Exercise! Love it or hate it, let's motivate each other to just DO IT!

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Old 04-08-2011, 12:30 PM   #1  
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I know it should be self explanatory but I need tips on the appropriate stretches to be doing before going on long walks (4 miles)

The front and back of my shins are always killing me when I'm done and I know I'm not stretching correctly or enough.


Help!
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Old 04-09-2011, 09:21 AM   #2  
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Here is a good article on shin splints and treatments
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Old 04-09-2011, 03:29 PM   #3  
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I do about a 5 minute stretch. i stil then make my legs into a v shape and lean forward. then i reach for one foot. then the other. then i bring my legs straight out and touch my toes. then i bring my legs into a butterfly stretch which is bring my feet bend at the knees towards my chest. my feet face inward towards each other one one. then i stand and for each legi bend my legs back towards my butt and hold it with the opposite hand. then i cross my legs and touch my toes with each leg. for my upper body i start off stretching my arms one at a time across my chest and holding it with my opposite arm. then i bend my arms back to ooposite shoulder holding with the other hand. then i spread my legs slightly bent and i straighten my arm above my head and stretch towards the opposite side and vice versa to stretch my stomach muscles. finally with my legs still at a bent. i reach both my hands above my head and stretch my stomach muscles again. i hold stretches for 20 seconds. old school stretches i did in gym class (i hated gym)
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Old 04-09-2011, 09:31 PM   #4  
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Before working out, make sure you're doing dynamic stretching (stretching with movement). Static stretching (stretching and holding a position) should only be done after a workout, or at least after a sufficient warm up, or you risk injury by straining cold muscles.

A few dynamic stretches I like are:
-Kick your right leg (knee straight) to your left hand, then left leg/right hand. Move forward as you do this so that you're walking/marching with straight legs. Be careful not to hurt yourself by kicking too high-- the point is just to get warmed up/loosened up. (I generally do 10 each leg)
-Stand facing a wall, about an arm's length away. Swing your right leg across your body toward your left, then back and away from your body so that it's extended toward your right. Then switch. (I do 10 each leg of these also)
-For your calves/shins, try ankle rotations, but slow them down and really focus on feeling the stretch. This is also good for loosening your joints. On that note, hip circles, knee circles, arm rotations, elbow, etc. are all great for warming up.

After your workout, try the static stretches that another poster listed above. Those are all great. Another to try, especially for your calves is to put the ball of your foot against a wall, so that your foot is being pulled toward your shin. Move your body closer to the wall (hips, not just upper body, or your won't feel much of a stretch), and you should feel it in your calves.

I'm very prone to injury, so I do a lot of stretching. Hope that helps!
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Old 04-09-2011, 09:48 PM   #5  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by melissakd View Post
I know it should be self explanatory but I need tips on the appropriate stretches to be doing before going on long walks (4 miles)

The front and back of my shins are always killing me when I'm done and I know I'm not stretching correctly or enough.


Help!
Hi Melissa,

You really want to stretch after you walk so that your muscles are warm. You never want to stretch cold muscles as this risks injury. At the very least you should walk for 5-10 minutes and then stretch if you feel you'd like to do so before continuing on your walk.
Some good stretching excercises -
standing quadriceps stretch - stand and hold onto someething for balance if you need it. Grap the top of your foot or your ankle and bring it towards your butt.
Achilles stretch - stand on a curb, block or similar and lower your heels.
Hamstring stretch - stand with one foot just in front of the other -bend your back knee and rest your weight on the rear (bent) knee - rest your hands on the quad of the straight leg and bend forward.
do all these stretches gently and without any bouncing.
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Old 04-11-2011, 09:59 AM   #6  
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Thank y'all so much!
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Old 04-11-2011, 11:06 AM   #7  
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Originally Posted by Eliochacon View Post
do all these stretches gently and without any bouncing.
So glad you included that!! So many people include bouncing in their lunges especially and I cringe when I see it. It only makes the muscles more prone to injury.

My sister and I were recently watching an old home video of a dance class we were in when we were preschoolers and when the teacher told us to do our "butterflies" as they were called- bending the knees and touching the feet together and bouncing the knees up and down. We both gasped and cringed at the same time haha. I think it was a classic stretch back then but it's now known to be not okay.
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Old 04-11-2011, 05:10 PM   #8  
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Originally Posted by Eliochacon View Post
Hi Melissa,

You really want to stretch after you walk so that your muscles are warm. You never want to stretch cold muscles as this risks injury. At the very least you should walk for 5-10 minutes and then stretch if you feel you'd like to do so before continuing on your walk.
Some good stretching excercises -
standing quadriceps stretch - stand and hold onto someething for balance if you need it. Grap the top of your foot or your ankle and bring it towards your butt.
Achilles stretch - stand on a curb, block or similar and lower your heels.
Hamstring stretch - stand with one foot just in front of the other -bend your back knee and rest your weight on the rear (bent) knee - rest your hands on the quad of the straight leg and bend forward.
do all these stretches gently and without any bouncing.
This reply describes exactly what is told to runners as well. Always make sure that you stretch after you walk or run. Stretching before is not necessary and can cause injury. When you walk, start out slowly for the first quarter mile or so. That will warm up your legs sufficiently. The achilles stretch mentioned above is the absolute best to keep your muscles in tip top shape after walking or running.
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