For some the pain and agony of a 3-5 minute stretchingsession is too much to bare, though 4 hours of continuous running may be justfine.  Ironic as it may be, this is thetruth for many endurance athletes.  Theywill train day after day, hour after hour, but never take a few minutes beforeand after the training session to adequately prepare and sufficiently repair.

My practice sees a large number of endurance athletes,ranging from novice to elite.  A few ofthese athletes come in as a result of an acute injury from a fall, collision,or some other uncontrolled event. However, the majority come in with chronic over-use or mis-use injuriesthat stem directly from either incorrect or a complete lack of pre- andpost-work out stretching.

Patients with these chronic injuries generally present withtwo specific problems: 1. Muscle imbalances in the region of the injury; 2.Compensation patterns that decrease efficiency and increase degeneration oftissue.  By utilizing a dynamic warm-upand cool-down that focuses on lengthening the tight muscle groups, contractingthe opposite muscle groups, and activating the primary force producers of theactivity, the athlete can prevent chronic over-use/mis-use injury and increaseactivity performance.  

Simple as it sounds, it is highly effective in decreasingpain and managing the causative factors of the pain.  Key muscle groups that commonly requirestretching in endurance athletes are the gastroc-soleus complex, iliopsoas, and rectus femoris.  Musclegroups that commonly require contraction/activation are the tibialis anterior and glutealmuscles. 

Train hard, but train smart!

Jared Van Anne

Chiropractic Physician

MS – Sports Science & Rehabilitation

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