For many runners, doing a warm-up is a bit like eating your broccoli – we all know it’s good for us, but it can feel pretty tedious. The good news is, we came across a story that suggests a far more relaxing and enjoyable approach: “Why a walk in the woods could make your next workout feel easier.” A new study found that spending 90 minutes in a woodland setting before an endurance test improved time to exhaustion by 7.5 percent compared to being in an industrial urban environment. The 25 subjects showed little difference in oxygen uptake, leading researchers to suspect the boost is primarily psychological. They attribute this to the environmental mismatch hypothesis, a theory suggesting our bodies function best in the natural environments we evolved in rather than cities filled with traffic and artificial light. Since we cannot always manage an hour-and-a-half forest wander before lacing up, you can also prime your body with a quicker physical protocol like this one: “Running Warm Up: 10-Minute Routine to Run Better.” Many experts now advise against static stretching before a run. Instead, you might be better off incorporating dynamic stretches to promote blood flow and raise muscle temperature. Aim for 10 to 20 minutes of light cardio to raise your heart rate, followed by movements like leg swings, lunges, and bounds. These dynamic exercises activate your fast-twitch muscle fibers, improve joint control, and increase tissue tolerance, which may help improve running economy and reduce perceived effort. If you’re warming up before competing, the race distance will determine the proper duration and intensity of your warmup. For more on that, revisit our guide explaining why “You might need a harder warmup for your next 5K.”

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