Warm Ups and Stretches

Once I thought these were the same thing. Now, after looking at runners’ websites, forums and blogs, I know they are not.

Warm Ups

All the sites stress the importance of warming up before running. Broadly the advice seems to be walk and jog to warm up before running.

So that is what I do. My “running” is no more than a gentle jog anyway.

The beginners guide on the forum suggests a programme of alternating walk-run routines increasing the amount of running and reducing the walking each week. Alternatively your mate down the pub suggests running the distance you feel comfortable with, increasing this slightly each week.

For me, at present, the end result is much the same.


Stretches

It was an old ski buff who first taught me how to “warm up” with stretching exercises prior to flinging ourselves down the mountain. After a long ride up on an open ski lift leg muscles needed warming up - there was a real risk of injury else. Ankles and knees do unnatural things in skis. Mostly these exercises involved awkward postures grasping ski tips and they made the muscles feel the burn almost as much as when crouched in a long low shuss down the piste.

I was neither a fast skier nor an elegant one but I could overtake the train down from Kleine Scheidegg to Wengen. Newton beat Faraday that day.

Clearly these ski stretches are not practical for a runner. On the runners’ websites there is lots of stuff on stretching and how to do it - usually accompanied by pictures of attractive girls. So a bit like looking at the Business pages in the Telegraph.

Most of these sets of stretching routines take from 15 to 20 minutes to complete them all.

To me that’s Yoga not running.

The advice is not consistent. The choices are:-

1. The Do Nothing Option - no stretching 
2. Gently Does It - stretch at least once a week after a run - but not after every run 
3. Keep Regular - stretch only after a run - but for each and every run 
4. Go For It - stretch before and after every run 
5. Measured Max Out - warm up first - stop to stretch - do the run - warm down - stretch.

The accepted wisdom appears to be: 

• Stretching is a Good Thing to do - but only if you Do It Right 
• Stretching From Cold can be harmful - you should always warm up first before stretching

But now there are reports - based on recent research in Australia and the USA - that stretching is a waste of time. See USA Track and Field. 

Or worse.- one study suggested that those runners who do NOT stretch are LESS prone to injury than those who do.

One odd result was that those who changed from their usual routine were more likely to be injured than those who stayed with what they always did - irrespective of what it was. Do the researchers know what they are measuring? Maybe the ritual is of more value than the stretching!

The case FOR stretching at Dr Foot.
The case AGAINST at Paul Ingraham .

  

For me? I tried stretching yesterday. Today my run took more effort and felt harder. So guess which choice I have made.

There are three kinds of lies - lies, damned lies and statistics.
Benjamin Disraeli