The results were varied. For the most part, there was an increase in the muscle after warming it up. There were only 4 runners that had no change and one runner with a negative change, which was due to error. All of the other runners increased in degrees, the greatest increase being 19 degrees.
Our original hypothesis stated that the angle of the arm muscle would be greater than the angle of the cold muscle. The data we found supports this idea, showing that if you warm-up first, your body will be more flexible, ultimately leading to a reduction of injuries. 25 out of the 30 runners had a greater stretch after their muscle had been warmed up. The one negative change of degrees occurred because her body was a little twisted while she was measured. It is possible that the 4 runners with no change of degrees had error attributed to them also.
There were many possible sources for error in our lab. First of all, the initial set-up had room for mistakes. Some of the people we tested had a tough time lying flat on the counter top, and that affected our measurements. Also, they sometimes had trouble relaxing their right leg (the one we measure) and keeping it steady enough for us to get an accurate reading. We should have used a better Newton scale with smaller hash-marks so we could get a more accurate reading. Because we had people run on different days, the outside temperature made a difference on how long it took for the muscles to warm-up. The runners who didn’t run at a comfortable pace also impacted our results. Those who ran faster or slower than what is comfortable for them warmed up their muscle more or less than they should have.
To fix some of these errors, it would be better to have all of the runners run at the same time. We could use a better equipment to measure, like a more accurate Newton scale. The experiment would also yield better results if our runners where more careful during the stretching and running stages.
A good way to extend this lab would be to look at the runners within the different groups and see if there is a correlation between performance and gender, athleticism, or class. A test in other leg muscles to see if they are effected by warming-up in the same way would be interesting. Also, it would be intriguing to see if other athletes had similar results if their main muscles were tested
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Hugdon, Hal. Run Fast: How to Train for a 5K or 10K Race. St. Martin’s Press, 1992.
Knight, Claudia A.; Rutledge, Carrier R.; Cox, Micheal E.; Acosta, Martha; Hall, Susan J. “Effect of Superficial Heat, Deep Heat, and Active Exercise Warm-up on the Extensibility of the Plantar Flexor.” 6/2001 Infotrac, 16 Oct. 2001. <http://wev1.infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/102/327/16382096w1/purl=ro1_ HRC-0-A765105158dvn=29tar-fmt?sw-aep=tuhs-main>.
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“Take a Break!” 8/2001 Infotrac, 16 Oct. 2001. <http://web1.infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/102/327/16382096w/purl=rol_ HRC-p-A774806338dvn=21/ar-fmt?sw-aep=tuhs-main>.
http://www.thestretchinghandbook.com -- Provides good instruction for stretching at home. Pictures that illustrate the exercises very well.
http://www.brucebrownlee.com/coaching/gameday/gamewarmups.htm -- Nontraditional ways of warming up that are not only beneficial but fun too.
http://jfg.girlscouts.org/Go/Fitness/Exercise/runstretch.htm -- They remind us that stretching should not be painful.
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/1306/10711 -- Stretching is important, and so is warming up. Combined you decrease your chance of getting injured in sports or in some sort of physical activity.
http://www.irelandsdance.com/dancersbody/stretching/ -- Stretching and warming up should be a major part of a dancer's routine.