Stretching can and WILL increase your athleticism! The thing is, there are more ways to stretch than just your “touch your tows for a count of 10” stretch. In fact that are a number of ways to stretch including, static, dynamic, and ballistic to name a few. Each serve a purpose at specific times before and after your workouts!
Dynamic Stretching: is the BEST way to warm up for a workout to prevent injury and be able to train at a full range of motion.
Static Stretching: is a great way to “cool down” the muscles post workout. You will keep the muscles long and help prevent excessive soreness.
Check out a couple examples of these two types of stretching in the “Hunter Fitness” video series with Run2Gun and Ruger
 
Run2Gun Flexibility Training with Strum, Ruger & Co. from Run2Gun on Vimeo.