Is it Time to Rehab your Prehab?

Everyone from researchers to acupuncturists, chiropractors and physiotherapists has a different take on how a runner should prepare for and recover from runs and workouts. Is acupuncture going to help those tight quads? Why did all those Olympians suddenly start cupping? Should you buy the compression boots, or is a monthly massage better? And can someone please tell us the right way to stretch before and after our runs?

SKIPPING STRETCHING ISN’T YOUR PROBLEM

We’ll start with the good news: if you’re injured, it’s likely not something you could have prevented simply by stretching or rolling more. “I constantly have people come into the clinic with injuries,” says B.C.-based researcher and physiologist Dr. Chris Napier, who works with runners in the clinic when he’s not researching recovery modalities and wearable tech in the lab. “They often say things like, ‘I know I should stretch more,’ or ‘I know I should foam roll more.’ They assume that not rolling or stretching is why they’re injured. But the first thing I do is dispel those myths and say, ‘This isn’t your fault, at least, not for the reasons you think. It might be your fault because you should have taken that day off, or not pushed through that run. But it has nothing to do with the fact that you didn’t foam roll enough.’”