for the first mile to warm up and gradually pick up the pace. – ScianceLook to the running greats for inspirationStretching cold muscles is a sure route to injury. After all when did you last see a gazelle stretch before taking flight? – FellrunnerIt’s not all

and your back leg out behind you. From here, keep an upright posture, and then slowly lean forwards and rotate away from the hip of the leg which is stretched out behind you. You should feel the stretch in the top of this hip. Once you feel the stretch

GETTY IMAGESIf you've been running well and your muscles feel fine, stretching might seem like a waste of good running time. But scheduling in some stretching could slash your chance of getting injured, help you recover from existing injuries

foot on the floor in front and your right leg out behind, knee resting on the floor.Exercise: Keeping the pelvis in a neutral position (it's easiest to do this by gently tightening the tummy muscles), slowly lean forwards. You should feel a stretch

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spasm, which would obviously be counterproductive. So unless your podiatrist can demonstrate a body of evidence to support this claim, the 30-second stretches may well be more appropriate. —Martin Haines, chartered physiotherapist and sports injury

walking. Is there a hip stretch or exercise that I should be doing?A There are three muscles on the outside of the hip which stop the pelvis dropping as each leg swings forward. One of these (tensor facia lata) is a short muscle with a long tendon passing

Need to save a sole in distress? Massaging your legs may soothe a sore plantar fascia - the band of tissue that runs along the sole of your foot. "The plantar shares an attachment site with your calf muscles in the calcaneus [heel] bone," explains sports therapist Sophie Vowden, ...

Back pain might keep you from running from time to time, in which case you might benefit from some preventive strengthening and stretching exercises. We’ve listed two old favourites for each below, but if you do suffer from a back problem, check

. The exercises are best done as a sequence, in the order shown below, on a mat or a carpet.Flat Stretches1. Relax on your back with your legs two to three feet apart and your arms by your sides. Your hands should be a little way out from your body, palms facing