Warming up for a Great Workout

You’re a little late to the gym this time around and it’s early in the morning right when your day starts to begin.  Not only are you late to the gym, you also have a very important scheduled business meeting at work, and being a couple minutes late is definitely not an option for you.  You realize that you’re going to have to cut some corners if you’re going to be able to finish your workout.  One of the first corners you decide to cut is your pre-workout warm-up.  You might not think it, but skipping out on your workout may be the biggest mistake to start out your workout if you’re wanting to move heavier weights for more reps and still be able to finish your workout without any injuries.

A proper warm-up should start with a general nonspecific activity (meaning it’s not simply repeating the activity you’re about to do) such as 5-10 minutes of a low to moderate intensity cardiovascular exercise.  The physiological purpose of this nonspecific warm-up is to increase your heart rate, core body temperature and blood flow to the muscles.  Additionally, this general warm-up can help you to mentally prepare for the workout ahead.

Contrary to popular belief, the next step should not include static stretching.  Instead, shift your focus to a specific warm-up for the muscles you’ll be training.  There are many benefits to incorporating an appropriate warm-up into every training regimen.  Physiologically, as the temperature of muscles increases, they’re able to contract more forcefully and relax more quickly.  This ability leads to increased speed and strength.  Increased body temperature also leads to greater elasticity within the muscle, which means the likelihood of straining a muscle is lessened.  Finally, a warm-up initiates an internal increase in various hormones within the body responsible for regulating energy production, thus making carbohydrates and fatty acids more available for this process.

Clearly there are many significant benefits to incorporating an appropriate warm-up into your training regimen.  Do not confuse this warm-up with a protocol that includes simply static stretches because you should never stretch a muscle until after it’s warm.  Even if you’re pressed for time, you should still make time to warm up before your resistance training as the warm-up may help to reduce the likelihood of injuries and will prepare your body to perform at a higher level.  If you must take shortcuts, cutting down on your overall training volume or decreasing your rest periods between sets are probably smarter choices.