Subject: RE: Ice bath and then stretch? Or vise versa?After bike or run, or Brick, I run an ice cold bath -- while the bath is filling I stretch and do some Yoga, foam rolling, hit the glutes with a tennis ball or golf ball. Then I empty my big tray of ice into the full bath and jump in. I only stretch after runs; never before. The "newest" school of thinking in the running world, that I've recently read about, is that you should not stretch at all before a run. Even after a warm-up mile or two you should only lightly stretch. The reason being muscles lose elasticity after being stretched, and it's that very same elasticity that gives you speed and propels you forward when running. It stated that muscles are like rubberbands and if you stretch them out too far and long, they will lose that elasticity. All I know is that I've been practicing this method (not stretching at all before biking or runing, only after) and it's worked like a charm. And give the ice bath another shot. It'll work a lot better than a cold shower. Edited by Dream Chaser 2009-08-18 7:58 PM
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