Digitizing your workout starts with a good warm-up

We warm up to reduce injuries regardless of what fitness goal. With warming up, the objective is to mobilize and stabilize our joints – so that we can have the best workout possible. Here are 5 key benefits of warming up:

1.    Increase body temperature Increasing temperature allows for the increase of gradually synovial fluid in your joints which, in turn, will improve flexibility (1,3).

2.    Increase blood flow byproduct of gradual progressive intensity In a warm-up, dilated blood vessels help oxygen transport and nutrients to work muscles (1,3).

3.    Stimulate your nervous system capacity for work, For example, you can use a medicine ball for a dynamic warm-up (see below) that can stimulate areas of focus for that day such as a lower or upper body session (1,3).

4.    Enhance mobility via working the fascia As discussed by Bill Parisi on the Escape your limits podcast Podcast, he elaborated that fascia has certain receptors that have been shown to change when you apply pressure and friction with devices by elastic bands. Bill expresses devices like the styrofoam roller - used to work on fascia to help increase mobility of joints without disinhibiting the nervous system - to create the explosive force which has been indicated with old school static stretching. To understand further, listen to what Escape your limits podcast here as he does an amazing job explaining the facsia fitness approach and what fascia is and how to treat problems he sees in his perfromance practice(5).

5.    Prepare the mindset for work Through warm-ups, you can set the tone, motivation, and focus of the workout.

There are many great examples of warm-up movements and my favorite is from Vern Gambetta’s medicine ball manual. Here is a workout that I used mioCOACH workout builder to send to a client mioCUE app so they can see our current workout in the gym or if they have to do at home.

What are some current problems within our society that may impact your warm-up choices?

1.    Sedentary lifestyle = less movement variability = poor health. With the ever-growing demand and usage of technology, people are becoming less familiar with movement and just staying active. This leads to poor movement skills and as a result, more injuries such as ACL injuries, back injuries, hip replacements, etc.

2.    Repetitive trauma and joint balance. A great common-sense approach to training is Dr. Charlie Weingroff educational series Training=Rehab. I highly recommend visiting Dr. Charlie Weingroff website its a great source for applied training practices.

3.    Poor nutrition can lead to poor ability to perform. As you can imagine, this can be deemed as common sense, but here are some simple tips on consuming healthier food options and having a plan that is sustainable and meets your lifestyle.

a.   Limit processed foods and strive to eat whole food and locally produced if possible.

b.   Choose your healthy meat options such as from pastured farms (if possible), your chicken and eggs should be free-range and your fish should be wild not farmed.

c.    Lastly, if your goal is weight loss, work with a reputable registered dietician and get a plan that is sustainable for your whole lifestyle.

4.    Breathing. Yes, we said breathing. Research has shown the benefits breathing can have on your nervous system and the ability to perform under stressful times. Research has also shown that poor posture has an impact on your ability to effectively breathe. So if you’re looking for a solution, look at yoga!

5.    Poor Mechanics + High Training Volume = injury. The brain does not care about the quality of movements - it just tries to get the job done. So, it’s important to understand what ‘good’ movement is, so you can be successful in your training endeavors. All movement is a skill, if you do not think so, then why isn’t everyone an Olympian?

How to Design a Quality, Impactful Warm-up?

Here are 3 simple ground rules for planning your next warm-up:

1.    What is the space available? Do you have a space to do skips, shuffles, jumps or are you limited to doing a warm-up in place? Answer these questions and then you need to accept the limitations or advantages. Once complete, proceed to step 2

2.    What are the tools available? Do you have a Medicine ball, Styrofoam roller, Bands or just are you focusing primarily on bodyweight movement? Another great insight on designing a warm-up from Coach Martin Rooney Training For Warriors Founder discusses reaching a client's mindset.

3.    Be specific and use a smart approach. You need to prioritize the building blocks and start with a basic movement - not just crank out 100 burpees. And for our CrossFit athletes, this is by no means directed towards you, I am just saying we scale movement and intensity of the level of fitness of the athlete.

As a recap, here are our key takeaways on warming up for optimal performance:

1.    Myofacial work - soft tissue work. One of the greatest resources is Dr. Kelly Starret www.mobility wod.com

2.    Focus on bodyweight activities first such as locomotion or old school calisthenics.

3.    Leverage stability movements, such as yoga, that targets specific areas that cause inefficient movement.

4.    Practice gross motor movement connecting the joints, such as Medicine ball moves or kettlebell moves, that are more traditional strength applications of 6-8 reps and moderate intensity.

5.    Power moves - Proper, progressive, and prudent selection of a power move such as jump squat or med ball overhead throw.

For more information on mioCOACH or mioCUE programming please contact me at [email protected]

Work Cited

1. Baechle, TR and Earle, RW, eds. Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning (2nd ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2000.

2. Behm, DG, Button, DC, and Butt, JC. Factors affecting force loss with prolonged stretching. Can J Appl Physiol 26: 261–272, 2001.

3. Bishop, D. Warm-up II: performance changes following active warm-up and how to structure the warm-up. Sports Med 33: 483–498, 2003.

4. Church, JB, Wiggins, MS, Moode, FM, and Crist, R. Effect of warm-up and flexibility treatments on vertical jump performance. J Strength Cond Res 15: 332–336, 2001.

5. Parisi, Bill, Jonathan Allen Fascia Training: A Whole-System Approach