Stretches

Ballistic Stretches

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Ballistic stretching uses quick swinging or bouncing movements to take a joint through its range. On this site that means dynamic warm-up drills like arm circles, high knees and karaoke: filmed moves with reps and a sequence, plus guided routines. Keep the movements controlled and build up the range gradually.

Ballistic stretches with video

These are the 8 movements from the MoveWell library for this area. Each page has a demo, numbered steps, the muscles worked and common mistakes.

Arm Circles demonstrationArm Circles10 to 15 seconds each direction, 1 to 2 rounds. Around the Body demonstrationAround the Body5 to 10 slow circles each direction. Butt Kicks demonstrationButt Kicks20 to 30 seconds, or 25 to 50 meters, 1 to 2 rounds. Cossack Squats demonstrationCossack Squats5 to 8 reps per side. Heel Kicks demonstrationHeel Kicks20 to 30 seconds or 10 to 15 kicks per leg. High Knees demonstrationHigh Knees20 to 30 seconds, or 25 to 50 meters, 1 to 2 rounds. Jumping Jacks demonstrationJumping Jacks30 seconds, or 20 to 30 reps, 1 to 2 rounds. Karaoke demonstrationKaraoke10 to 20 meters each direction, or 30 seconds, 2 rounds.

A simple ballistic sequence

Do these in order: warm-up drills first, then any rolling, then the longer holds. Move slowly and stop if anything is sharp or numb.

#MovementHold or repsSides
1Arm Circles15 s each wayn/a
2Around the Body5–10 each wayn/a
3Butt Kicks30 sn/a
4Cossack Squats6/sideEach side
5Heel Kicks30 sn/a
6High Knees30 sn/a
7Jumping Jacks30 sn/a
8Karaoke20 m each wayn/a
JR

Joel is the founder of MoveWell and IMPOSSIBLE. He became the youngest person to run an ultra marathon on every continent, and created MoveWell to make recovery easy with routines he would actually do.

More stretches

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