Dynamic Stretching and Running Activation Drills

Blake Preece, PT

Fit For Life Physical Therapy

A proper warm-up is one of the many things that can help improve running or walking performance and reduce the risk of injury.  At Fit For Life Physical Therapy, we often see runners or walkers who do not perform much, if any, warm-up prior to their workouts.  Time is certainly a factor, but a brief dynamic flexibility routine can go a long way.  But what exactly is dynamic stretching?

Dynamic stretches are controlled movements that prepare your muscles, ligaments, and other soft tissues structures for physical activity.  One supporting piece of evidence for this is a research study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research (November 2015).  This study looked at the impact of non-stretching vs. dynamic stretching in well-trained middle- and long-distance runners.  It was found that the time to exhaustion after dynamic stretching was significantly more prolonged compared with that after non-stretching. This study concluded that performing dynamic stretching during warm-up before a race is effective for improving performance.  Warm-ups incorporating dynamic stretching and dynamic activity also show a reduction in injury incidence. 

There is no shortage of dynamic warm-up drills that one can perform, but here are some of our favorites at FFL.  Try starting with 5 repetitions of each and build up to 10 repetitions as your strength and endurance improve.

Leg Swings (Forward/Lateral) - you can perform the forward leg swing with both a straight knee variation and then with a bent or flexed knee variation.

Wall Drill – Knee Drive – while in a forward leaning position, focus on keeping one leg planted on the ground while you drive your opposite hip up. Focus on form.

Wall Drill – Pistons– similar to the knee drive, but now start with your hip up on one side while you are on your toe on the opposite side.  Quickly transition to doing this same position but alternating to the opposite side.

Open/Close Gate – pretend that there is an invisible fence/hurdle/gate in front of you.  Perform repetitions of stepping over the gate, followed by repetitions of swinging your leg backwards over the gate.

If you have further questions or would like to learn more about injury prevention techniques, please reach out to us at Fit For Life Physical Therapy at www.fitforlifephysicaltherapy.com or 614-981-1979.