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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Physiol.
Sec. Exercise Physiology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fphys.2024.1486901
This article is part of the Research Topic Unveiling Functional and Structural Physiological Transformations Through Muscle Stretching View all 4 articles

Neuromuscular and Balance Adaptations Following Acute Stretching Exercise: A randomized control trial

Provisionally accepted
Bin Wang Bin Wang 1Bin Wu Bin Wu 2*Yi Yang Yi Yang 3*Mengbiao Cai Mengbiao Cai 4*Shewang Li Shewang Li 5*Hui Peng Hui Peng 6*
  • 1 Nanjing Vocational College of Information Technology, Nanjing, China
  • 2 Nanjing City Vocational College, Nanjing, China
  • 3 Henxing University, Qingdao, China
  • 4 Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing, China
  • 5 Suzhou City University, Suzhou, China
  • 6 Tianjin University of Sport, Tianjin, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Purpose: This study aimed to examine the acute effects of static stretching (SS) and dynamic stretching (DS) on neuromuscular function and balance in recreationally active men. Method: Sixty participants were randomly assigned to SS, DS, or no stretching (NS) groups. Before and after their respective stretching protocols, participants were assessed using the stork balance test (SBT), Y-balance test (YBT), T-change of direction test (CoD T-test), countermovement jump test (CMJT), squat jump test (SJT), and five-time jump test (FJT). Results: Significant main effects of time were observed for the SBT, YBT, and CoD T-test. Significant interactions between time and group were found for the SBT, YBT, CoD T-test, and CMJT (P < 0.05). Compared to the NS group, the SS group showed significant improvement in the SBT (P < 0.05), while the DS group demonstrated significant improvements in the SBT, YBT (all directions), CoD T-test, CMJT, and SJT (P < 0.05). Post-training, the DS group showed greater improvements than the SS group in the YBT, CoD T-test, CMJT, and SJT (P < 0.05), with no significant differences in the SBT. Conclusion: SS acutely improves static balance, while DS has a broader impact, enhancing both neuromuscular function and balance.

    Keywords: Neuromuscular, balance, Stretching, Exercise, adaptation

    Received: 27 Aug 2024; Accepted: 21 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Wang, Wu, Yang, Cai, Li and Peng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Bin Wu, Nanjing City Vocational College, Nanjing, China
    Yi Yang, Henxing University, Qingdao, China
    Mengbiao Cai, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing, China
    Shewang Li, Suzhou City University, Suzhou, China
    Hui Peng, Tianjin University of Sport, Tianjin, 300381, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.