Stretching Before Training: When It Helps and How Much with Professor Dave Behm

Static stretching before training is one of the most debated habits in the gym.

For years, many coaches were told to avoid it because it could impair performance. But as Professor Dave Behm explains in this episode of Stronger With Time, the real answer is more nuanced than simply saying stretching is good or bad.

Dave is a university research professor in the School of Human Kinetics and Recreation at Memorial University of Newfoundland, and one of the most cited neuromuscular scientists in the world. His work directly inspired Tony’s own PhD on stretching back in 2003.

In this conversation, Tony and Dave discuss when stretching before training may help, when it may be unnecessary, and why around 60 seconds total per muscle group tends to be a useful guideline when stretching is included in a warm-up.

From there, the conversation opens into many of the practices coaches and trainers use every day: foam rolling, full-range resistance training for mobility, post-activation potentiation, unstable surface training, unilateral versus bilateral work, the bilateral deficit, and how movement speed shapes power and training intent as we age.

Timestamps

00:00 Introduction and Professor Dave Behm’s influence on Tony’s PhD

02:00 Dave’s background and why he started testing common training practices

06:00 The question behind Dave’s career: does it actually work?

07:00 How Dave’s view on stretching changed over time

09:30 Static stretching, performance impairments and context

10:30 Why 60 seconds per muscle group is a useful guideline

12:00 How to use stretching inside a warm-up

13:30 Foam rolling before static stretching

14:30 General warm-ups and tissue viscoelasticity

16:00 Do you need stretching before resistance training?

17:00 Full-range resistance training as loaded mobility work

18:00 Stretching for tight areas before lifting

20:00 Foam rolling, range of motion and where it came from

21:30 Foam rolling versus static stretching over time

24:00 Why stiff and flexible clients respond differently

25:30 How often to stretch for flexibility

27:00 How long to stretch outside a training session

28:00 How far should a stretch be taken?

29:30 Static stretching versus dynamic stretching and mobility work

31:00 Post-activation potentiation and post-activation performance enhancement

34:30 How to use a heavy warm-up set in training

36:30 Isometrics and potentiation

37:30 How long the potentiation effect lasts

38:30 Unstable surface training and muscle recruitment

40:00 Why unstable training reduces load

42:00 Where unstable surface training may still be useful

43:30 Strength and hypertrophy under stable versus unstable conditions

45:00 Trained lifters and instability

46:30 Unilateral versus bilateral training

47:30 The bilateral deficit explained

49:30 Why unilateral work may matter more in trained people

51:00 How the brain organises movement and intent

55:00 Movement speed, motor unit recruitment and rate coding

56:30 Slow versus explosive lifting intent

58:00 Power, speed and ageing

58:30 Dave’s book on stretching

01:00:00 Closing thoughts

Resources

Professor Dave Behm

Professor Dave Behm research and publications https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=%22David+Behm%22+stretching

Professor Dave Behm on PubMed https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=David+Behm+stretching

Stretching and performance research https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Behm+static+stretching+performance

Foam rolling and range of motion research https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Behm+foam+rolling+range+of+motion

Unstable surface training research https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=Behm+unstable+surface+training

Tony

Tony’s courses https://tonyboutagy.com/explore-the-courses-page

Tony on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/tonyboutagy/

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All content is for general educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice.