Rich on Running: Time to S-T-R-E-T-C-H

It?s amazing to see the many ways runners stretch, both before and after races.I?ve seen people doing their stretching on the railing on Lynn Shore Drive, getting a nice sea view … and I?ve seen people stretching in the Great Woods Road parking lot, before and after the Lynn Woods Summer Cross Country Races.A good stretch can help us segue into a good run … and when we?ve finished running, some more stretching can help alleviate the effects of the workout.Two kinds of stretching come into play for runners, dynamic and static.?Dynamic stretches closely mimic movements made during exercise, so they?re usually used to prepare for athletic events,” Lynn Y fitness instructor Stephen Martin said. “Static stretches are used to improve flexibility and cool your body down after you exercise, and are therefore done when the body is standing still.”Martin said that within his warmup, he does both dynamic and static stretching, “the dynamic stretching to really fire up the body, get those fast twitch muscles ready to work, then I do all the basic static stretching just to relax and think about a plan for my run that day, pace, distance, time etc.”Some coaches recommend dynamic stretching before a run.?We use sport specific movements that help actively loosen our muscles,” Swampscott High cross country coach Jeff Bartlett said. “It helps with stretching and mobility, and we can help prime all the joints we?ll be using in running: from the toes and ankles, to the knees and up to the hips and spine.”So you warm up … and you do your training run, or your race. But you might not want to stop there.?I always static stretch after every run, usually for around 10 minutes,” Martin said.The Swampscott High cross country team stretches the day after meets, with yoga sessions under assistant coach Shauna Harrington. The team usually does yoga once a week, with sessions from 20 to 30 minutes.?The team is slowly coming around to it,” Bartlett said. “Many don?t realize that all the best athletes in the world, regardless of their sport, are doing yoga. It?s taking time for them to like it, and doing it with 75 kids is challenging. We do it with the intentions of injury prevention, focusing on breathing, and stretching.”Yoga poses in the sessions include lizard, runner?s lunge and tree. I have done the last two, with the runner?s lunge being a good stretch and the tree pose a challenging balancing test.Speaking of balance, one additional element I try to work on pre-race is balance … especially at Lynn Woods, with rocks and branches lurking at every step. I once saw a YouTube video of a running coach suggesting such balancing drills as making figure-eights with one leg while standing on the other. I can?t vouch for how effective it is, but I?ve done it before the Woods races … maybe it?s helped me avoid a spill or two.I also did jumping jacks as a warmup before the Woods races (a tip from another YouTube video) and have done yoga both before and after running.With all the twists and turns that running entails, it makes sense to do some twisting and turning with a good stretch or two.