A Guide to Warm-Ups

Is a warm-up really necessary? There is some debate over the efficacy of warming up before a workout, and even further debate over what kind of warm-up is best if you choose to do one. In this blog post, I will explain when a warm-up should be done, and what type of warm-up is best for your specific workout. The term “warm-up” gets its name from one of its intended purposes: to warm up the body temperature. When our body temperature increases through movement, there is greater blood flow, oxygen availability, and nervous system awareness. It is proposed that warming up may increase performance during a workout while also reducing risk of injury (The Muscle and Strength Pyramid Training Guide; Helms 221). Importantly, the necessity of warming up largely depends upon the type of workout you plan to perform. Generally, the more intense a workout, the more likely that warming-up is a good idea. For example, if we plan to lift heavy weights, perform a cardio modality (e.g., running, cycling, swimming, etc.) at a fast pace, or play an explosive sport (e.g., soccer, field hockey, basketball, etc.), the more demanding the workout is on our muscles, nervous system, and cardiovascular system. Rather than jumping straight into an intense physical activity, spending 5 -15 minutes performing some kind of low-intensity movement that increases your body temperature will gradually prepare these biological systems in your body for subsequent higher intensity demands. If your workout is less intense, such as low-intensity cardio like walking, warming up is less likely to provide a benefit because the workout itself does not pose a great injury risk, and there is no expectation of delivering a high performance. That said, I see little harm in performing a warm-up regardless if time allows. Let’s say your workouts are generally more intense or performance-oriented, so you recognize that warming-up before working out is best for you. The question then remains, what kind(s) of warm-up should you do? Quite simply, you want a warm-up to move your body in a similar fashion to that of the workout itself. If the exercise is dynamic in nature, that is, movement in various directions and

velocities, or applying a variety of forces (e.g., explosive sports, or high intensity cardio), a warm-up consisting of a

variety of dynamic movements that include movement in all 3 planes of motion with varying velocities and forces would be best. For example, high knees, skips, lateral steps, karaoke steps, leg swings, and open and close the gate, are fantastic movement patterns that, in combination, take you through all 3 planes of motion. I personally use these movements for athletes who will be performing higher intensity runs, sprints, or agility drills. You can access a 3-minute video I made here that covers 10-dynamic warm-up movements. If the exercise is less dynamic and focused more on a single movement pattern, such as a barbell front squat, simply performing this movement at an initial lighter weight and gradually increasing weight until you get to your working weight is a great way to warm-up. The lower your working set repetition target is, the more warm-up sets I recommend performing. For example, if your working sets for the front squat will be performed at 5 reps, I would perform 5-6 warm-up sets in that movement. Let’s say your working weight for a set of 5 reps is 160 lbs. Your first warm-up set could be just the bar for 10 reps, the second warm-up set at 50% of the working weight for 5 reps, and for all subsequent warm-up

sets, increase the weight by 10-20% while decreasing the reps by one until you reach your working weight (bar x 10, 80lbs x 5, 100lbs x 4, 120lbs x 3, 130lbs x 2, 140lbs x 1). If your workout consists of higher repetition sets, like barbell back squats for sets of 10, then you may only need to do 3 or 4 warm-up sets beginning with 50% of your working weight for 8-10 reps, and increasing weight by 20% while decreasing reps by 2-4 per warm-up set (Helms, 224).

Performing light weight sets of the exact exercise you are performing during the workout allows you to practice the movement using good technique with greater ease. Ultimately, warming-up is never really a bad idea. The only time I don’t warm-up myself is when I am time-constrained and the workout itself is less intense. If I have adequate time or if I am performing a higher intensity workout, a warm-up is always performed first. Hopefully this blog post explains some of the nuance to warm-ups and acts as a guide to help you determine which warm-up is best for you!