I’m no expert, but here’s my advice on stretching for runners

There is a tonne of information out there, much of it conflicting! The below is my advice having listened to and read a fair bit about it, and what makes logical sense to me.

The two main types of stretches are Dynamic (meaning they involve motion, and Static (meaning they are held still).

Dynamic Stretches should be used before a run. They are controlled, not jerky or bouncy, and do not push past your comfortable range of motion.

The purpose of these are to warm up and increase blood flow and oxygen to the muscles you’ll be using. There is research to show that these exercises can reduce the risk of injury as well as improving performance. It seems logical to me that a more gentle and active stretch before a run would have your muscles in better shape than a cold static stretch which could actually temporarily weaken the muscle-tendon connection and leave you open to injury.

Dynamic stretches include;

· Ankle circles

· Hip circles

· Swimming arms

· Hamstring Sweeps (example video here)

· Bum Kicks

· Walking with high knees

· Upper body twists

· Walking high knees

· Hamstring sweeps

· Head circles

· Tiptoe up and down

· Gentle walking lunges

Of course I’m not saying I practice what I preach all the time, I mean, who has the time for all of those?! If you’re in a race and you’re hanging around near the start, it’s quite easy to fit some in, and if you’re waiting for your garmin to get signal or waiting for your running mate to show up, you can normally squeeze in a couple then. To be honest, I don’t do them much when I’m just out for a jog, but I will do my best if I’m going out on a hard session or going for it in a race or parkrun.

So what about the static stretches?

I really enjoy a nice stretch after a run. It’s a good way to cool down gradually and get your breathing back to normal.

Other reported benefits of static stretching are improvinh flexibility, reducing muscle soreness (the dreaded D.O.M.S) and aiding recovery.

Again, there is conflicting advice on whether stretches do help with this, but I can say with confidence that when I’ve had a hard workout and I forget to stretch, the D.O.M.S are much worse. When I’ve found the time for a really good stretch I’ve found the soreness very minimal afterwards.

Basics of the Static Stretch

The four main muscle groups you want to stretch after a run are;

• Piriformis and Glutes (your arse)
• Hamstrings (back of your legs, arse to knee)
• Quads (front of your legs, hip to knee)
• Calves & Achilles (back of your leg, knee to heel)

Each stretch should be held for 30 seconds, and should start and finish gently. Do not push through the pain barrier!

Here are some examples (the purple arrow to show where you should be feeling it). I’m genetically very inflexible, so you may need to go deeper into each stretch. Just remember not to push too hard. A stretch should never be painful.

If you have lots of time for a wind down and stretch after a run, try a top to toe stretch. Starting at the head and neck, moving your head from side to side, then shoulders, stretching your arms across your body, then reaching up and rolling down to stretch your back etc before moving onto the legs. The upper body gets used quite a lot in running too, especially in big effort sessions or long runs where your legs are tired and your form is slipping.

Static stretching on days when you don’t run is also beneficial, just make sure your muscles are not cold, so for example after a short walk is ideal.

Yoga is also a great way to improve flexibility, check out Yoga with Adrienne, who has a specific Runners Yoga routines.

If you’ve managed to get to the end of this blog, I hope you’ve found it useful! Again, disclaimer, I’m no expert — this is just what works for me!