No stretching

My son doesn't stretch before or after running.  He does stretching sessions that are not attached to a workout, but no stretching before or after.  Before he does a "dynamic warmup" consisting of drills, afterwards he does a cool down consisting of very slow running.  Stretching is a stand alone workout.  He does a hip routine, a lower back routine, and a shoulder routine in roughly 30 minutes.  It's not how I was taught, but he does well with it.

Originally posted by ImSore

Originally posted by Nick B Flexibility is the key to injury prevention. Being flexible is very important. However, stretching directly before a workout doesn't always help. Being throughly warm is the key for the beginning and cooling down in the end Basically, i think, the coach is a kook. He should be doing one or two work outs per week that focus on flexability. Making a group of teenagers run is hard, making the stretch is dang near impossible.

There are studies that show that less flexible muscles are actually faster due to more elastic recoil. Here are a few studies, there are more, this is what I pulled up with about 30 seconds of searching: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11774065http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19050648 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21610517I wouldn't say the coach is a kook There are differing schools of thought on the subject, but I see no problem with no actual stretching. I personally believe that with any physical activity, the best warmup is a less intense version of whatever you are going to be doing. So for running, I'll usually go from a slow jog to my easy pace within the first mile or two, and may do a little fartlek before any significant intensity. I won't discount the benefit of running drills, which may improve overall running economy. But the focus of drills in my opinion should be increasing economy, not flexibility.

I wasn't trying to imply that drills are for flexibility....they are, as you said, to help with run form.....but it also serves as a nice warmup vs. stretching. 

OTOH, since we're on the subject - the biggest help I have seen with flexibility doesn't come from stretching, it comes from ART sessions.

never stretched before running when I did XC in highschool.  last year i made a point to stretch before/after every run and use a foam roller.  suffered a lot from lower leg knots/soreness.  this year no stretching at all and hardly any foam rolling and i haven't had any issues. 

not sure if there is any relationship there or if it's just my body adapting over time to better handling the training load. 

Not necessarily.

The idea that more flexibility prevents injuries is one of the HUGE misconceptions in athletics that continues to persist like the idea that lactic acid accumulates in our muscles causing soreness.  If you have a study that can connect the two, please share it.  To my knowledge, no correlation has ever been able to be achieved between flexibility and injury rates.  Having the optimum amount of flexibility can enhance performance.  Too limited, and it's not possible to achieve the necessary range of motion for performance.  Too loose, and it can be difficult for some people to control their movements enough to make the consistent movements necessary to perform.

Treatment is not prevention.

The 'kooks' may be wrong and you right.  But I don't think it's because you know something they don't.  Their 'kooky' decision appears rational to me given the existing information available.

The first link won't load for me.

The second one has one paragraph of opinion regarding stretching to prevent knee injuries specifically.  Most experts can agree that in cases of specific ROM deficiencies, the use of stretching to correct the afflicted joint(s) can improve both performance and reduce injuries.  The key here is the word "specific".  The issue I have is when blanket statements are made that "stretching prevents injuries".  I would go as far as saying this is an untrue statement, as I have personally worked with people with excessive ROM issues where stretching was contraindicated, and the use of strength training was indicated to improve their control and joint stability (effectively reducing their ROM - the opposite of stretching) to prevent injuries.

And, as JohnnyKay pointed out, treatment is not prevention.  Various types of stretching protocols are widely accepted treatment for specific situations.  And, in the case of runners or cyclists with a history of ITBS due to the excessive quantity of movement within the sagittal plane combined with relatively limited movement within the frontal plane, stretching of the gluteus medius can be an effective part of their treatment and prevention program.

The examples above are specific examples.  IME, the majority of people neither benefit nor are harmed by general static stretching after exercise.

I feel the same way. Just from personal experience I definitely feel better after stretching, especially my hips, than if I didn't stretch. I'm not saying it's wrong to NOT stretch, because it looks like it certainly works for some people. It's always interesting to see how people do things differently.

My physiotherapist referred me to one of his blog posts on the topic of stretching - http://www.thebodymechanic.ca/2013/04/04/static-stretching-not-evil-not-a-panacea-just-a/.

The gist of his research is that static stretching won't hurt performance unless held for more than 60 seconds.  Its also not the cure-all either.

I continue to stretch before every run because basically that's what I've always done and have been relatively injury free.