Photo credit: www.self.com
After completing a run, the natural instinct may be to head straight for a shower or a comfortable resting spot. However, dedicating a few moments to a proper cooldown can significantly enhance your recovery process.
During and after physical activity, your heart rate increases, and your blood vessels expand to ensure that oxygen-rich blood circulates efficiently to your muscles. Engaging in a cooldown helps to gently reverse these physiological changes, allowing your heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure to gradually return to their resting states. This deliberate transition can help prevent feelings of dizziness or lightheadedness and may also lessen future muscle soreness or stiffness.
A cooldown can be quite straightforward, such as a 10-minute leisurely walk. This approach is encouraged, especially within programs like SELF’s Learn to Love Running Program. Furthermore, since your muscles are warm post-run, it’s an opportune time to incorporate some stretching and mobility exercises that address the impacts of running and promote overall flexibility.
Below are two cooldown routines designed to enhance mobility and assist in restoring your cardiovascular and nervous systems back to a baseline state. One routine focuses on standing exercises, allowing you to perform it before re-entering your home, while the other is seated, ideal for when you find yourself on the floor after your run.
Cooldown 1: Standing
What you need: Simply your own bodyweight.
Directions:
Complete each exercise for the specified duration. For any single-sided movements, ensure you perform them on both sides. After finishing each exercise, proceed to the next. Aim to complete this circuit once, but feel free to repeat certain exercises or the entire sequence if you’re experiencing tightness!
Standing Hip Flexors Stretch
Katie Thompson
Source
www.self.com