In this world of quarantine and isolation it is important we keep our exercise regiments up to date. In fact, with gyms closed many have turned to traditional running and walking to get their cardio in. This has many benefits including getting to be outside in nature which we all need more of after being shut inside our homes all day! The only problem is in our eagerness to get out of the house we can forget to do our proper stretching and then our muscles will pay the price in aches and pains later on.
Regular stretching can help us prevent injuries and make us more nimble and energetic for our runs. It also can be a relaxing and therapeutic experience, which we all need in these stressful times.
To properly stretch before a run start with extending the hips and upper body. Here’s a youtube video that demonstrates some good stretches:
Next we stretch our mid-section or the abs, quads, and lower back. This is a key area as it receives most of the burden of our lives sitting and working from home. Here is a youtube video with some stretches designed for that area of the body:
Finally we have stretches for our legs and feet. These are obviously very important as this part of the body takes the biggest beating while running. Especially leg cramps can be incredibly painful and that pain can be avoided with proper stretching. Here is a youtube video with some good stretching exercises designed especially with leg cramps in mind
In the end, no matter how much we stretch we may still end up with muscle pain from our exercise. This is where the Zim’s line of liquid pain relief products comes into play. They provide long lasting pain relief for aching muscles that penetrates deep into hard to reach areas like your lower back and neck. As we do our best to prepare and recover from our runs we can make our chance to get outside and exercise one of the best parts of this quarantine experience.
What have you done to exercise lately and how does proper stretching help you have a better experience? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section.
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