Why do you bother warming up?

There are lots of good reasons to warm up, but if you asked the general population what they got out of it, I'd imagine the answers would be pretty weak. I train lots of clued up people, but I very rarely see a client who takes their warm up as seriously as they take their workout.

If you're reading this then I guess you care about your health. You've paid for a gym membership and you keep a strict diet. Even though you are busy you make time to train. You take supplements to give your body the best possible platform and you see yourself as dedicated. But if you don't warm up properly and correctly then you are cutting yourself short. 

Your warm up is not only a time to prepare your body but a time to prepare your mind. Take deep breaths, think.

At this point, leave any mental or emotional baggage outside the gym, it serves no purpose in there. Imagine your goal, let it motivate you from within. Read over your programme, and then begin the pre-exercises. 

Now that your mind is focussed, ensure you know what you're doing and why you're doing it. The reason for a warm up is not just to prevent injury, because the evidence for that is tenuous at best. The reason why you should warm up is that it primes your body for maximum performance. 



Self Myofascial Release/Foam Rolling

This primarily improves range of motion through increasing soft tissue felxibility, without negatively affecting performance. This is important to get the most out of your exercise. To perform exercises correctly and without compensation good mobility is crucial. The better the form, the better the response to training. Take time to cover your whole body. Work out the sore spots, they are not supposed to be there. 

Static Stretching

Static stretching improves range of motion, but it does result in a loss of both maximal muscle strength and muscle endurance. 
But don't discount it there and ten, static stretching can be used to improve technique, long term durability and performance as long as you know how to use it. The acute decrease in performance is muscle inhibition. Some muscles need to be inhibited in order to restore normal function. 

These are muscles that have become tonic, meaning they are relatively tight compared to their antagonist. This can result in an imbalance, poor posture, improper development and ultimately pain. Stretching these will improve your soft tissue balance, meaning you are in the perfect state to train. 

Dynamic Stretching 

After having improved mobility, and inhibiting imbalances  Use dynamic stretching to re-teaching your body it's natural movement patterns for pain free longevity. Include all aspects of primal movement, reaching your limits of mobility and stretching them. Finish with some more demanding/intense movements, to promote blood flow and raise the heart rate. 

Now begin your training, focussed, flexible, warm and ready to give 100% to your training. But when everyone asks how you can be so switched on in every session, keep them guessing, it can be our little secret. 



Refs
Macdonald GZ, Penney MD, Mullaley ME, Cuconato AL, Drake CD, Behm DG, Button DC. (2013). An acute bout of self-myofascial release increases range of motion without a subsequent decrease in muscle activation or force.. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 27 (3), p812-821.

Nelson A, Kokkonen J, Arnall D. (2005). ACUTE MUSCLE STRETCHING INHIBITS MUSCLE STRENGTH ENDURANCE PERFORMANCE. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 19 (2), p338-343.

McMillian DJ, Moore JH, Hatler BS, Taylor DC.. (2006). Dynamic vs. static-stretching warm up: the effect on power and agility performance.. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 20 (3), p492-499.