Wellness
Our Classes begins with each Student lining up in accordance with Rank. After the Bow which indicates the start of the Lesson, the Students under the direction of the Instructor begin basic preparatory exercises (Termed the Warm Up by some) which allows the body to slowly but progressively increase it’s metabolic rate and cardiorespiratory output and efficiency.
Preparation for Training
This also allows the muscles, ligaments and cartilage of the Musculo-Skeletal system to prepare for the high impact exercises which are sometimes utilised in class. Exercises utilised include Pad Exercises, Basic Techniques, Kicking Exercises, Patterns, Self Defence, Free Sparring and Fixed Sparring. Interdispersed amongst these are more Basic Stregth, Flexibility and Kinesthetic Exercises designed to improve the overall conditioning of the Body.
Stretching
The obvious benefit of Stretching is that it can improve the Range of Motion of a Muscle Group. Other Advantages include: Reduced risk of injury; Prevention of post-exercise muscle soreness ; and the slowing of ‘Delayed-onset muscle soreness’ (DOMS).
Stretching Techniques that elongate muscles through “proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation” (PNF) stretching, yield the greatest change in range of motion (ROM), especially in terms of short-term benefits. Ballistic stretching was also beneficial in comparison; however, PNF techniques emphasize active flexibility and therefore get better results. Reasoning behind the biomechanical benefit of PNF stretching points to muscular reflex relaxation found in the musculotendinous unit being stretched.
How does pre-exercise static stretching effect muscle strength and endurance? Stretching experiments to reduce effectiveness of muscle strength endurance by up to thirty percent. They suggest that pre-exercise stretching induces a fatigue-like state in muscles which would clearly inhibit performance if the muscle is not at full potential.
