Great warm up exercises to improve your dull work out

Life is hectic. From dusk until dawn, many of us are slammed and go from task to task trying to be quick and efficient with little to no lag time in between. With such busy schedules we can find ourselves rushing through work outs as well. Some days you can be in a bit of a time crunch and a quick 10-15 minute work out is all you can squeeze in but for the training sessions that you can devote more time there is one area of the work out that is often over looked or can definitely be improved on and that is the warm-up.

How does warming up make my work out easier?

 Properly warming up should do the following:

• Increase body temperature: this improves the elasticity of muscles, helping prevent strains and pulls.
• Increase blood flow: if you are going to be running, sprinting, weight training, etc your muscles will need more oxygen than you would in a resting state.
• Increase range of motion: after being in a static position for an extended period of time such as driving, sitting, or sleeping you are likely to be stiff and joint range of motion could be less than optimal.
• Mental preparation: this is the time for you to “get in the zone”, clear your head, and begin to focus on the task or workout at hand.

 

So what do you feel after a great warm up?

You go into your workout moving and feeling like an agile leopard ready to pounce instead of like Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz who is mumbling “oil” from the corner of his mouth because he is so stiff and can’t move.

 

The smart approach to your warm up:

Warm-ups should also be specific to the workout to come as well and should be focused on the muscles and joints affected by the workout to come. For instance if you are shoulder pressing that day, getting your shoulders warmed up and mobile would take priority over your hips and ankles at the time. The warm-up should also gradually increase in intensity as well. Beginning with general low level ground based activities first and then slowly working your way up to general standing dynamic movement, and then finally sport or task specific movements.

 

The Exercises for a Great Warm-Up

Here is a general warm-up routine that will suite all of your needs and will hit on the 4 bullet points covered earlier without getting into anything too specific. This will get all of your joints moving fluidly and get your heart rate up for your next workout to come without any equipment. If you are more visual or do not know what the exercises are, the attached video shows each exercise in the order listed.

1. Deadbug: x8/side
2. Hip Bridge: x8 (2 second hold at the top)
3. Single Leg Hip Bridge: x5/side
4. Bird Dog: x8/side
5. Hip Rocks: x10
6. Kneeling Step Outs: x8/side
7. Prayer Squat: x8/side
8. Windmill: x8/side
9. Frankenstein Kicks: x8/side
10. Butt Kicks: x10/side
11. High Knees: x10/side
12. Bounds: x10/side
13. Broad Jumps: x8

One time through this should get your heart rate up, increase blood flow to your muscles, get your joints moving optimally, and get your head in the game for the workout. After this you would then go into your warm-up sets for whatever exercise or movement you are emphasizing that day.

 

The 4 P’s:

Preparation prevents poor performance. If you do not prepare for your workout then you can be cutting yourself short and also increase your risk for injury because unfortunately, weight training and athletics is not 100% injury free but that does not mean we shouldn’t do our best to prevent them as much as we can.

Figuring out the order of exercises can be tough

If you or someone you know is still not sure how to organize their warm-up for their specific needs, your goals and workouts have plateaued, or you have hit the point where you are ready make positive changes to your lifestyle, mentality, and physicality, feel free to come into Wilmington Performance Lab for a free assessment to discuss your goals and tour the facility.

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I specialize in strength/power development, body composition transformation, and corrective strategies for optimal movement.

 

 

 

 

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