Whether you’re lifting weights at the gym or coming back from a 10k run, factoring in a cool down after exercise is crucial to help prevent injury, ease delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and stretch your muscles.

Cooling down after exercise is just as important as warming up, helping the blood to keep flowing through the body and preventing unpleasant side effects, such as light headedness, that can come about when a sudden stop in exercise causes our blood pressure to drop.

While there are plenty of different ways you can cool down after exercise, stretching tends to be the most commonly used method. You can do this with no tools whatsoever, simply by holding each stretch for 10 to 30 seconds, or, if you really want to level up your cool-down routine you can incorporate one of the best foam rollers or best massage guns.

To find out more about why a cool-down routine is so important post-exercise, we spoke to our experts in sport and physiology, to find out why it’s so integral for recovery, the best way to cool down after a workout, and an example of the stretches we can incorporate into our routine.

Why cooling down after exercise is important

“To understand why cooling down after exercise is important, we must first understand what happens during exercise,” says Uzo Ehiogu, a Specialist Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist (MSK Rehabilitation) at the Royal Orthopedic Hospital Birmingham, UK. “During exercise, we subject the body to stress, which can affect both the muscular, connective tissues, neurological tissues, and bone.”

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Lead physiotherapist

Urban Body’s lead physiotherapist, Phil Evans, has a private clinic in Solihull and was an official physio at this year’s Commonwealth Games, working with elite athletes.

Child's pose

Start on all fours (your hands and knees).Drop your buttocks back onto your heels.Stretch your hands forwards, dropping your head between your shoulders towards the floor. You will feel this stretch through your back and upper arms.Hold the stretch for 60-90 seconds without discomfort levels going above 4/10.

Pigeon pose

Start on all fours (your hands and knees).Bring your right knee forward and get as much external rotation in your hip as you can.Lay your leg down on the mat and lower your chest down to the floor as far as you can. You will feel this stretch through your right buttock/hip.Hold the stretch for 60-90 seconds without discomfort levels going above 4/10.Repeat for your left hip.This article is not meant to offer medical advice and readers should consult their doctor or healthcare professional before adopting any diet or exercise regime.