Runners Stretches

Don't stretch before running.
Do not stretch when tired.
Don't even think about stretching when you are cold.

If you follow all the advice on stretching, you'll never stretch. I definitely recommend stretching every day, maybe even twice a day. Personally I rarely stretch before running, only when I feel really stiff and warming up is not helping to get loose. I never stretch after running simply because I usually feel done for - really tired.

Why do I stretch?

• It feels good. I enjoy stretching and as long as stretching does no harm I'm going to keep on stretching.
• Stretching keeps me running freely. I see other runners of my age and their stride length seems to get shorter each year and I'm hoping that stretching will avoid the "Old runners shuffle" for as many years as possible.
• Stretching helps avoid injuries. Some research says that stretching before running does not help avoid injuries but I question the research because they did less than 5 minutes of stretching each time.

If you search you'll find lots of stretching videos.
Here is a simple straight forward stretching video I like.

I'm qualified as a Personal Trainer with both ACE and ACSM so I'll share each organizations thoughts on stretching:

• Top 10 reasons to stretch from ACE
  
• Basic stretching from ACSM - the picture are small and need a close stare to understand but it has nothing dangerous.

I've previously posted about PNF Stretching which I offer to clients. Most clients love this form of stretching.