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A recent study presented at the American Academy of Orthopedic surgeons finds out whether or not stretching helps in avoiding an injury.

Running is a hobby, a sport, a fun activity and is pursued by millions of people worldwide. Stretching is typically an exercise performed by most athletes and sportspersons which is specifically designed to extend the limbs and muscles to their fullest extent. Most people who pursue running as a sport or those who run for fun indulge in stretching as a part of warm up exercise before they take their run. There was a recent controversy on the benefits of stretching before running and the question that whether people should opt for it or not had become a point of argument.

Findings of a recent study presented at the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons reveal that stretching prior to running is neither beneficial nor harmful i.e., it neither causes nor prevents the risk of an injury. The research involved a study population of about 2,729 runners who ran nearly ten or more miles every week. The participants were divided into two groups. One group was the stretch group which consisted of about 1,366 runners and the other was the non-stretch group which had about 1,363 participants. Before they ran, participants belonging to the stretch group were asked to stretch their muscles from a few categories of muscle groups including their quadriceps, hamstrings et al. The stretching exercise lasted for about 3 to 5 minutes and was performed just prior to running. Results of the trial indicated that stretching neither causes nor prevents the risk of injuries. However, there were strong implications pointing to other risk factors that may cause an injury.
 
Researchers found that the major risk factor for the runners to be injured while running is a history of chronic injury or an injury that the runner had suffered during the preceding four month period. Another risk factor was found to be higher BMI (Body Mass Index – the ratio of body weight to height). Additionally, doing away with their own stretching routine was also a risk factor that came up in the results. Based on the results, the researchers feel that, those runners who already have stretching in their pre-run schedule should continue to stretch. Basically, a change in routine is found to be risky and sticking to their own pre-run routines would be the key to the runners in avoiding injuries as per the study.Risk of injury was found to be equal in men and women of all age groups. However, it was observed that runners who go for more mileage runs are more likely to get injured as compared to those who go for a shorter mileage. The runner’s weight also seemed to impact the risk of injury; the heavier is the runner, the higher are his/her chances to get injured. Foot injuries, knee injuries, ankle injuries, groin pulls et al are listed as the most common categories of injuries that the runners may suffer.

Reference:
A study presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS).

Disclaimer: This article is written by a non-medical professional.