Stretching Principles
The first school of thought says that stretching is not essential. People who advocate this position usually cite as evidence that in any encounter where you will be forced to defend yourself, you will not have time to warm up or stretch. You will have to go in cold or go from 0 to 60mph at the drop of a hat. So, training must mirror what will happen on the street. You should train your skills like you will use them.
The second school of thought believes that stretching is of the utmost importance. They will cite research and anecdotal information stating that stretching improves blood flow, keeps the tissue and joints flexible, reduces lactic acid buildup (speeds up recovery time), prevents adhesions, and can reduce the risk of injury.
In truth, both ways of thinking are correct. In actual practice, either side of the spectrum will not produce optimum results and would be too narrow-minded, thereby stunting the potential for full development. A middle path is much more effective.
So, what is this middle path? Most movements and forms training in martial arts do not require a lot of stretching and warmup to perform unless your style utilizes a lot of high kicks and low stances. Usually, you can go light on the movements at first until the body is warmed up and then go at full bore.
Going through the movements of your art can create natural flexibility in the body. For example, most of the necessary training for the Five Family Southern Shaolin is done from a Horse Stance or transitioning from a Horse to a Forward Stance (I would be talking about the breathing exercises and the basic hand techniques). Practicing these aspects of the style over time will loosen up the hips. Over time, the hips will get more flexible and can move to a higher degree of movement without a warmup. In other words, the body will adapt to the training, and over time, the flexibility needed to do the actions will be developed and gained.
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