The Wrinkled Runner
The Wrinkled Runner
Cooling Off: Exploring Studies on Cool Downs for Runners
Hi Running Friend!
What if everything you thought you knew about cool-downs was wrong? Join me as we discuss the debate within the coaching and running science community about the necessity and effectiveness of cool-downs.
Resources from the Episode:
NIH Study Review: Do We Need a Cool-Down After Exercise
Bas Van Hooren (one of the researches of the above study): Do We Need to Perform a Cool-Down After Exercise- really great in-depth article about the study
Science of Running Article by Steve Magness: Lactate Threshold...what the heck is it?
Why Difficult Runs May Signal the Need to Run More
Stretching for Runners: Dynamic vs. Static
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For as long as there have been running workouts, there have been cool downs. Recently, in the coaching and running science world there has been a bit of a debate over whether a cool down is necessary or not. We'll go over some of the thought behind a cool down and what that generally is considered, and some of the studies that have come out regarding doing one or not. When I first started hearing about the debate, it was kind of funny to me that there was one, because as a coach, I routinely give clients a cool down, even if it's just half a mile or mile slow jog. After runs, I recommend stretching and foam rolling afterwards as well. Because of the nature of the coaching that I do, those kinds of things are prescribed but not always followed, depending on the client. But if I build a running cool down into a workout, at least I know that they're going to do that. I'm always open to changing how I do things, however, and to do that I need to know what the research is showing, which is why I do a lot of reading and continuing education. I'm always looking out for different certifications that I can get, just so that I'm more well-rounded and so that I know what's going on in the coaching and running and I'm also a personal trainer and the things that are going on with that so that I can better serve my clients. My thoughts, though, when I first started hearing about it, about this controversy over cool downs was whether one does a formal cool down or not, your body will, in fact, cool down. So I mean it's not like if you don't run afterwards or if you don't do anything afterward, your body is still going to cool down. So at first, when I first started hearing it, I'm like well, your body's doing it anyway. So why is there a debate whether your body just doesn't keep running or keep the heart rate up and all that? So I looked a little bit deeper into it as time went on. The reasons coaches have used cool downs have ranged from stopping blood pooling in the legs to bringing the heart rate down, to facilitating a quicker recovery by causing the body to go from a catabolic state, which is the muscles breaking down, to an anabolic state, where they're building back up. So part of training adaptations happen when we run on fatigued legs as well. So extending a run by another mile or more, depending on your workout, in a cool down it gives you more mileage, which can translate to a lot of extra pace, doing it at a much slower pace than what you're doing your workout in. You're getting this extra mileage, but you're not beating yourself up for it.
Speaker 1:One of the studies that I've seen that has introduced the debate was done in 2018. And I'm going to link that to you in the show notes if you're interested in seeing the wider study and the more scientific things that went in it, and there are some tables and things like that that you can look at. This study looked at the effectiveness of cool-downs on injury prevention, which is a huge reason why we've always done them adaptive response and performance, among other things and they were working from the knowledge that, or the belief that, a cool down means more benefits to a runner than not doing them, and that's been the prevailing thought and not questioned actually for basically always. I think the conclusions that we are looking at are condensed in the review that I read, but then I found an article written by and I do not know how to pronounce. It's B-A-S, so I would say Bas Van Hoeren or Hoeren, but it's B-A-S-V-A-N-H-O-O-R-E-N and he is actually one of the people who did the study, and so that article is actually very interesting and I'll link to that as well in the show notes To highlight the conclusions. It was found that a cool-down was ineffective for enhancing a workout done on the same day. So sometimes you might have heard like of two-a-days or other kinds of workouts where you're running twice in one day and a cool-down that you did in the first run it wasn't shown to be effective in helping anything for the second one, but there was some benefit for a next-day performance.
Speaker 1:Interestingly, a cool-down did not seem to prevent injuries and a lot of what we do as coaches is build in different things into workouts and training. That is like injury prevention, so that we, our clients are, or our athletes are healthy and they can, you know, keep running and keep training and doing all the things that we're asking of them to do and the goals that they set and things like that. And so, because injuries can be pretty prevalent in runners, the things that we incorporate into some of our training is for injury prevention, and cool downs is one of the things that we've just done so that we could prevent those injuries, but it's showing that it doesn't actually help injury prevention. In relation to that, there seems to be studies being done more and more that are actually showing that the things that we are saying to do for injury prevention are not actually preventing injuries or staving them off. So, for example, static stretching before a run that has been shown to not prevent injuries. Now, the fact that a runner will get to a faster recovery of the cardio and respiratory system, which we've also always believed, that is still showing to be true. And as far as DOMS, or delayed onset muscle soreness, a warmup has been shown to have a positive effect so that you know later on in the day your muscles aren't as sore if you perform a warmup before a run. But a cool down has not been shown to do that. Which is very interesting to me that after a run, when you're doing your foam rolling or the static stretches that I recommend doing after a run, it has not been shown to prevent that delayed onset muscle soreness. So All that to say, keep doing those warm-ups, because that has been shown to do that. The study also nods at another study that showed that an active cool-down so a cool-down that is intentional and done soon after a workout has shown to lift lactate threshold after four weeks. Now there's a whole science behind lactate threshold and what's going on. But the theory here is that the extra training volume is what's translating to the higher lactate threshold and what's going on. But the theory here is that the extra training volume is what's translating to the higher lactate threshold, not the cool down itself. So if you're interested in lactate threshold, I will put some resources in the show notes for you so that you can dive a little bit deeper into what that is. We want our lactate threshold to be higher, but yeah, that's a whole other topic. So back to the cool down.
Speaker 1:After the very few studies that have been done on this, some runners and even coaches have decided that the research is saying there is no benefit at all to a cool down and we only do them because we always have. Now, personally, I think having whatever mileage accumulates due to a cool down is a good thing. Last week I went over why sometimes we think that we need a rest day when actually we need a run day, and so, you know, this kind of feeds into my sometimes we actually do need a little bit more miles to get better at running. I think for my clients and myself, having a cool down built into the workout, you know does have the benefit of that lactate threshold lift. I also feel that, especially after a hard workout, having a mile or two of slow, easy running has a psychological benefit as well. You know the workout is done, yet you still get a few more miles, and that it feels easy and kind of is a finisher For an easy run.
Speaker 1:Okay, not building in a cool down is fine. If you're going out for six easy miles, you know to then drop back for another whatever half mile mile, two miles, whatever at the end of that probably isn't going to do anything except for extend the run and give you that myelin. So cool downs consist in my world of running at a slower pace, recovery pace, one where you're able to talk and hold a conversation. You can also incorporate, after that foam rolling, static stretches. You can walk for your cool down and for more information on static versus dynamic stretches, again, check out the show notes.
Speaker 1:And you also should get some hydration and fuel into your body and consider that part of your cool down, or at least have that on your post-run checklist so that it's more likely that you will do that. I know sometimes. You know sometimes you get home from the run you're going to go take a shower and then you've got other things that you have to do. Sometimes it's because we're going off to work or whatever, and it can be who knows how long before you actually take a drink of water or you refuel your body after expending the calories for your workout. So if you consider some hydration and some fueling afterwards as part of your cool down, then that can be helpful in establishing that habit. So, even though the studies are showing that some of the things that we have originally thought about cool downs aren't true, there's enough benefit in my mind that, if you're my client, you are going to be doing a cool down.