EXMD2362 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Golgi Tendon Organ, Stress Relaxation, Stretch Reflex
Document Summary
Improves joint range of motion and function: enhances muscular performance. Except in strength and power activities: prevention and treatment of musculoskeletal injuries. Poor flexibility increases risk of injury due to an interruption to the length-tension relationship. Thus, it is important to consider both muscles and non-contractile tissues with flexibility of a joint. To increase flexibility, muscles need to spend time under stretch, which will add sarcomeres. Muscle spindles provide information about muscle length and velocity of stretch. Golgi tendon organs provides information about tension or force of the muscle: biomechanical mechanisms. Muscle spindles are length and velocity receptors; thus, they make muscles contract if they are lengthened too fast. The more you stretch, the easier it becomes. Golgi tendon organs cause an inhibition of target muscle (reciprocal inhibition), which allows the target muscle to lengthen: ballistic. Powerful performances decrease with static stretching, but dynamic stretching improves powerful performances. Acsm recommend 2-4 stretches per muscle group.
