How much attention do you pay to your warm-up before you start exercising? If the answer is "not much," it's time to change that. There are 5 crucial mistakes you can make with your warm-up that can seriously hinder your workout. And of course you don't want to make that!
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Skipping your warm-up can be tempting, especially if you don't have much time and still want to train. Unfortunately, it can do more harm than good… After all, the goal of your warm-up is to raise your body temperature and relax your muscles so they can do work. The warm-up also ensures that hormones are released that prepare you for your workout. That is why it is useful if you include warm-up exercises that are similar to the exercises that you will do in your workout, so that you can prepare your brain and body for what is to come.
This is how you solve it :A good warm-up includes a few minutes of activity that gets your heart rate up, combined with dynamic movements to relax your muscles, such as arm circles and lunges. You can also do some balance exercises to get your heart rate up and get more blood pumped to your muscles.
Slow and steady is always the best combination! Your warm-up should mimic your workout in terms of the movements, but much less intensely and at a slower pace. Think of it as your slow motion workout! This warm-up is dynamic, preparing your body for your workout, but not at full capacity. So you warm up your body to be able to function at full capacity, that is not possible from the first moment!
This is how you solve it :Do a low-intensity dynamic warm-up before each workout. Make sure the moves in your warm-up are similar to those in your workout, but a little more relaxed. For example, are you going for a run? Then do knee-ups or butt-kicks as a warm-up. Are you planning to do a lot of squats, deadlifts and/or lunges? Then do dynamic stretches for your lower body.
Stretching is extremely important for your workouts, but only when it's the right form of stretching. A static stretch—where you hold a stretch for 30 seconds or more—can improve your flexibility and agility, increase your range of motion, and speed up your blood flow. Still, a static stretch is not useful for your warm-up. In fact, it can actually hinder your workout. Static stretches can affect your muscle strength, which of course you don't want right before you start a workout!
This is how you solve it :Make sure your pre-workout stretches always include movement. Stick to dynamic stretches before a workout and save your static stretches for after your workout.
We've all been guilty of this at some point:just warm up for two minutes and go! But an effective warm-up should last between 5 and 10 minutes for the best effect. The length of your warm-up is often determined by a number of factors, such as the duration and intensity of the exercises you do during your workout. Often the intensity of exercises decreases the longer your workout lasts, requiring a less intense warm-up. If you do a short workout that is a bit more intense, a longer warm-up will be more useful.
This is how you solve it :The more intense your workout, the longer you have to warm up. Your muscles need enough time to circulate blood and become more flexible. A good way to determine if your warm-up is sufficient is to use a timer and give yourself enough time to start sweating and speed up your breathing.
Just as you regularly adjust your workout to get the most out of your exercises, it is also important to change your warm-up regularly. After all, it's best to do a warm-up that resembles your workout, so you'll have to adjust your warm-up based on your new workout.
This is how you solve it :Running on the treadmill for 5 minutes isn't going to prepare you for an upper body workout. After all, you have to warm up the muscles that you will be using. Therefore, adjust your warm-up to the workout you are about to do, so that you have less chance of injuries and you will be able to perform your exercises better.
Source: Livestrong.com
