by Coach Aaron Hyatt
A great workout starts with a great warmup. A warm-up should not be easy. It might start out “easy” but should progress to the point that when you are finished, you’re ready to go full steam into the workout. A great warm-up fires up your entire neuromuscular system, increases the temperature of your muscles, and lengthens your fascia. A “warm” muscle and lengthened fascia can generate more energy and force and react more efficiently to any demand you place on them. That is why the warm-up prepares your body for any movement you will perform. Your heart rate will increase, your muscles will feel loose, and your mind and body will be fully prepared for the workout. Additionally, the warm-up will keep you safe and help prevent injury during your workout.
A warm-up consists of preparatory activities and functionally based movements that are specifically designed to prepare the body for exercise. The purpose of the specific warm-up is to allow the body to gradually adjust to the changing physiological demands of the exercise session. A dynamic warm can result in noticeable improvements in fundamental movement skills.
The warm-up can provide the opportunity for athletes to gain confidence in their ability to perform movement skills. A proper warm-up can contribute to movement skill development and can make a valuable contribution to the overall conditioning program.
These are just some of the reasons not to “phone it in” during the warm-up. If you are consistently late, skip the warm-up, rush through the warm-up, or simply don’t take it seriously, you are missing out on a huge aspect of training.
