Just before Thanksgiving, a member of Stadion’s Discussion Forum posted info on a new book by Vergil Den that references my work (thanks Tmess!). Out of curiosity I downloaded the book. It is worth reading, well written, and not too long. It is titled The Stoic’s Burden. You may download it from the author’s site at http://www.vergilden.com/.
I write about this book for two reasons:
1. It is written for, in the author’s words, “People seeking general self improvement in the areas of health, fitness, and well-being,” and you will learn:
“Fallacies of conventional wisdom in the areas of medicine, nutrition and business
“Limitations of positive thinking
“Tips and tricks on surviving in the workplace
“Best practices with empirical support as it relates to health, fitness and well-being.”
2. It recommends you read Stretching Scientifically: A Guide to Flexibility Training by Thomas Kurz 😉
Here is what Vergil Den says about Stretching Scientifically:
“One of the first books that publicized the benefits of dynamic stretching and potential harm of static stretching prior to physical activity.”
Which reminds me . . .
I stumbled upon a post on stretching, written by Paul Ingraham, a health science journalist and creator of the website SaveYourself.ca, which “helps you solve pain problems.” The website covers topics such as common therapies for chronic pain and common overuse injuries. Paul Ingraham likes to expose unfounded claims (for example, the alleged benefits of stretching, which are touted even by medical doctors). Here is a partial list of headings in his recent post on stretching, titled “Quite a Stretch”:
- Why people stretch
- Stretching research shows that [static] stretching is not an effective warm-up
- Stretching research shows that [static] stretching does not prevent delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS)
- Stretching research shows that [static] stretching does not prevent injury
- [Static] stretching probably doesn’t enhance performance (and it definitely doesn’t make you sprint faster)
Reads like a list of things I told you in every edition of Stretching Scientifically, beginning with the first one, issued in 1985.
Read Paul Ingraham’s whole post here:
http://toddhargrove.wordpress.com/2010/11/24/quite-a-stretch-guest-post-from-paul-ingraham/