Sports & Health: Ask the Coach: Stretching, Important? When? How?

“I hear a lot about stretching. Some say to do it before and after my workout. Others have a different opinion altogether. Also, I have heard that there is one type of stretching to do before a workout and a different type of stretching to do after a workout. What’s your opinion?“

-Christian Boyd Thompson

andres-facebook — Endurance Athlete & Chiropractor, Coach Andres Perez

Coach Andrés’ Answer:

Stretching and flexibility are a crucial component of fitness and staying injury free. There are two main types of stretching. The first kind of stretching is a dynamic stretch. Dynamic stretching utilizes momentum through full range of motion. This prepares the muscle for physical activity. Dynamic stretching increases range of movement, blood and oxygen flow to soft tissues prior to exertion. There are various types of dynamic stretches I like to do before going for a run:

Leg swings
Frankenstein walk
Lunge with a twist
High knees
Heels to butt

All these exercises can be found on YouTube and are performed for 30-60 seconds on each side. The purpose is not to get a deep stretch but a bounce of the muscles; if you go too deep, you risk possible injury or loss of power and performance.

The second type of stretch is called a static stretch. These are performed immediately after your run. If a muscle is not warmed up, you should never do this type of stretching. A static stretch is what most people have in mind when they think of stretching. The purpose of static stretches is to elongate the muscle fibers in a muscle group. These stretches are held continuously for 20-30 seconds and then repeated 2-3 times. After every run, I stretch all leg muscle groups.

These include:

Hip flexors
Quads
Hamstrings
Iliotibial band
Calves
Hip-opening stretches

I also recommend using a foam roller on all these muscle groups. The further you run, the more at risk you are to acquire overuse injuries. Preventative measures like stretching and foam rolling keep athletes running harder and farther while staying healthy. I also am a big promoter of deep tissue massage, yoga, myofacial release, and chiropractic care performed monthly. It goes without saying that the harder we drive our bodies, the more we need to take care ourselves.

About Coach Andrés: Dr. Andrés I Pérez was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He graduated from the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras with a bachelor in sciences, and received the degree of Doctor of Chiropractic from the Palmer College of Chiropractic. Dr. Andrés is passionate about healthy living, exercise and nutrition. An avid triathlete/marathon runner, he spends his weekends swimming, cycling and running. Major athletic accomplishments include finishing four Ironman events in under 10:48, running a 2:55 marathon, and running the Boston Marathon twice.