The 3 Most Important Things to Address in Your Warm-Up

Nobody really likes to “warm up.” However, a good warm-up will keep you healthy and prepare you for intense activity. There are a number of important factors in developing a sound warm-up. The following are three areas that I have found to have the greatest impact in improving your health and performance.

Address Soft Tissue Restrictions: 

Use a foam roller, PVC pipe, lacrosse/tennis ball, and/or massage stick. In order for you to improve movement quality, it is crucial that you take the time to perform self-massage (myofascial release) before your training session. In doing so, the following mobility drills and weight-bearing exercises have a better chance of changing the orientation of your tissue, therein improving your posture and movement quality.

Address Mobility at the Ankles, Hips and Upper Back/Shoulders:

A solid warm-up should do more than just raise your core temperature. This is the opportune time to work on any movement issues you have. Most issues I see are at the ankle, hip, upper back and shoulder joints. Without proper mobility in these areas, you will not be able to move in the desired range of motion. Make sure your warm up includes mobility drills for each of these areas. Adequate mobility not only keeps you healthy but helps you to move more efficiently. When you move efficiently, you will create more power and move more weight.

Incorporate Jumps, Throws and Sprints: 

Depending on the focus for that day’s training session, I always include an explosive movement to prime the nervous system. The central nervous system is responsible for sending the message to skeletal muscle to produce a desired movement. Jumps, throws and sprints will help to improve your neuromuscular coordination. Improved neuromuscular coordination means that you will be better able to produce a coordinated firing of the muscles involved in the lift. Here is an example of appropriate programming:

Squatting → Warm up with Squat Jump→ Box Jump Variations

Bench/Overhead Pressing → Warm up with Medicine Ball Chest-Pass Variations

Deadlifting→ Warm up with Broad Jump, Sprint Variations

Doing Chin-upss → Warm up with Overhead Medicine Ball Slam

Re-evaluate what you’re doing for a warm-up and start incorporating these into your routine. You can expect less pain, better performance and more purpose in those first 15 minutes in the gym. All of those are good things-get going.