Stretching



K

Kelsey Kelemen

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I'm fairly new at this running thing. What are some of the most important muscles I should stretch
and how would I go about doing this? Any help would be appreciated.
 
Kelsey Kelemen <[email protected]> writes:
: I'm fairly new at this running thing. What are some of the most important muscles I should stretch
: and how would I go about doing this? Any help would be appreciated.

Conventional wisdom now holds that you shouldn't do static stretches before running, but after. The
before running alternative will be warm ups. Others will no doubt provide more detail.

:)
Larry
 
Kelsey Kelemen <[email protected]> writes:

> What are some of the most important muscles I should stretch...

The leg muscles :) Front (quads) and back (hams/calfs). I personally find that the classic runners
'wall push' stretch is useless for the backs of the legs. I prefer a simple seated forward bend...
one leg at a time first (with the leg you are not stretching bent... foot in the opposite groin)
and then both legs at once. For the fronts... the basic 'stand on one leg and grab the foot of the
other leg behind your back' stretch works well. Those are the main ones. Some people stretch the IT
(I've never been able to feel my IT... not matter what stretch I do) or groins, hip flexers, etc...
but quads and hams/calfs are the main thing. Here are some links which illustrate and explain some
good stretches :) Also... very important... remember to breathe!!! If you want... you can go deeper
into the stretch on the exhale... but know your limits... don't go further than is comfortable for
your body.

Backs of legs
--------------------------
Janu Sirsasana - http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/476_1.cfm Paschimottanasana -
http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/477_1.cfm Adho Mukha Svanasana -
http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/491_1.cfm

This last one is essentially the 'wall push' but done on the floor... so you can really feel it!!!
Try to get the heels to the floor eventually (over the course of weeks... months... or more :)

Fronts of legs/hip flexers
--------------------------
I don't have a link for the aforementioned 'stand on one leg and grab the foot of the other leg
behind your back'... but I'm sure you know the one... all runners do it. Try these out too...

Virasana (kinda have to do this with shoes off) - http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/490_1.cfm

Supta Virasana (shoes off) - http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/790_1.cfm

Groins:
--------------------------
Baddha Konasana - http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/486_1.cfm

And if you're really keen... you could try this amazing hip stretch... but do not even try to lift
the back leg like in the picture... just leave it out straight. Also... the closer the front leg is
to a 90 degree angle... the more intense the stretch... the more closed the front leg is (calf
touching hamstring)... the less intense.

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana - http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/863_1.cfm

--
Nova Scotia, Canada
 
It's jogging, and the muscle you should stretch is your mind. Once that is loose and nimble, you'll
realize that jogging is a huge waste of time.
 
Thanks Elvis... that one looks really good. You're right... I still could not really feel it... but
that definitely looks like an improvement on the IT stretch I was taught (cross one foot in front of
the other and lean to the side).

"ElvisIsDead" <[email protected]> wrote:

> <snip all the good info>
>
> Don't forget about the ITB. I did. Now my PT gets to see me twice a week. This is a good one:
> http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/itband.html
>
> You won't feel it, but it helps.
>
> Elvis

--
Nova Scotia, Canada
 
Kelsey Kelemen wrote:
> I'm fairly new at this running thing. What are some of the most important muscles I should stretch
> and how would I go about doing this? Any help would be appreciated.

You should be aware that there is a minority who believe stretching does more harm than good. I am
among that group- in 20 some years of running, I got injured more from stretching than running
without stretching. At races, I did better with an extensive warm-up while evertone else was
stretching. YMMV!

--
Bob Burns Mill Hall PA [email protected]
 
"Bob Burns" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> Kelsey Kelemen wrote:
> > I'm fairly new at this running thing. What are some of the most important muscles I should
> > stretch and how would I go about doing this? Any help would be appreciated.
>
> You should be aware that there is a minority who believe stretching does more harm than good. I am
> among that group- in 20 some years of running, I got injured more from stretching than running
> without stretching. At races, I did better with an extensive warm-up while evertone else was
> stretching. YMMV!

POST RACE stretching does seem to provide benefits. From what I've read and my experience:

* you should not stretch cold muscles. Warm up first or stretch after the run.
* flexibility can make you faster. Freedom of movement reduces the work some muscles have to do.
* with the variety of strecthes I do, my post run routine takes 20minutes or more. Something you
need to budget time for.

no great revelation for you. As said before YMMV. Ed
 
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