Researchers believe they have debunked a myth the perceived importance stretching before jogging. Hundreds millions of joggers around the world perform static stretching exercises before going a jog. It is a daily ritual that can be seen parks and streets everywhere. However, researchers La Trobe University Melbourne, Australia say there is no evidence to show that stretching improves running performance or decreases the risk injuries. Their research is published the 'British Journal of Sports Medicine'. They say that while there is evidence that stretching can help keep ankle, knee and hip joints flexible, it won't aid performance or keep injuries bay.
Lead researcher James Alexander conducted the research discussions with runners stretching. Mr Alexander is an avid jogger and often wondered what the benefits stretching were. He told the Reuters news agency that: "Runners have certain beliefs around running injury risks, injury prevention and performance that are contrast to current research evidence." He added: "These beliefs drive runners to continue to pursue ineffective or non-optimal strategies their running training, whether through static stretching injury prevention or low-load strength training performance." He recommended a 5-10-minute session walking or light jogging as the best warm-up
