Just fitting in a workout can be challenging enough, so it's easy to understand why most people don't want to tack on the extra few minutes for a warm-up. But by being willing to perform a 10-minute warm-up, you can make a big impact on the quality of your workout. Those extra minutes can mean can cause you to burn more calories during your cardio sessions and be able to lift more weight in your strength training workouts.
Why It's Important to Not Skip a Warm-up!
An ideal warm-up prepares both your body and mind for the activity ahead. It increases blood flow and breathing rate, so that oxygen and nutrients can get to your working tissues more efficiently. It increases the amount of synovial fluid, or lubricating fluid, in your joints, so that you can move more smoothly. It increases body temperature, making your muscles more limber and able to contract with greater force.
You know that if you were to walk into the gym and start jogging on the treadmill or lifting weights right away, it would take you a few minutes to really get going. But by going into your workout focused and with your blood flow, breathing rate and body temperature already firing on all cylinders, you can charge your work rate up to a higher intensity more quickly. Not to mention, you lower your risk of injury if your body is warm.
The Two Components of a Good Warm-up: General & Specific
Component #1: General Exercise
A general warm-up is designed to wake up your body from rest. It lasts five minutes and can include any type of activity that is cardiovascular based. For example, jogging, jumping rope, or riding a stationary bike or elliptical machine works just fine. The goal in this first component of a warm-up is to increase breathing rate and to increase your body temperature until you begin to perspire.
Most people prefer to do the same general warm-up before every single workout. They feel like making it a habit helps them better prepare mentally. However, you're welcome to do what works for you. If you prefer to change up the activity of your general warm-up (jog one day, jump rope the next), go on ahead.
Component #2: Specific Exercises
The specific component of the mind-body warm-up also lasts five minutes, but should include multiple types of exercises that target the muscles that are going to be primarily worked during your session. These activities should also be dynamic in nature, which means that they involve you continuously moving.
For example, if you're going to do a full-body weight training workout, dynamic activities like body-weight squats, walking lunges, leg swings, and standing toe raises will help prep the lower body, while activities like arm-swings, torso twists, and wall push-ups will help warm-up the upper body. If you're warming up for a cardio workout, such as a run on the treadmill, the lower body exercises are ideal.
Static stretches, which are the ones that you hold for 20 to 30 seconds, should only be done at the end of your workout. Doing them beforehand can decrease the intensity and speed of muscle contractions. Doing them afterwards, however, when your muscles are still warm, can help improve flexibility.
Where Mind Preparation Comes In
A warm-up is as much for preparing your mind as it is to get your body ready. As you're going through your general and specific warm-up components, think about your training goals for that specific day. Go over what you're hoping to accomplish in the session.
For example, your goal could be to run 2 minutes on the treadmill within 20 minutes. Or it could be that you're looking to improve your technique of your back squat. Going over these goals during your warm-up will better help you go into your session motivated, rather than simply going through the motions.
Examples of a Proper Warm-up
Put together a mind-body warm-up for each type of workout, whether it's a cardio training, weight training, or high-intensity circuit session.
Here are some examples:
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Workout: Running Total warm-up time: General:
Specific: |
Workout: Full-Body Lift Total warm-up time: General:
Specific: |
Workout: High-Intensity Circuit Total warm-up time: General:
Specific: |