A common mix-up is thinking that stretching and preparing your body to train are the same thing. They aren't. Long static stretches, the hold-it-for-30-seconds kind, have their place, usually at the end of a session or on recovery days. Done for a long time right before training, they can slightly reduce strength and power for a short period, while short holds inside a full warm-up have little effect (Behm et al., 2016). To start a session, what your body needs is active mobi