Yes, we need to stretch to stay mobile. Do YOGA!

I teach yoga (part-time) and so think a lot about the paleo perspective on maintaining mobility, which I think makes a very large impact on our quality of life as we age. As hunter / gatherers, we would have been stretching all day long, squatting, reaching, dragging, etc. But in most of our modern lives, we spend an unnatural amount of time sitting at the computer or in a car.

Here’s what I do:

I stretch in bed when I wake up, usually gentle twists and whatever else my body is calling for (JayJay made a great point that you often see dogs and cats stretching when they first wake up, so probably a good sign that it’s something we mammals do naturally.) http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/1382

I stretch my upper body probably 4 or 5 times a day when I am working, since I’m at a computer. I’ve read (and witnessed) that sitting at a desk or driving to the extent that most modern adults do causes our upper back muscles to lengthen and front chest muscles to shorten, hunching us over.

I take and teach yoga classes. My style is vinyasa flow, so less static holding and more gentle movement between stretches.

I move whenever possible, especially in different directions. I take walking breaks during my work day. I park far away from stores so I have to walk the farthest to get in. I have living room dance parties with my kids. I squat instead of sitting whenever possible. I never miss the opportunity to do a handstand or cartwheel. Any opportunity I get, I try to gently use my body, because, use it or lose it, right?

Hope my observations help a little!

Anyone saying that stretching is useless, is either lazy, misinformed, has never pursued it effectively - or all 3.

Flexibility is one of the best way to get stronger in weight training. A full-range of motion, and lengthier muscles allow you to maintain more weight at different degrees of a lift. This in turn means stronger supporting muscles e.g. stronger rotator cuffs when bench pressing. To this extent you'd increase your strength chain overall, rather than a disproportionate weighting over your arms & pecs.

All the best strength training resources recognise the benefits of both dynamic & static stretches: Mark Rippetoe, Charles Pollequin etc.

Some of the best resources I've read on stretching are:

• Thomas Kurz's Stretching Scientifically: A Guide to Flexibility Training (and though the video is so retro, it's a serious wealth of knowledge if you can stomach it & decipher the bad english)
• Overcoming Gravity: A Systematic Approach to Gymnastics and Bodyweight Strength (amazing resource, very dense, but worth the investment in every way)
• and the infamous: www.mobilitywod.com

Hope some of that is helpful to you. Enjoy the stretching!

Finnish javelin Olympiad and world champ Seppo Räty has several famous quotes about the subject:

• When asked when it is appropriate to stretch, he said "on the medal podium"
• Also, "your legs will stretch just fine when you load 300kg on the barbell and squat "
• It was 1992 Olympics and he was asked when he stretched. He said "in 1984"

(All paraphrased, years probably wrong)

I think mobility work is VERY paleo (especially for the spine) and you should practice full range of motion movement with VERY BRIEF (1-2 second) end range holds (much like a cat). Static stretching on the other hand where you hold a stretch for a long time could be more detrimental than not. I don't see any animals "holding" a stretch position, and studies seem to indicate that flexibility gained due to this is only transient.

For older folks I would recommend a full spine mobility work (and extremities) of 5-10 minutes daily. Slow purposeful movement TO end range and back 3 times or so through each movement.

I highly recommend qi gong. There's something about the combination of stretching in motion, along with the meditative aspect that are golden to me now that I'm in my mid 40s. I personally find it advantageous to do in small breaks throughout the workday (I have a desk job, but work at home so I can have that luxury), as well as before bed (seems to really make for better sleep).

For someone brand new to qi gong, it can be overwhelming to research. I would suggest anything by Lee Holden (http://www.exercisetoheal.com/) as a good starting point. His stuff is very accessible and enjoyable. Have fun!!

stretching is good if you know how to do it correctly..to the point of a little tension

i have hypermobility for example, so its easy for me to get carried away and do it wrong

I usually do not stretch before a workout because stretching a cold muscle has always seemed odd to me but I do stretch and foam roll after workouts and that seems to make a huge difference in how I feel and recover day to day.

The fuzz speech

Once I replaced static stretching with z-health, my muscles and joints felt much better. Basically, move each one of your major joints through its range of motion before a workout: feet, ankles, knees, hip, shoulders, neck, wrists, fingers.

The z-health shoulder routine alone fixed my dodgy right shoulder, after trying Turkish Get-ups and external rotations for over a year.

I think mobility work, coupled with heavy compound weights, will keep you limber.

Useless imo. Waste of energy.