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Do you stretch?
There's no right or wrong answer here - apart from yes, you should stretch.
When I finished my first FLM, bug-eyed, breathless, close to tears, my good friend and JDRF Team Captain (Sir) Humphrey Walters clapped me on the back, handed me two Ibuprofen and said
'Well done! Now, for f*cks' sake, stretch!'
I took that to heart and now try to stretch carefully after every run.
My post run routine goes something like
1. Fall forward onto a wall, arms outstretched. Walk feet back to most accute angle possible and bend arms to lean forwards. Keep feet togther/ flat to floor/ pointing forward. Stretches legs and back.
2. The old 'big step' stretch. Take a good stride forward. Keep feet aligned: very important - both pointing forwards, back foot flat to floor. Lean forward over front knee keeping back foot flat - should feel the back leg hammy stretch out. Hold for as long as possible. Swap legs and repeat.
3. Legs apart (steady) - one foot braced to prevent ungainly groin damage - touch ground directly below. Stretches hammies and lower back. variation is to reach down each leg or bend one leg and move weight over that leg (hold onto thigh) - this stretches groin muscles/ inner thigh nicely.
4. Calf stretch (essential for me). Stand on steps with back to descent.
Place one foot half over step (so toes and ball of foot are on step) - let weight come back onto this foot (use other foot for balance only). Should feel calf muscle stretch out. Hold, then swap feet over and repeat.
5. Big hammy stretch. Find a table or wall at appx hip height. Throw one foot up, try to straighten standing leg and slowly hop back until stretched out leg is straight. If comfy (!) lean forward and hold thigh/ knee/ calf (depending on dexterity) and hold for slow count of fifteen. Swap (carefully!) and repeat with other leg.
5. Thigh muscles/ Quads. Stand facing a wall (helpful if you need to steady yourself whilst on one leg). Pick one foot up behind you, reach back and grab foot using hand on same side. Straighten torso and pull gently on foot - important to keep back upright - push tummy out a bit to help. Should feel thigh muscle stretch out. Hold, swap legs and repeat.
6. Squat thrust position. Simply bend both knees with feet played (steady!). Use hand on a wall to steady at first. Should get a nice burn in the legs. Straighten slowly and repeat.
Proper physios will tell you this is about half what you need to do - they like you to stretch upper body arms and shoulders, but I find these help a great deal. The trick is to stay disciplined and do them after a long/ tough run or in the rain. Hard to do when warm, dry clothes and a hot coffee beckon.
On long runs we usually stop (after three mile warm-up) to re-group and decide on routes/ distance. I usually have a half-hearted stretch there, just to see if I can sense any potential problems. Some runners like to go through a rigorous pre-run routine but I'm wary of forcing cold muscles to stretch too much.
The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph
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