Should you stretch when you workout?

A recent 2025 paper gathered many international researchers to evaluate claims made on the supposed benefits of stretching. They agreed that stretching did not decrease injury risk, did not help recovery, did not increase performance when done before exercise, nor did it correct posture or muscle imbalances (2).

Many athletes and people who exercise have stretching routines they believe in and find helpful. This isn’t about taking that away, but about adding more context and clearing up some commonly held ideas about stretching.

Research on stretching is complicated. There are different kinds of stretches, done at or for different times, often as part of warm-ups. Because of this, it’s hard to make clear conclusions. However, the American College of Sports Medicine, which used to consider flexibility one of the pillars of fitness (6), now acknowledges that the health benefits of flexibility activities are unknown and it’s unclear whether they reduce the risk of injury (4). 

The bottom line: stretching is different for everyone, and there isn’t one “correct” approach.