Active Stretch is defined as which?

• A. It involves no muscular contraction.
• B. The stretch is performed with bouncing.
• C. The stretched position is held by contraction of the agonist.
• D. The stretched position is maintained by external force.

Answer: (C)

Active stretch relies on you actively contracting the muscle that moves the joint to hold the end range. In this approach, the stretched position is maintained by the contraction of the agonist, meaning your own muscles keep the stretch without help from external force or momentum. This differs from a passive stretch, which relies on someone or something else to hold the position, or from bouncing/ballistic stretches which involve momentum. For example, to actively stretch a muscle group, you would consciously contract the opposing muscle to keep the limb in the end position, rather than letting gravity or a partner do the work.