8 Essential Stretches That Every Athlete Needs to Know, According to a Personal Trainer

This article originally appeared on Yoga Journal

Whether you identify as a runner, hiker, mountain biker, swimmer, or any other type of outdoor athlete, you likely know that you should be incorporating stretches into your everyday routine. However, not knowing exactly which stretches for athletes to practice can easily become an excuse for skipping stretching entirely.

We know what you’re thinking. Even though you'd rather be hitting the trail than forward folding in the parking lot, you need to stretch if you want to enhance your recovery and reduce your risk of injury. And your stretching routine doesn’t need to be complicated or cumbersome. You can target all the primary trouble areas for athletes in as little as 10 minutes.

The Benefits of Stretches for Athletes

Stretching can increase your range of motion and flexibility
A study published in Physiotherapy: Theory and Practice found that static stretching can improve your range of motion and increase your flexibility. Another study found the same results for dynamic stretching done prior to a workout. This can help you optimize your movement mechanics during exercise--and help you avoid feeling stiff and sore afterward.

Stretching might reduce your risk of injury
A study published in Sports Health found that dynamic stretching helps activate muscles prior to your workout, improving your movement efficiency and minimizing the likelihood of injury.

Stretching can delay potential soreness
According to research in the Journal of Physics, incorporating stretching into your cool down can help minimize the severity of delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS).

8 Essential Stretches for Athletes

Simply start to include the following stretch routine before and after your workouts. After a few weeks, see if you can tell a difference. (Spoiler alert: You will.)

1. Leg Swings

This pre-workout stretch benefits any athlete by helping to open your hips, loosen your hip flexors and glutes, and increase circulation to your legs.

How to: Stand alongside a wall, chair, or pole and hold onto it with your left hand. Lift your right leg and swing it back and forth in front of and behind your body like a pendulum. Maintain a slight bend in your right leg to avoid locking it out. Keep your core and glutes engaged. Your torso should remain stationary and upright. Avoid hunching over. Complete 15 leg swings. As you warm up, you can increase your range of motion with each swing. Switch legs and repeat.

2. Downward Dog

Downward-Facing Dog is a yoga pose that stretches your entire back body, including your Achilles tendons, calves, hamstrings, glutes, lower back, upper back, and shoulders. It’s particularly beneficial for runners and hikers who tend to feel tightness in their lower body and cyclists who ride in an aerodynamic position.

How to: Come to your hands and knees. Place your hands slightly in front of your shoulders and position your knees directly underneath your hips. Spread your fingers, press your palms firmly into the mat, tuck your toes, and lift your knees off the mat. As you start to straighten your legs, lift your hips and reach your heels toward the mat. Your body should be folded at the hips into an inverted V shape. Draw your navel toward your spine and keep your gaze toward your navel, thighs, or feet to maintain a neutral position in your neck and spine. To intensify the stretch to your Achilles, bend your knees slightly while pressing your heels toward the mat. Breathe here for 30 seconds.

3. Butterfly Stretch

This yoga pose stretches your hips and glutes.

How to: Sit upright on the floor with your knees bent and your feet flat. Place the soles of your feet together in front of your body. Allow your knees to fall out to the sides. Your legs should be a diamond shape. Keep your core engaged and your back straight. To deepen the stretch, use your elbows to gently press down on the inside of your knees. Hinge forward from your hips. Hold this position for 30 seconds.

4. Knees-to-Chest Stretch

If you're a cyclist, runner, or even if you spend the majority of your non-working-out hours hunched over a screen, this stretch will provide some relief to your lower back.

How to: Lie on your back. Bend your knees, bring them toward your chest, and hug your shins. To experience a more intense stretch, squeeze tighter. Breathe here for 30 seconds.

5. Glutes and Piriformis Stretch

This is one of my go-to stretches for athletes because it targets your glutes and piriformis, which have a tendency to become tight with the kinds of repetitive motions that most athletic pursuits demand.

How to: Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Rest your right ankle on your left thigh and rotate your right hip outward. Lift your left foot off the floor until your shin is parallel to the floor. While holding this position, grab behind your left thigh with one or both hands or use a strap or belt to help you reach. Pull the leg in toward your chest. For a deeper stretch, press your right thigh away from your body with your right hand while hugging your left leg in. Breathe here for 30 seconds before switching sides.

6. IT Band Stretch

If you're an athlete, you probably have tight IT bands. This post-workout stretch helps to release tension along your outer hips and knees as well as your lower back, glutes, hamstrings, and calves.

How to: Stand upright. Cross your left leg behind your right foot so your left heel is to the outside of your right foot. Hinge at your hips and release your chest toward your thighs and let your head hang. Breathe here for 20 to 30 seconds. Stand up and switch legs.

7. Standing Quad Stretch

This static stretch targets your quads and hip flexors while also improving your balance.

How to: Stand upright. Lift your right foot, bend your knee, and draw your heel behind you and toward your glutes with your right hand. Don't allow your right knee to drift out to the side. Breathe here for 20 seconds. Then press your pelvis forward and lean back slightly with your chest until you feel a stretch across the front of your inner thights (hip flexors). Breathe here for 20 seconds before switching sides.

8. Chest Stretch

The muscles in your upper body are likely in need of a stretch, especially if you're a hiker, swimmer, or skier. This move offers relief to the pectoral muscles in your chest and the anterior deltoids of your shoulders.

How to: Stand alongside a vertical bar or a doorway. Lift one or both arms straight out from your shoulders to create a T shape. Step one foot forward, in front of the bar or through the doorway. Your straightened arms will find resistance when it meets the bar or doorframe and you will feel a stretch along the front of your shoulders. Keep your gaze forward and your spine upright. Breathe here for 30 seconds. Switch your front leg and repeat.

About Our Contributor

Amber Sayer is a fitness, nutrition, and wellness writer and editor. She holds a master's degree in exercise science and a master's degree in prosthetics and orthotics. She is a NCSA-certified personal trainer, UESCA-certified running coach, triathlon coach, and endurance nutrition coach.

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