During the process of brushing my teeth, I paused to do this basic quad stretch.
When it comes to not prioritising stretching in my routine, I’m a reoccurring offender. To avoid stretching my sore muscles after a run or a workout, I’ll come up with any reason to avoid unrolling my yoga mat.
In addition to bettering sports performance and decreasing the likelihood of injury and muscular discomfort, I’ve found that stretching on a daily basis also improves posture. As a result, why don’t we do it more often?
In my mind, “I don’t have time” is the most typical excuse. My morning routine will begin with a jog, followed by a stroll with my dog, and then a cup of coffee so that I can arrive at my desk at 9 a.m., where I will spend the rest of the day working. For some reason, stretching for just five minutes seems like an insurmountable feat. So for the last month, I’ve been brushing my teeth while performing a basic quad stretch. Find out what occurred by reading on.
For a month, I performed this easy stretch every day.
I’m a quad-dominant runner, which means I have to constantly remind myself to use my glutes and hamstrings. Runners who follow a high-mileage training plan, eschew hill training, or spend a lot of time on the treadmill are more likely to have quad dominance. With an injury to my spine and tight hip flexors, my pelvic tilt has made it simpler for me to activate the muscles in the front of my legs.
Stretching and foam rolling the quadriceps, hamstrings, and IT band may help reduce tension and stiffness caused by quad dominance. To help the glutes’switch on,’ practise workouts like deadlifts, glute bridges, and donkey kicks to help activate the glutes.
To help loosen up my muscles, I started performing a two-minute standing quad stretch every morning while I cleaned my teeth. With my feet firmly planted on the floor and a tucked pelvis, I’d bring the opposing leg toward me, securing it to the shin with my free hand. At first, I felt a stretch in my quadriceps, which I held for a full minute (fortunately, my electric toothbrush buzzes halfway through the two-minute cycle, letting me know when to swap legs). Make sure you don’t pull your knee backward or sideways during this stretch.
To begin with, I found it difficult to hold a full minute of my new toothbrush stretching exercise since my quadriceps were so tense and the stretch itself was difficult. My legs loosened up as the days went by, and the stretch grew easier as a result of my regular stretching.
I no longer gave it any attention by the midway point of the month since it had become a usual part of my life. I used to get up and stretch as soon as my electric toothbrush turned on. I was that person. While brushing my teeth, I let go of the sink and used my abs to balance on one leg. Why not start your day with a mini-core workout?
On the 30th day of my challenge, I ran a 5K and ran a time that was second only to my fastest. Even though I trained hard for my 5K PB (because what else is there to do? ), after a month of regular stretching, I felt powerful while I ran and was able to get that last burst in the last mile without wearing racing shoes or otherwise modifying my training.
There will absolutely be more stretching and glute activation before my runs, but I’m looking for a new toothbrush challenge right now, like as some kind of squat-like move. Until then, I’ll keep you updated.