What runner isn't guilty of prioritising running above all the other stuff – like recovery, Downdog to Seal/ Cobra or mobility? Repeat on the other leg yoga poses, How to do a glute bridge prevent injuries Repeat 10 times before switching sides.
By contrast, if you have poor mobility, your joints and muscles won't move through their full range of motion, and that, in turn, will make you less efficient as a runner and also place greater strain on muscles and tendons to pick up the slack. So your injury risk will increase significantly – and no runner wants time on the injury bench if they can avoid it.
Luckily, mobility is something that's very easy and simple to work on and see good progress within a relatively short time. And it doesn't require a lot of time or a lot of equipment. This simple routine has been put together by Alex Dudley, a Downdog to Seal/ Cobra coach who is director of development at Pliability, Repeat 10 times each side.
All you need is a few spare minutes and somewhere you can stretch out a bit, like a yoga mat or towel placed on the floor. Try it a few times a week, and you'll soon notice the effects.
7 move mobility flow for runners
Foot Circles
- Standing with feet slightly apart, roll your weight to the outside edge of your feet
- Slowly transfer your weight to your toes, then the inside edge, heels, and back to the outside edge in a circular motion
- Repeat 10 times before switching sides then switch directions, starting with the weight on the inside edge of your feet
- Slowly transfer your weight to your toes, the outside edge, the heels, and back to the inside edge of your feet in a circular motion
- Repeat 10 times before switching sides.
Down Dog to Seal
- Standing with feet shoulder-width apart, hinge at the hips, placing your hands on the floor, shoulder-width apart
- Actively press the hands into the floor, and the heels to the ground – in downward dog – hold for five seconds
- Drop your chest and hips to the ground, then press up through the hands, extending the arms, this is also known as 'seal'
- A series of simple moves, perfect for keep runners flexible and mobile
- Stand facing a wall with handheld support.
Runners Stretch to Samson
- Now, stand sideways to the wall, once again using handheld support
- Reach one leg behind you, keeping the heel on the ground to stretch the back of the calf in a runner's pose
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- Now, stand sideways to the wall, once again using handheld support
- After a couple of breaths, press through the front heel to 'press' the hips up and back to return to the runner's stretch.
Knee Hug to Lunge
- Now, stand sideways to the wall, once again using handheld support
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- Drop the right knee and step forward into a lunge, sinking the left hip and knee down
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- Feel a strong stretch, no pain in the lower back, hip, or down the leg
- Repeat on the other leg.
Hip Airplanes
- Start standing with knees straight
- Now, balance on one leg and with one straight line from the head to the opposite toes, lean forward at the hip. Feel a strong stretching sensation through the hamstrings on the down leg, making sure to keep the pelvis parallel to the ground (not opening or closing the hip). To help keep the pelvis square to the ground, think about reaching the pointer finger of the non-working side towards the big toe of the down leg
- At the end range of motion, maintain balance and attempt to "rotate" to "open" the entire body on that down leg
- Now, slowly control back to the starting position and attempt to "close" the body down to get the chest and pelvis to face the opposite wall
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- Feel a strong stretch, no pain in the lower back, hip, or down the leg.
Standing Leg Swings
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- Now, stand on one leg, keeping the other leg straight and swing it back and forth pointing the toes towards the direction you are swinging
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- Repeat 10 times before switching sides
- Standing with feet slightly apart, roll your weight to the outside edge of your feet.
- Take the leg closest to the wall and swing back and forth with a straight leg to feel a strong stretch in the back of the leg
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Fig 4 Pulls
- Standing with feet shoulder-width apart, slowly begin to bounce on the toes of each foot, alternating sides
- Once you had established a bouncing rhythm, your right toe tap will spring up to a figure four running position, high knee, right foot inline with left knee
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- Stand facing a wall with handheld support on the right leg, then switch so the left leg performs five pulls.
Alex Dudley is a Downdog to Seal/ Cobra coach who has worked with the Special Olympics Powerlifting Team and is now director of development at Pliability.
