Stretching doesn’t have to be boring. In fact, the passive hold that drives so many of us mad may not be the best way to stretch, anyways (at least not all the time). Since the quads are often one of the tightest muscle groups on runners, today we’re going to show you some of the best quad stretches that runners can do prior to heading out on the road or trails.

What Is Dynamic Stretching?

The difference between dynamic and static stretches are the way in which they are performed, and more scrutinizingly, how much movement is involved in the stretch itself. Dynamic stretching is far more intuitive and mimicking for the actions we do while running, and actually has several performance benefits, as well.

To understand how stretching increases flexibility, you have to understand why muscles feel tight when you stretch them. In short, your muscles contract when you pull them into further ranges of motion then they are used to. This is a protective mechanism by the body to avoid injury to surrounding joints. How then, does flexibility improve? Here’s two ways: 

Static Stretching

Static stretching increases flexibility by relaxing the muscle. By holding a stretched position for an extended period of time, you teach sensory receptors in the muscle (muscle spindle and golgi tendon organ), which are responsible for detecting changes in tissue length, to become more tolerant of the stretching stimulus. This teaches the muscle(s) to better move into those ranges. 

Dynamic Stretching 

Dynamic stretching increases flexibility through blood flow, body temperature, and muscle activation. By moving in and out of ranges of motion in a controlled manner, the muscles learn to adapt to the required amounts of stretch. This is aided by increased blood flow and working action of the muscles involved, preparing them for exercise and making them more pliable.

(Credit: Adobe Stock)

So, while static stretching makes muscles more flexible through relaxation, dynamic stretching makes them more flexible through action. This begs the question, would you rather your muscles be relaxed going into a run, or prepared to move? The answer is the latter. This is why dynamic stretching has been shown to improve performance when done immediately prior to activity.

Why Should Runners Stretch Their Quads?

If runners have tight quads, then that means they’re being used quite extensively while participating in our sport. Indeed, several 3D anatomical model and EMG analysis studies have confirmed that the quadriceps play an important role in the braking, support, and propulsion of a person’s center of mass while running.

These are huge muscles that have far-reaching ramifications throughout the rest of the body, most prominently at the knee and hip junctions. Tight quadriceps have plenty of influence on these areas, and contribute to painful conditions like patellofemoral pain syndrome (runner’s knee), patellar tendinitis (jumper’s knee), IT band syndrome, lower back pain, and more.

Proper warm up of the quadriceps before running lessens the likelihood that they’ll sustain any sort of trauma during your session. Infusing them with blood, raising the temperature of the tissues, and putting them through gradually increasing ranges of motion helps them prepare for what should be every runner’s first goal: pain-free and enjoyable running.

Dynamic Stretching for Quads

With all that said, we would like to now introduce you to 4 of the best quad stretches for runners that can be done before any workout or running routine! These stretches are borrowed from our programming here at Dynamic Runner, where we have literally hundreds of follow-along, professional workouts that focus on strength, mobility, flexibility, and injury prevention.

If you like these movements, try out our full-length routines with a 7-day free pass by clicking here, and join a community of thousands of runners worldwide at every level of experience. We can’t wait to have you.

Enjoy these incredible stretches, which not only hit the quads but other muscles in your legs, as well!

Dynamic Lean Back Quad Stretch

Instructions

• Start in a kneeling position, sitting on your heels
• Place your arms behind you for support (picture 1)
• Gently press your hips up off your feet while staying in the lean back position (picture 2)
• Return to the start position
• Repeat for 30-60 seconds

Benefits

• Gently opens the quadriceps, hip flexors & abdominal muscles
• Easily modifiable; simply decrease the range of movement depending on your flexibility
• Can be done at the start of a warm up to help ease your quads into movement

Dynamic Side Lunge

Instructions

• Start with your feet wider than hip width apart, toes facing forward
• Shift your weight onto one leg, bending the knee into a side lunge (other leg stays straight)
• Once you get down as low as you can go, push back up to the starting position
• Shift onto the other leg
• Repeat back and forth for 30-60 seconds

Benefits

• Gentle stretch & activation of the quadriceps
• Promotes blood flow to the knees, thighs & groin
• Stretches the adductor (groin) muscles

Dynamic Ninja

Instructions

• Similar to the side lunge, start with your feet wider than shoulder width apart
• Crouch down into a low position with one leg straight and the other knee fully bent
• You should be up on the ball of your foot on the leg that is bent
• Stay low, and alternate the bent and straight leg back and forth
• Alternate legs for 30-60 seconds

Benefits

• Deeper version of the side lunge that emphasizes stretch on the quads
• Fully flexes the knee joint for a thorough warm up
• Opens up the hips and groin for improved mobility & reduced injury risk

Dynamic Standing Knee Hug to Quad Stretch

Instructions

• Standing on one leg, bring your free leg’s knee up towards your chest and hug it (picture 1)
• Pause for a split second
• Take the same free leg and bend its heel up towards your bum by pulling it behind you (picture 2)
• Pause for a split second
• Repeat this sequence on one leg for 30-60 seconds
• Switch to the other leg and repeat for another 30-60 seconds

Benefits

• Dynamically stretches the quads, hip flexors & glutes
• Balancing on the one leg helps activate the quads & hip muscles
• Challenging movement that mimics some of the demands running places on the body

Written by Eric Lister – Certified Personal Trainer & Corrective Exercise Specialist