As a former high school track runner and collegiate football player, I learned the value of warming up properly. Whether you’re an athlete or not, it is vital to ensure a proper warm-up before the start of competition. Now you may be saying to yourself, “I am NOT an athlete! What am I competing against?” Look at it this way: you’re competing against the exercise that wants to defeat your comfort zone. You’re competing against laziness, lack of discipline, that can’t-do-it mentality, you name it. Understand that it doesn’t have to be an actual team or person on the other side for it to be a competition.
When you focus on warming up properly, you will most likely increase muscle temperature, core temperature, and blood flow to your active muscles. This will increase the chances of improvements in muscle strength and power as a result of faster muscle contraction and relaxation. You’ll also improve reaction time, get better oxygen flow through your body, and experience less resistance in your muscles.
I’m used to what’s called dynamic stretching, which is often geared more towards athletes and their sport-specific movements. In my opinion, it’s beneficial for everyone because dynamic stretching helps to improve the range of motion around your joints, which better prepares you to complete all movements included in your full workout. A few examples of dynamic stretches are walking knee lifts, high knees, butt kicks, leg kicks, bounds, and jumps.
Once I’m done with my dynamic stretches I like to end my warm up with a little bit of static stretching. This is just a slow and constant movement with the end position being held for 15-30 seconds.
Please remember that your warm-up is what ultimately sets the tone for your workout. Lazy warm-up means lazy workout. A focused and intense warm-up means a more powerful and productive workout. There’s no doubt that stretching takes much discipline, but the results that follow a well-designed warm-up and workout routine are definitely worth the extra effort and commitment. Being disciplined in your warm-up routine does not just benefit your workout but also brings much added value to your everyday life. In those focused moments, you will learn to listen to your body and come to recognize and appreciate your incremental progress that may otherwise get overlooked. What’s more, you’ll see and understand that there’s power in mastering the little things, which will empower you to be the best competitor you can be.