Andy Dear | Monday, 28 February 2022
If you stretch correctly and regularly, you will find that every movement you make becomes easier.
---Bob Anderson
I've been fly fishing now for over 23 years, and in all of the countless hours I've spent practicing my fly casting, I don't think I've ever thought to stretch before practicing one time. After having spent some time researching different aspects of angling related fitness routines, I've realized that stretching may be the most important and most useful pre and post fly casting-related activity that the fitness-minded angler can engage in.
When I was contemplating this week's Front Page about stretching, I did a quick internet search for the benefits of said activity, and guess what? Just about every benefit listed has the potential to have very profound effects on the athletic motion of fly casting. Just a few of the more profound include:
Increased flexibility
Increased range of motion
Improved blood flow
Improved posture
Improved mental state/stress reduction
Reduced risk of injury
Prepares the body for stress associated with athletic activity
Reduced post-activity aches and pains
In spite of the fact I haven't ever thought of stretching as an integral part of my fly casting, it's pretty obvious that it should be!
There are two basic types of stretching that athletes use to enhance their performance; static and dynamic. Most of us are familiar with the traditional style of static stretching where a stretch is held for a specific amount of time at the end of a muscle's range of motion. Dynamic stretching, however, is used to improve mobility while moving through a range of motion, usually in a manner that mimics the activity that is going to be performed. Both have their benefits, and I am linking a video below that outlines the differences.
Stretching also performed as a pre and post-fishing routing has numerous benefits that can help reduce back pain and core fatigue from standing on the deck of a skiff or prolonged exposure to wading in heavy current. As I sit here and type this, it baffles me as to WHY I haven't employed this as part of my fishing all these years...especially now that I am in my 50s. I suppose though that it's simply because most anglers don't consider fishing of any type an athletic endeavor, which is a mistake. Mel Kreiger alluded to the "athleticism" of fly casting many times in his literature and videos over the years, and it's high time we start treating casting...and fishing in general as such.
Here are a few videos to get you started on static and dynamic stretching
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-pxOslY-q4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nREezMZNg1E
Hope you all are staying safe and healthy,
Andy