How should I warm up before running?
Warm up with 5-10 minutes of walking or very slow jogging, followed by 4-6 dynamic drills (leg swings, walking lunges, high knees, butt kicks). Skip static stretching before running — it reduces power output. Save stretching for after your run when muscles are warm.
The ideal pre-run warm-up takes 5-10 minutes and has three parts. First, 3-5 minutes of very slow walking or jogging to raise core temperature and heart rate gradually. Second, 4-6 dynamic movements that take your joints through running-specific ranges of motion: leg swings (front-back and side-to-side, 10 each leg), walking lunges with rotation (10 each side), high knees (20 steps), butt kicks (20 steps), and A-skips or B-skips (20 steps). Third, for hard sessions only, 2-4 strides — 20 seconds at 5K pace with full recovery, gradually ramping into goal pace. Skip static stretching before running. Research consistently shows holding stretches longer than 30 seconds before activity reduces power output by 5-10% and doesn't prevent injury. Save stretching for after runs when muscles are warm, or for dedicated mobility sessions. For easy runs, the first 10 minutes of running itself is your warm-up — start at walking pace and build to easy pace over those first 10 minutes. For hard workouts and races, do the full 10-minute warm-up routine. Older runners (40+) benefit from slightly longer warm-ups; mornings need more warm-up time than evenings. If you're injury-prone, a consistent warm-up routine is the cheapest insurance you can buy.