from the movement of fascia,” says Frederick, who has worked with Olympic gold-medal sprinter Sanya Richards. After an initial session with a therapist, runners can continue this stretch therapy on their own.
UPSIDES: ”Runners tell us that after the first FST session they move with more ease and feel stronger and faster,” Frederick says. Runners using FST also report increased stride length, less pain and tightness, and faster recovery.
HOW TO: Visit stretchtowin.com to find an FST therapist. A session with a certified FST therapist costs $60 to $200 per hour. Frederick’s book, Stretch to Win, and DVD, Flexibility for Sports Performance, also offer FST instruction.
Article by Beth Dreher, Image from Michael Darter
From the May 2011 issue of Runner’s World
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Features of Fascial Stretch Therapy™ (FST™)
- Manipulates, lengthens, re-aligns and re-organizes your fascia.
- Pain-free.
- Increases joint space.
- Eliminates trigger points.
- Improves muscle activation and relaxation.
- Manipulates, lengthens, re-aligns and re-organizes your fascia.
- FST therapist will teach you how to maintain optimal fascial flexibility
Benefits of FST™
- Improved posture & functional ability to do what you couldn’t do before.
- No pain allows you to finally enjoy a life of quality.
- Restoration of normal joint space is anti-aging at its best – youthful movement without pain!
- Will make all the difference in sports performance.
- Reduces injuries so you can get on with your goals in fitness, recreation & sports
- Improves & increases options in sex when you have a flexible body
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“Your fascia reacts to all stress – physical, mental and emotional – by tightening & stiffening. Since fascia covers everything from all of your organs to the circulatory system to the brain & nervous system to the musculoskeletal system and more, your whole body is at risk to react to stress by tightening & stiffening. When your fascia is left unattended to, aging of the body, mind & spirit accelerates, function decreases & quality of life deteriorates”
~Ann & Chris Frederick: Creators of FST
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Tim Ferris Recommends FST
“Favorite stretching expert?”
Answer: Anne Frederick, whose clinic, Stretch to Win, I had visited in Tempe, Arizona, just six months earlier. I’d left a session with her husband with more hip mobility than I’d experienced in a decade.