Welcome to Running Essentials Thursday! In case you’ve missed it, Thursdays are officially dedicated to running related topics for the summer months. Here’s what we’ve covered so far:
- The importance of “rolling out”
- Post Run 10-Minute Core Workout
- Do I have to Run 5 Days a Week to be a Runner?
Today it’s all about the warm-up.
Before a Race
If your goal is to finish the race, not finish in a specific amount of time you may be able to skip the warm-up. On the other hand if you are trying to set a P.R. then a warm-up becomes necessary. You want you’re body to be ready to run at race pace when the gun goes off.
A short, easy run that includes a few strides is a great way to warm-up. To determine how long you should run before a race you have to figure out how long it takes your body to warm-up. For me that depends on my fitness level at that specific time. The better shape I’m in the longer it takes me to warm-up. Typically, I run easy for 20 minutes before a race.
Additional ways to warm-up besides jogging/stretching:
In the winter, I tend to warm-up indoors with something similar to this Runner’s World routine:
Do I need to warm-up for every run?
No. Simply put there isn’t always time for a warm-up (especially when running at 5:30 a.m.). However, if you run the first portion of your run at a slower pace and ease into your run you’ll feel much better, then if you hit the pavement running at fast tempo.
Does the warm-up include stretching? Should I stretch before I run?
The general rule of thumb is to wait until your muscles are warm before you stretch them. Realizing that some muscles just scream for a stretch, it isn’t going to kill you if you stretch pre-run or pre-warm-up. Just be careful not to over stretch or force it.
Ideally, you would do any needed stretches after the warm-up. Stretches that I would include are ones for the hamstrings, quads, psoas, calves, glutes, and low back (but that’s just because my back tightens up).
What about you do you do a warm-up before a race?
Great post, thanks! I know that I need to work on stretching, warming up, cooling down, and stretching again.
I love Running Essentials Thursdays! 🙂 Thanks for this–I typically just run the first mile of a half or full easy and then move on, but I’m gunning for PRs this year, so I will try warming up beforehand.
Great reminder! I do a 5 min walk then I stretch, then I run. Then I make sure i’m stretching fully after. It’s the only way my muscles stay happy with me!
On that note, can you come find me before the marathon and yell at me to stretch and do a warm up lap? It won’t be to hard right? Only 45,000 peeps and we’ve never met? 🙂
I’m great at stretching after, but warm-ups are my downfall. I don’t warm up for training runs, bc I warm up in the first few miles.
For races, though, I don’t usually do any sort of running warm-up. I’ll do a few dynamic stretches to get warm, but no light jogging or anything. I know that as a result, my first few miles of a race are almost a warm-up and I don’t run nearly as hard as I could with better prep. Work in progress.
ok i use to believe that warming up before a race was a no no – b/c i felt i was using up my energy….until i actually ran with a coach and a group and was taught that warming up was essential when racing and i realized how much it helps.
Great post – and sooo true! To warm up for an NYC race, I sometimes jog to the starting line. I did this my last race and was very happy with my time 🙂