Brian Fallon 4/12/25 Brian Fallon 4/12/25

Warming up to Warm Ups

On a topic like stretching, we think it’s best to begin by asking: How does this end? What’s the End Goal? Is it to become more flexible? Is it to prevent injuries? Is it to enhance performance?

It’s not a question of If; it’s a question of What When Why and How

Before heading out for a run, it’s always a good idea to do some stretching in order to get the muscles ready, right? Wellllll, not exactly. There’s been quite a kerfuffle the last few years (upwards of 20!) over the role of stretching and its effects on performance. Fortunately, researchers have taken the data, sifted and strained it through rigorous analysis, and a solid consensus among the experts has been reached. And if you believe that, I’ve got a bridge to sell you.

Here at Breath Runner, on any subject we look into, what we like to focus on is the WHY. Why does this [thing] do what it does? And then we do our research to find those answers. The problem is, there are often gaps in research, conflicting results between studies, and (usually) research which is myopically focused on one specific part (often microscopically) of what actually is a enormously complex, variable, and interconnected structural, biological, and neurological network of task-specific synergies. Think about it: human beings are just an assemblage of calcium-phosphate sticks, bound together with collagen tape and protein strings, wrapped up in a celluloid scrim to hold a massive amount of liquified protoplasm in a tensioned state while we consume a trifecta of chemicals which we use to propel ourselves forward, in hopes we will be able to flaunt a “26.2” sticker on our car’s bumper. Sometimes it’s tough to make it make sense.

On a topic like stretching, we think it’s best to begin by asking: How does this end? What’s the End Goal? Is it to become more flexible? Is it to prevent injuries? Is it to enhance performance? The researchers apparently agree, as they’ve asked these various questions, and they have found answers. To the question, “Does stretching make us more flexible?”, the answer is: It depends. To the question, “Does stretching prevent injuries?”, the answer is: It depends. To the question, “Does stretching enhance performance?”, the answer is: It depends. Stretching has its place; of that there is no doubt. It’s a matter of determining where that ‘place’ is, and how it fits into the Gordian knot of programming that is run training.

*Image from:* *Running Forward, Glenn C. Rowe, PhD, Adeel Safdar, PhD, and Zolt Arany, MD, PhD. ©2025 American Heart Association, Inc. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.*

We think it’s best to start examining the conundrum from the beginning. Here we turn to what we’ve already written about the role of the muscles as they relate to the movement of joints. As it pertains to freely movable skeletal joints, our skeletal muscles have three jobs.

JOB ONE: Protect the joint
JOB TWO: Stabilize the joint
JOB THREE: Move the joint

Think about that for a moment: while the primary purpose of skeletal muscles is to move bones, movement is its lowest priority. Another way of thinking about this is that in order for the ‘freely moveable joints’ to actually move freely, the surrounding muscles, tendons, and ligaments need to be (1) strong, (2) resilient, and (3) happy.

Now the question becomes, How do we achieve this? To stretch or not to stretch; that is the question. Welcome to the world of research Rabbit Holes. Ask one question, get a thousand conflicting answers. Ultimately, some calmer voices and a bit of common sense helps elucidate the core issues, and there actually seems to be some semblance of agreement on what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, and how it needs to be done.

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Brian Fallon 3/15/25 Brian Fallon 3/15/25

A Bone To Pick

Injuries happen. What’s important for us as runners is knowing how to properly recover so that we don’t make things worse in the meantime. Often, this is far easier said than done.

Want to make bone jokes, but don’t knee-d to.

I broke my foot last year while out on a trail run. Something caught my toe and threw me off-balance; I tried to stay up, but my left foot landed in a slight depression. Since I was off-balance to begin with, my FULL weight, plus the force of gravity, combined to flex my foot downward, and my running sneakers — not Trail Running sneakers (lesson learned) — that I was wearing allowed that flex to happen. Spiral fractures of the fourth and fifth metatarsals were the result.

Approximately twelve weeks later, I was able to run again. 20 minutes of pain-free treadmill. Approximately 10 weeks later, I completed an Ironman 70.3. My secret? I did NOT try to run while my foot was healing. Not even a little bit. After 3 weeks, I began to swim a little. At about four weeks in, my doctor cleared me to start walking. I added in some stationary cycling shortly afterwards, as well as kayaking and paddle boarding. I waited for the doctor to clear me for outdoor riding, and then continued to ever so slightly increase time and effort, always wary for the slightest sign of discomfort or swelling, which fortunately never appeared. Finally the day came when the doctor said I was good to go, and that’s when I got on the treadmill. First for 20 minutes, then within a week up to 30 minutes. 40 minutes, 45, 50; tiny, incremental increases in distance surrounded by all the other cross-training.

Injuries happen. What’s important for us as runners is knowing how to properly recover so that we don’t make things worse in the meantime. Often, this is far easier said than done. For me, I knew that at an absolute minimum, a bone needs six weeks to heal from a fracture. This is both a biochemical and a mechanical process which, if allowed to run its course, can actually make the bone stronger than it was before! Fracture healing is complex, and has four distinct stages: the first, which occurs immediately after fracture, is the hematoma formation (bruising and blood clotting). Then after a few days (up to two weeks), is the granulation tissue formation, creating a spiderweb-like collagen-rich fiber network across the fracture, which starts the process of regaining bone integrity. That is followed by what is known as callus formation, where endochondral ossification, or the process of turning the collagen fibers into calcified immature bone, takes place. This ossification descends from the surface into the deep cavern the fracture created, and also allows for the capillarization of the bone tissue (the blood flow through the bone tissue) to be re-established. The length of time for this process can vary widely, depending one how deep the fracture was, or in the case of a complete break, exactly how big the bone was, and whether the break is displaced. This is a critical process which can not be rushed! Finally, there is bone remodeling, or the process where the immature bone regenerates into normal bone structure. This remodeling can take months in some cases.

A bone injury to the foot is never a simple thing. The foot has 26 bones, 33 joints, and 4 layers of muscle, all strapped together in a package that is only (on average, males) 293mm long, 72mm high, and 104mm wide. Those 26 bones carry the weight of another 180 bones and everything that is attached to them. Screw around with the healing process of the bones of the foot (or any other bone, for that matter) at your own peril. Taking care of our bones needs to be a priority.