Runners getting ready for a run often take a few moments to stretch out the muscles of the leg to prevent a possible muscle strain. The most frequently seen stretches include leaning against a wall with the feet flat on the ground to stretch the calf muscles.
Taking hold of the toe of the shoe and pulling the foot up to the buttocks stretches out the quadriceps muscles on the front of the thigh. To stretch the hamstrings on the back of the upper leg has the runner bending down trying to touch their toes or putting their foot on a step or chair, and then leaning forward to try and touch the toes. These stretches all seem to work to loosen the leg up before a run.
The muscles used in running are a little more complicated than just moving the leg back and forth during a run. There are more muscles in the leg and hip joint that are active, but are seldom thought of while getting ready for a run. One major group of muscles called the adductors, move the leg toward the inside of the midline. Some of these muscles may help with the flexion of the hip but are mainly used to keep the leg moving in a straight forward and backward motion by not letting the leg flare out to the side when running. If a runner should step on a slippery area and the foot goes sliding outward, the adductors are the muscles that are strained. That is when a runner notices how important the adductors are in running, as it is almost impossible to keep running without some pain.
