When you have the #RWRunStreak to cross off for the day, or you just want to hit the road and start clocking miles, it’s tempting to skip a warmup. But if you do skip some those stretches before running, you’re doing yourself a disservice.
“You wouldn’t start your car in sub-freezing temperature, rev it up to 70 mph, and expect it to perform well,” says Tony Gentilcore, C.S.C.S., and owner of CORE in Boston. “A warmup equals better joint lubrication, blood flow, and nervous system activation.”
And while there are many physical benefits of a solid warmup, it isn’t just a time to get your body ready to go. It’s also the time to tap into your mind-body connection and get into the right mindset for the miles ahead.
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“With a proper warmup, you decrease your likelihood for injury and also give yourself the adequate time to prepare mentally for the load you’re about to endure,” says Corinne Fitzgerald, NSCA-CPT, head coach of Orangtheory Fitness and Asics Runkeeper coach. “After all, a workout is always part physical, part mental.”
While we all might know it’s important to warm up, many of us are notorious for neglecting to do so. One of the excuses—er, reasons—is practicality: When you’re in a parking lot, a race corral, or at a trailhead, you can’t exactly roll out a yoga mat and start stretching.
The other limiting factor that often comes up is time, or rather, lack thereof. “Most runners are in a rush,” says Fitzgerald. “They allow only a specific amount of time for their miles, but they forget that the warmup and cooldown should be added into the equation when carving out time in your schedule.” She suggests considering your warmup as part of your workout, not an unnecessary add-on.
While the perfect set of prerun stretches can vary per person and workout, five minutes of performing basic stretches before running is a low investment that reaps big rewards like offsetting potential injuries. These prerun stretches are a combination of do-anywhere dynamic stretches that will get your body ready to run. You can do them all standing so it doesn’t matter where you are. All you need is five minutes and you’re good to go.
How to use this list: Perform each exercise below for 60 seconds. Each move is demonstrated by Matthew Meyer, RRCA-certified run coach based in Boulder, Colorado, so you can mimic proper form. If you have more time, repeat the series 1 to 2 more times for a 10- to 15-minute warmup.
1. Standing Hip Controlled Articular Rotation (CAR)
Why it works: “These help you asses and improve your range of motion and lubricate the hip joint. They also increase mobility, which will be beneficial not only for your immediate workout but also for your joint health in the long run,” says Fitzgerald.
Doing this exercise consistently is key. There’s not a lot of dynamic hip motion involved with running, and “if you don’t use your hip mobility, you lose it,” adds Gentilcore.
How to do it: Stand tall on right leg and raise the left knee to 90-degrees in line with left hip. Brace core, keep pelvis in a neutral position, and place hands on hips for balance. Rotate left knee out to the side, then down and in toward your centerline, then back up to the starting position—think of it as drawing a circle in the air with knee. The pace here is slow and controlled; be sure to keep pelvis and lower back as still as possible while doing this movement. The goal is to increase the range of motion in the hip joint. Repeat 5 to 10 times per side for a total of 60 seconds.
2. Lunge With Side Bend
Why it works: “Running is a single-leg activity, so it makes sense to warm up with a single-leg variation,” Gentilcore says. “The side bend adds an additional plane of motion [to your training]—the frontal plane—which many runners fail to train.”
Fitzgeralds also likes this stretch because it prepares you for the single-leg load you experience during the run, it stretches out the quad and up to the shoulder, and opens the pathway for more oxygen to come in while you breathe.
How to do it: Stand tall with feet hip-distance apart, engage core, and place hands on hips. Take a big step forward with left foot. Bend left knee to a 90-degree angle to lower down until left thigh is parallel to the floor with knee centered over ankle. Bend right knee slightly as right heel lifts off the floor. When you feel stable, rest left forearm on left thigh and reach the right arm straight overhead, creating length in your right side body. Then bend torso over to the left while stretching the right arm over head to the left. Hold for 5 seconds. Return to standing and repeat on the other side. Continue to alternate for 60 seconds.
3. Standing Quad/Hip Flexor Stretch
Why it works: “The standing quad stretch opens up the front of the leg and helps lengthen your hip flexors,” Fitzgerald says. Tight hip flexors can affect the hamstring’s ability to activate fully, adds Gentilcore.
Beyond the stretch, this move has additional benefits. “Standing on one leg at a time also helps to focus on stability and the firing of the core muscles to hold your posture upright,” Fitzgerald adds.
How to do it: Stand tall and engage core. Bend right leg to bring right heel up toward right glute and grasp right ankle with right hand. Pull ankle into glute while simultaneously tucking tailbone down toward the ground, trying to posteriorly tilt pelvis. You should feel the stretch along the length of quad up into the front of hips. Hold for a breath, then repeat on the other side. Keep alternating as quickly as possible.
4. Lateral Squat Stretch
Why it works: “Adding in more frontal plane motion [with this movement] is a nice way to add variety and amplitude to a runner’s life. Plus, the adductors and groin are almost always ‘tight’ with most people,” says Gentilcore. Tight adductors can seriously mess with your stride, Fitzgerald explains, so loosening them up can promote better form.
How to do it: Stand tall with feet wide apart and toes pointing forward. Clasp hands in front of chest for balance. Shift weight onto right foot and bend right knee as you send hips back as though you were going to sit in a chair while keeping the left leg straight. Make sure right knee does not move forward past right toes. Aim to get right thigh as horizontal as possible. You should feel a stretch along the muscles of left inner thigh. Hold this position for 5 seconds, then switch to the other side. Repeat for 60 seconds.
5. Standing Dynamic Hamstring/Calf Stretch
Why it works: “The hamstrings are a major muscle group that power the running motion. [This stretch] can allow you to get deep into the hamstring without static or over-stretching,” Fitzgerald says. Plus, this move does double-duty with a calf stretch.
Tight calves are an almost universal concern for runners and can contribute to several issues. That’s because the gastrocnemius muscle crosses the knee joint and is often a culprit of knee pain, according to Gentilcore.
“Your calves are smaller muscles that handle a ton of load and spring as a runner,” adds Fitzgerald. “With a point and flex of your foot, you can warm up the entire backside of your leg.”
How to do it: Stand with feet hip-width apart. Place the heel of the right foot about 12 inches in front of you and flex the foot. Keeping the right leg straight, shift weight onto the left leg while bending knee slightly, and send hips back—you should feel a stretch down the back of right leg. Stay in this position and point the right foot, hold for 5 seconds, then flex the foot for 5 seconds. Repeat this 3 times per leg.
Natascha Grief got her first bike shop job before she was old enough to drink. After a six-year stint as a mechanic, earning a couple pro-mechanic certifications and her USA Cycling Race Mechanics license, she became obsessed with framebuilding and decided she wanted to do that next. After Albert Eistentraut literally shooed her off his doorstep, admonishing that if she pursued framebuilding she will be poor forever, she landed an apprenticeship with framebuilder Brent Steelman in her hometown of Redwood City, CA. After that, she spent several years working for both large and not-so-large cycling brands. Somewhere in there she also became a certified bike fitter. Natascha then became a certified personal trainer and spent nine years honing her skills as a trainer and coach, while also teaching Spin. During the dumpster fire that was the year 2020, she opened a fitness studio and began contributing regularly to Runner’s World and Bicycling as a freelance writer. In 2022, she joined the staff of Bicycling as News Editor.
