Mobility & Fascia — References

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Parent Topic: Mobility & Fascia | References Hub: 01 - Foundations References MOC

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Primary Literature & Landmark Studies

Thomas et al. (2018)

• Citation: Thomas, E., Bianco, A., Paoli, A., & Palma, A. (2018). The relation between stretching typology and stretching duration: the effects on range of motion. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 39(4), 243–254.
• Identifiers: DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-101146 (DOI · SciDB · Scholar) | PMID: 29506306 (PubMed · Europe PMC)
• Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis of 23 randomized controlled trials ($N=699$ subjects) evaluating static, ballistic, and PNF stretching across bout duration and weekly frequency/time.
• Key Quantitative Outcomes:
  • Static and PNF stretching produced significantly larger chronic Range of Motion (ROM) increases than ballistic stretching.
  • Time spent stretching per week was the critical determinant of chronic adaptation: $\ge 5$ minutes per week per muscle group (delivered in 30–60 second bouts across $\ge 5$ days/week) yielded significantly superior ROM gains compared to $<5\text{min/week}$ ($p<0.05$), with no further benefit from exceeding 60 seconds per single hold.

Rio et al. (2015)

• Citation: Rio, E., Kidgell, D., Purdam, C., Gaida, J., Moseley, G. L., Pearce, A. J., & Cook, J. (2015). Isometric exercise induces analgesia and reduces inhibition in patellar tendinopathy. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 49(19), 1277–1283.
• Identifiers: DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2014-094386 (DOI · SciDB · Scholar) | PMID: 25979840 (PubMed · Europe PMC)
• Study Design: Single-blinded, randomized crossover trial in athletes with patellar tendinopathy ($N=6$, comparing 5 × 45-second isometric holds at 70% MVC vs. 4 × 8 isotonic leg extensions, with transcranial magnetic stimulation [TMS] mapping of motor cortex inhibition).
• Key Quantitative Outcomes:
  • Heavy isometric holds (5 × 45s at 70% MVC) immediately reduced single-leg decline squat tendon pain from $7.0/10$ to $0.17/10$ ($p<0.001$), with analgesia sustained for at least 45 minutes post-intervention.
  • Isometric loading released short-interval intracortical inhibition (SICI ratio increased from 27.5% to 54.9%, $p=0.004$) and increased maximal voluntary isometric contraction torque by 18.7% ($p<0.001$).

Alizadeh et al. (2023)

• Citation: Alizadeh, S., Daneshjoo, A., Zahiri, A., Anvar, S. H., Goudini, R., Hicks, J. P., Konrad, A., & Behm, D. G. (2023). Resistance training induces improvements in range of motion: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 53(3), 707–722.
• Identifiers: DOI: 10.1007/s40279-022-01804-x (DOI · SciDB · Scholar) | PMID: 36622555 (PubMed · Europe PMC)
• Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis of 55 controlled trials ($N=2,756$) evaluating resistance training through a full range of motion vs. control or static stretching on joint ROM.
• Key Quantitative Outcomes:
  • Full-ROM resistance training moderately-to-largely increased joint ROM compared to control ($\text{ES}=0.73,95\%\text{CI}[0.55,0.91],p<0.001$).
  • Direct comparison meta-analysis revealed no statistically significant difference in ROM gains between full-range resistance training and dedicated static stretching ($\text{ES}=0.08,p=0.79$).

Wiewelhove et al. (2019)

• Citation: Wiewelhove, T., Döweling, A., Schneider, C., Hottenrott, L., Meyer, T., Kellmann, M., Pfeiffer, M., & Ferrauti, A. (2019). A meta-analysis of the effects of foam rolling on performance and recovery. Frontiers in Physiology, 10, 376.
• Identifiers: DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00376 (DOI · SciDB · Scholar) | PMID: 31024339 (PubMed · Europe PMC)
• Study Design: Meta-analysis of 21 randomized controlled and crossover studies evaluating pre-rolling (warm-up) and post-rolling (recovery) interventions.
• Key Quantitative Outcomes:
  • Pre-exercise foam rolling significantly improved acute joint flexibility by +4.0% (Hedges’ $g=0.34,p=0.004$) and sprint performance (+0.7%, $g=0.28$) without any decrement in maximal strength or jump power.
  • Post-exercise foam rolling significantly reduced perceived muscle pain/DOMS ($+6.0\%,g=0.47,p=0.001$) and attenuated sprint/strength decrements during recovery.