Why Runners Should Do Muscle Activation Exercises

There are some runs where everything just clicks, movements are smooth and you feel as if you could run forever. Then there are the runs when you can’t seem to shake off the sluggishness and the miles seem to drag on forever. So, what’s the difference? Oftentimes, it’s what you do before the run that matters most.

Everyone knows a proper warm up is a critical component of a safe and effective workout, but what should a warm-up include? What is the best way to prime the body for activity, and avoid feeling like you are just treading water or wading through quicksand?

It comes down to a practice called muscle activation, which prepares the body for the specific set of demands that is to follow. Activation “wakes up” certain muscle groups, and assists you in establishing efficient, biomechanically correct movement patterns.

New Balance elite runner Emma Coburn performs muscle activation exercises

What is muscle activation?

First, let’s define the term. Simply put, muscle activation is “an exercise that assists a muscle fire in the way it was intended to,” says Martine Marino, a licensed physical therapist with Novacare in Pittsburgh, PA. “This is referred to a lot of times as neuromuscular re-education.”

In other words, activation-based exercises target the appropriate muscles designed for a specific activity and, in turn, reinforce the brain-body connection. These exercises help establish a stronger communication link, so the body is better prepared to move in the intended way and fire from the right spots.

Activation-based exercises not only produce a stronger mind-muscle connection, but can also induce a state of preparedness in the athlete that can increase their overall capacity while helping prevent injury.

“Activation exercise is a low-intensity exercise that is designed to activate a muscle that will prepare the body for more intense activity,” says Frank Velasquez, Jr., the Director of Sports Performance at Allegheny Health Network. “The strengthening of these muscles will also help to better protect the joints they surround from unnecessary stress.”

Is muscle activation for everybody?

Of course! Activation-based exercises can be done by anyone. They’re also beneficial if you’re recovering from an injury or simply want to develop better overall movement patterns and mechanics in your daily life. Activation exercises are low-impact and low-intensity, and many do not even require any additional equipment.

How and when should I perform activation-based exercises?

An activation routine is most effective when combined with a dynamic warm-up. A dynamic warm-up is a movement-based practice that helps increase body temperature, blood flow to the muscles and synovial fluid production to the joints. In other words, the dynamic warm-up will make your body more responsive to activation-based exercises.

“Dynamic stretching preps the muscle and joints to receive load and stretch,” says Marino. “It also helps prepare the nervous system for the activity. In runners with muscle imbalances, activation can be important during the warm up as it reminds the muscle how to behave and contributes to muscle memory.”

New Balance elite runner Boris Berian stretches before a run

The more effective your warm up is, the more effective (and comfortable) your workout will be. Although it may still take a little bit of time to really get in the groove and hit your stride, incorporating a thorough warm up will decrease the time it takes for this to happen while simultaneously minimizing your risk of injury.

Velasquez, Jr. advocates for this all-inclusive warm-up especially if you’re exercising at higher intensity levels.

“Doing an active or dynamic warm up should be done first to get the body moving and the blood pumping,” he says.

“Then, after that, the activation exercises can be performed prior to the more intense activity. Studies show that activation exercises should be done within 10-15 minutes of the more intense activity.”

Although activation can help boost performance, reduce injuries and avoid the sluggish feelings during a run, it’s important to note that it’s not a cure-all for poor mechanics or chronic muscle imbalances. While a little bit can certainly go a long way, muscle activation exercises are best embraced as a life-long practice in order to receive the maximum benefit.

“Thousands of repetitions are needed to re-educate a muscle, so these exercises would need to be done regularly for weeks not just for a few minutes during a warm up,” says Marino.

004 MTRAPPE ECoburn FleetFeet

Try these Muscle activation workouts:

Emma Coburn’s pre-run routine

The Pre-and Post-run Exercises you need to do from Physical Therapist Aaron Knighton

By Timothy Lyman. Timothy Lyman is the Head Coach and Director of training programs at Fleet Feet Pittsburgh. He is a Certified Personal Trainer through the American Council on Exercise and a Performance Enhancement Specialist through the National Academy of Sports Medicine.