Topic Test: Test Review

What is the BEST strategy to improve flexibility in your legs and back?

A. concentrating your stretching on your legs and back

Poor flexibility may be caused by __________.

A. muscle tightness

Why do activities like yoga, ballet, and gymnastics require better than normal flexibility?

All of these activities involve assuming and holding precise forms and positions. Holding these controlled positions requires a level of static flexibility beyond that required by everyday activities

Why should you allow a minimum of 24 hours of rest between intense stretching activities?

As with any exercise, stretching stresses the muscles of the body. In order to avoid muscle fatigue or injury, sufficient rest is needed between workouts. For moderate to intense stretching, 24 hours of rest is generally sufficient, but for more intense workouts, 48 hours of rest between workouts may be necessary.

How can tight muscles result in back pain?

B. They can constrict the nerves in the spinal column.

Which of the following is a ballistic stretching exercise?

B. arm circles

Explain what is meant by balance stretching.

Balanced stretching refers to performing stretching exercises across the entire body. Stretching the entire body balances the fitness benefits across all muscle groups instead of limiting the benefits to a single or limited number of muscle groups.

Explain why head circles and arm circles are considered dangerous exercises.

Both head circles and arm circles involve stretching with motion. These stretching exercises risk serious injury to the muscles of the neck and shoulders if the motions are not trictly controlled. When the head goes back, it hyperextends the neck, which is dangerous; despite not involving bouncing, arm circles are a ballistic exercise and should not be performed.

Compare and contrast static and passive stretching.

Both static and passive stretching are similar in that limbs are moved into and held in a stretch position. In static stretching, a person actively holds their own limbs in the position, while in passive stretching, a partner moves and holds limbs in the stretch position for the other person.

Describe a potential risk that distinguishes hurdle stretches performed with the leg pointed back from hurdle stretches with the leg inside.

Both types of hurdle stretches loosen up the hamstring in the same way. But the hurdle stretch with the leg pointed back puts sideways torque on the back knee and can result in injury. So while the potential benefit of the exercises are the same, one risks serious injury to the knee.

Which of the following BEST describes the exercise principle of specificity?

C. targeting a particular area for improvement

What flexibility assessment requires a partner?

C. trunk lift

What comes together at a joint?

C. two bones

The chest-and-arm stretch squeezes __________.

D. the shoulder blades together

Explain why static flexibility tests are more common than dynamic flexibility tests.

Static flexibility tests are more common than dynamic tests because they are easier to replicate. It is difficult to standardize motion-based tests between different subjects, while static tests are simple and easy to standardize because the metrics are fixed and not open to interpretation.