Flexibility is not about contortion, but control

Stop Blaming Your Tight Hamstrings

Growing up, I was advised to “just stretch it out!”

Shoulder pain? Stretch.
Muscle strain? Stretch.
Sore after training? Stretch.
Injured? Well, clearly you didn’t stretch enough.

For years, I thought stretching was a cure-all. Turns out, it’s not.

Let’s Talk About Static Stretching

You know that feeling when you try to touch your toes and just hang there?
That’s static stretching - holding a muscle in a stretched position without moving. Sounds useful, right? Well, not always. Especially not in the way we've been told.

Flexibility ≠ Injury-Proof

Being super bendy doesn’t mean you’re injury-proof. How much flexibility you need depends on:

• What your sport/life demands

• Where you’re starting from

Flexibility isn’t about doing the splits mid-backhand. It’s about having control through usable ranges of motion. If you can drop into a deep position but can’t get out of it safely, that’s not flexibility - it’s a liability. You don’t need circus-level mobility. You need control. And control comes from strength.

Strength Training = The Real Cheat Code

Strength is a better predictor of injury risk. Lifting weights:

• Builds resilience under stress

• Keeps your joints stable especially in tricky positions

• Improves flexibility

Strength training through a full range of motion builds real, usable flexibility. The idea is to train our body to feel safe in new positions.

When Does Stretching Actually Help?

Stretching has a time and place

• During rehab

• After an injury

• If you’ve lost joint range of motion

But for most people? Strength training does the job, and much more.