Effect of a 15-day pragmatic hamstring stretching program on hamstring flexibility and single hop for distance test...

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a 15-day pragmatic hamstring stretching program on lower extremity performance as measured by the single hop for distance test (SHDT) in subjects with limited hamstring flexibility. Thirteen cadets enrolled at a military academy participated in the study. Subjects randomly were assigned to stretch the hamstrings of one lower extremity for 15 consecutive days (experimental lower extremity group) and not stretch the other (control lower extremity group). Pre- and post-test measurements showed significant improvements in the hamstring flexibility and SHDT scores for the experimental lower extremities. No significant change occurred for the control lower extremity group for the AKET and SHDT scores. The results suggest that in addition to a routine 15-day stretching program, a brief purposeful delay between stretching and performance testing may negate the detrimental effect on performance that may be caused by the acute effects of stretching. Because subjects also stretched on the day of the SHDT posttest, but with a purposeful delay of 10 minutes between stretching and testing, it is believed the design of this study more closely mimics stretching activities as commonly performed by athletes.