ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Calf muscle tightness is a very common occurring condition in athlete. Stretching is form of physical exercise in which a specific muscle or tendon (muscle group) is deliberately flexed or stretched in order to improve the muscle's elasticity and achieve comfortable muscle tone. Flexibility helps with injury prevention, reduction of soreness following a workout, and a general sense of well-being. There are different stretching technique and protocol for improvement in calf extensibility and flexibility. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of two techniques PNF and SELF STRAP STRETCHING for improving calf flexibility among collegiate athletes. MATERIALS AND METHOD: The selected 30 college athletes were randomly allocated to 2 groups equally. Group1 (n= 15) were given PNF and Group2 (n=15) were given self-strap stretching technique. Calf flexibility for each group was measured using goniometer and knee to wall test.Treatment was given for four days a week for 4 weeks. RESULT: The collected values were analyzed using paired 't' test and independent 't' test. The result showed an increase in the values of goniometric measurement and knee to wall test of the PNF technique (group A) compared to baseline value of self-strap stretching (group B) 16.4 and 10.88 at the end of 4 weeks. CONCLUSION: This study concluded that PNF technique is found to bemore effective in improving the calf muscle among collegiate athletes.