What was once an afterthought when she swam for Pittsfield High in the late 1990s — Brown did some stretching, but never seriously — has since become a regular part of almost every swimmer's routine.
"When I swam in high school, we rarely stretched," said Brown, who graduated in 1999. "We've learned that it's much more important than people originally thought. It's been a trend all over, with core training, flexibility, yoga, Pilates. Stretching has become more important in all sports, and all athletes recognize it's important."
While it's easy to think of swimming as low-impact — you don't associate it with the pounding that the joints take while jogging or lifting weights — injuries still occur often. The most common result from overuse — particularly in the shoulders — and cramps, both of which can be limited by proper stretching.
"Before any physical exercise, it's important to work out," said Bill Meier, the director of aquatics at Simon's Rock and the coach of the Monument Mountain swim team last year. "They used to tell you to stretch first, but now they want you to warm up and then stretch. Think of your body as being like water or ice: If it's cold, it's not going to be flexible."
Meier said the body should be stretched in order, from
Nearly 80 percent of injuries can be avoided if swimmers use proper form, said Brown, who coaches the Snappers youth swim team, which practices at Simon's Rock, and serves as the college's assistant director of aquatics.
She recommends that even adults who believe they know how to swim take a class or seek the advice of an expert to hone their stroke before embarking on a major fitness kick.
One of the stretches physicians are discouraging, according to Brown, are the traditional shoulder stretches — reaching your elbow over you head, bending it and then pulling or yanking on a wall — because they put pressure on the joint, rather than stretch the muscles surrounding it.
As the summer season comes upon us, exercise enthusiasts may transition some of their workouts to the pool, while everyone from triathletes to recreational swimmers are likely to spend more time in the water.
Brown and Meier have taken the time to create a stretching routine they believe will benefit all levels of swimmers as they take to the water when the weather turns warm.
Warm-up stretches
Modern trainers don't encourage athletes to begin stretching right away, but to get their blood flowing, as with a few jumping jacks or other cardiovascular exercise, before they stretch. Like a piece of gum, if the muscles are cold, they are difficult to stretch, but when warm, they're quite flexible. The first three stretches help the body prepare for more serious stretching, the next section of stretches prepare your muscles for a vigourous workout and the final section of stretches are used to relieve some common injuries.
1. Feet-strength stretch. While sitting, push your foot forward, stretching your calf out and pointing your toes downward; try to touch your toes to the floor in front of you. Hold for five seconds. Then, do the opposite, angling your toes back toward you; try to spread your toes as wide as possible, holding for another five seconds. Do this 10 times. It will stretch the lower leg muscles and the bottom of the foot, helping you avoid painful foot cramps.
2. Full-joint bend. To loosen your body, bend every joint for five seconds each, going up the body and back down. Start with your fingers and wiggle them, then move on to your wrists, elbows, shoulders and neck, then move back down the body to your back, hips, knees and ankles.
3. Arm swings. To stretch the trunk of your body, bring your arms up at your sides and swing your arms gently, twisting from side to side. You should be twisting lightly at the hips and lower back. As you go on, pivot one foot, getting your entire body into the twist. Do this for 30 seconds to one minute.
Stretches
You'll feel the muscles stretching in these exercises, which will take a little more effort. These are the stretches that help swimmers avoid injuries when increasing their workload over the summer.
1. Heel-down calf stretch. With your knees bent, extend one leg forward and the other behind you. Press your hands flat against a wall and try to push your back heel down as far as possible. Hold it for five seconds, then lift the heel back up. You should feel your calves stretching. Repeat this five times on each leg, holding for 10 seconds.
2. Pecs. Begin with your body even with a doorway or wall and press your forearm against it, holding your elbow at a 90-degree angle. Step forward with your inside leg and hold for 10 seconds. You should feel your pecs and the lower muscles in your shoulder stretching. Do this with each arm five times. This stretch isolates the shoulder joint while stretching the muscles surrounding it.
3. Neck. Look straight ahead and gently pull your the top of your head to the right with your right arm; hold this position for 10 seconds, and then pull it to the left with the left arm. You should be holding tightly onto the edge of the chair or firm surface which you are sitting on (you should not be on the ground) to anchor the stretch. Switch sides three times. Then look to the side, down into your armpit, and repeat the process, which should stretch your upper back and shoulders.
4. Diamond. While sitting with your feet out in front of you, press your heels together, making a diamond shape with your legs. Then, while holding onto your feet, gradually lower your head as far as you can while pulling on your ankles as an anchor. Release after 10 seconds, repeating five times — each time attempting to go further forward.
5. Child's pose — This should be familiar to followers of yoga. Kneel on the ground with your body over your legs and your legs flat on the ground . Extend your arms forward as far as you can in front of you, and you should begin to feel your back stretch out. Hold for 20 seconds. Then repeat the process while reaching forward and to the right, then forward and to the left.
Injury stretches
Some typical swimming discomforts can be helped by stretching, particularly foot cramps and side stitches, the most common complaints of swimmers who have exerted themselves. The following stretches are recommended to deal with these common injuries.
Foot cramp. After taking a brief walk to let the cramp subside, get into the position for the heel-down calf stretch , but instead of pressing your heel to the ground, focus the pressure on your toes, pressing them into the ground.
Side stitch. After getting out of the pool, reach your arm (on the stitch side) over your head and bend toward the opposite side, stretching your ribcage. While taking a big breath and blowing it out hard, press one or two fingers hard into the stitch. That should help loosen it up.
Shoulder pain. The most common injury among swimmers. Do not stretch the shoulder. Instead, take at least two days off, icing the injured shoulder twice a day.
To reach Chris Carlson: ccarlson@berkshireeagle.com, (413) 496-6251.
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