If you’ve just done a distant or foreign race and have a tight travel schedule, you might be stuck sitting in a car or plane seat mere hours after you cross the finish line – and that can hurt your recovery. ‘Moving is important to keep the blood flowing,’ says Dr William Roberts, medical director of the Twin Cities Marathon, in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, US. These travel-friendly moves boost circulation and keep your muscles loose.
1/ Leg raises
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While seated, slowly raise and lower your left knee (use your hands to pull higher). Repeat five times, then switch to the other leg.
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Before you begin your trip, lie by a wall and slide your legs up so you form an L-shape with the wall. Hold for five to 10 minutes.
3/ Half squats
While in a toilet queue, bend your knees and lower into a squat as far as feels comfortable. Repeat five to 10 times at a slow pace.
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4/ Ankle raises
From your seat, raise one knee and move your foot in a circle 20 times. Then do 20 in the other direction. Repeat with the other foot.
5/ Quad massage
Place your right forearm on your right quad. Push into the muscle and slide up and down using the arm like a massage stick. Switch legs.
6/ Leg extensions
Place both feet on the floor. Straighten your legs to raise your feet out in front (or as far under the seat in front as they can go). Lift five times.
Photography by Mitch Mandel
Kit has been a health, fitness, and running journalist for the past five years. His work has taken him across the country, from Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, to cover the 2016 Olympic Trials to the top of Mt. Katahdin in Maine to cover Scott Jurek’s record-breaking Appalachian Trail thru-hike in 2015.
