All of these things are important to any exercise routine. The average person should be doing about a five minute warm-up before any type of exercise (other special populations, such as pregnant women, should probably take about 10 minutes). I believe that warming up also improves performance. For me, it gets me mentally "in the zone." With stretching, I like to do it after my cool-down. However, I sometimes do some stretching during my workout if I am feeling a bit too tight. Just listen to your body. And don't forget to keep the cool-down as a part of your routine. Cooling down safely brings your heart rate back down to normal, especially after a hard workout.
There are right and wrong ways to stretch, so here are some tips on getting it right:
1. Warm up first. This means doing some sort of light cardio to raise your body temperature slightly. Your mucles are more elastic when they are warm. Stretching is NOT a warm-up.
2. Stretch every day, not just after a workout. To really get benefits from stretching, you should do it pretty much every day. Apparently it helps improve overall performance, and strengthens tissue.
3. Ballistic, or "bouncy," stretching is probably not a good idea. It is better to slowly move into position and hold it for about 10 seconds.
4. Stretch from all sides. If your quads are loose but your hamstrings are tight, you're setting yourself up for injury. This applies to weight training as well. Train opposing groups!
5. Breathe, and envision the muscle you're stretching. This also helps with weight training. A recent study had one group working a specific muscle group, and the other group only envisioned working it and making it stronger. The latter group saw greater gains. It is amazing what the mind can do.
I have been stretching a lot more since my pain started. It isn't making it better, whatever is wrong, but I am sure it can't hurt. Sometimes it does give me very temporary relief. It may even be preventing it from getting worse.
Here are some good articles to read:
Hamstring Muscle Injuries
New Thoughts About When Not to Strech
How to Stretch
Stretching
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