Always warm up somewhat
before stretching and try not to make
the stretching too strenuous else you could hurt yourself
Warm
up
Before you set off on your run, it is advisable to warm
up for a few minutes, going down from head to toe.. I
do a variety of things, but the main purpose is the
same: to loosen various parts of the body.
Rotate your head a couple of times, touching
your ear to your shoulder, chin to your chest,
and a backward stretch.
Then, hands on your hips, try to move your
upper body similarly, on all sides.
Stretch your arms —shaking them—so
that your arm muscles vibrate and loosen up.
Now, shake your leg muscles. Stand on your
toes and stretch your calves. And then, standing
on your heels, lift your toes to stretch the
muscles around your shins.
Do a shuffle dance as you move your feet around
and shake your ankles.
End this routine by wiggling your toes and
fingers.
You can even develop your own routine over
time.
Run
The only thing is: Start
slow. Like anything else you do in life, ease into the
run from your walk and warm-up, go on for at least five
minutes before you get into your plan for the morning
and increase the intensity of your run. The more adventurous
among us may increase the intensity of the run for a
bit in between, but then you need to slow down. At the
end of the run, you need to walk again, as you reduce
the intensity of the exercise. Do not get caught up
in the macho business of “I don’t want to
be seen walking in between a run, else I will look like
a wimp.”
Cool down
This is as important
as the warm-up, as your muscles need to start de-stressing
before they finally get into resting mode.
You may want to swing your arms or do a few shakes that
you did during the warming up. You may even want to do
something else.
Stretch
This is one of the
most important parts of any exercise to keep you in good
shape in the long term. Think of this phase as the servicing
and cleaning of the car after a rally. This is also the
part that most people tend to skip due to seemingly good
reasons: I have no time, stretching is not important,
I feel great at the moment so why should I, I am very
flexible, I’ll stretch tomorrow….
Always stretch post
exercise to ensure that the taut muscles loosen again
But do not kid yourself.
Spend five minutes, if not 10, stretching—again—you
need to stretch your arms, torso and legs. You could start
off with some of the exercises you know or else do the
simple ones outlined below:
Stand a few feet from a wall,
fence or bench. Put your hands up on the wall,
fence or bench, bend your knees slightly and
lean forward. The calves should get a stretch
out of this one. a. If you
bring one foot forward and keep the other
straight and pressure down, the muscles below
the calves get stretched. b. And
if you put both feet together and push back
with your hands, with your feet straight,
you will
feel a stretch on your hips and lower back.
Try a second exercise of
standing on a foot and lifting your heel with
your hand and touching it to your buttocks.
And then a third exercise, of kneeling and
sitting down on your ankles, and feeling the
stretch of your thigh muscles.
You can have a few other stretches
that may motivate you, apart from gently trying
to stretch and touch your toes, to stretch
your lower back and your calves. But however
you stretch, do it gently and not vigorously
When experiencing a muscle cramp or a pull, ice the area
rather than treating it with heat. Try shortening your
stride
and doing some gentle stretches.
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