Effect of a physical education-based dynamic stretching program on hamstring extensibility in female high-school students

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of a dynamic stretching development program followed by a four-week detraining period and maintenance program on hamstring extensibility in a physical education setting. A sample of 108 female high-school students aged 16-17 years from four classes were clustered randomly and assigned to either an experimental or a control group. During physical education sessions, the experimental group students performed a dynamic stretching program twice a week for eight weeks. Subsequently, after a four-week period of detraining, the experimental group students completed a maintenance program twice a week during four weeks. The results of the two-way analysis of variance showed that the physical education-based development program significantly improved students’ hamstring extensibility (p.05), the gains obtained previously were recovered after a four-week maintenance program (p