There's a new way to stretch

Stretching can generally be broken down into two categories: static and dynamic.

Static stretches are the type that people are more familiar with. They involve bringing the body part to its end range and holding that position statically, as the name implies, for approximately 20 to 30 seconds. An example of this may be placing an extended leg onto a chair and leaning forward to stretch your hamstrings. The static stretch has traditionally been the all-purpose stretch used to recover and prevent injuries.

Dynamic stretching is the newest form of stretching which is, in most cases, the complete opposite of static stretching. Instead of isolating one muscle or muscle group, several muscle groups are often involved. For example, while walking, one knee gets pulled toward your chest continuously followed by bringing that same leg forward and stepping into a lunge position. This would be followed by performing the same sequence of movements on the opposite leg. This continuous motion would dynamically stretch several hip and knee muscles at once.

Both of these stretches may be useful, but for different purposes. In order to decide which type of stretch you should perform you should ask yourself what you are trying to achieve by stretching.

If the stretch is for a specific athletic activity, whether it is for a professional soccer player or a recreational golfer, it would be advised to perform both static and dynamic stretches. It is now recommended that dynamic stretching be done as part of your warm-up routine to prepare the body for the upcoming activity in a sport-specific manner, and static stretching be performed as part of a cool-down with a goal of gaining muscle length and to prevent significant muscle soreness.

If the goal of stretching is to gain muscle flexibility for general fitness without a sport-specific purpose, then static stretching would be an appropriate choice.