Improving flexibility is primarily the result of performing stretching
exercises. The right flexibility program will provide the athlete with the knowledge to
increase range of motion, maximize efficiency of movement, supplement training, and
enhance recovery. A good flexibility program concentrates on muscle groups most
likely to experience adaptive shortening. In the majority of the cases, just three
flexibility exercises will produce the range of motion required to optimize the
musculoskeletal system for almost any sport. Be sure to remember that there are “good,
useless, and dangerous” flexibility exercises. The useless and the dangerous exercises
must be avoided. An excellent example of the latter point is the hurdler’s stretch
exercise during which the position of the knee and leg stretches the medial collateral
ligament while putting pressure on the medial meniscus.
Keywords: Anatomy, Flexibility training, Hamstring muscles, Musculoskeletal
joint, Muscle spindles.
