My Do’s and Don’ts for Warm-up and Cool-down
|
The warm-up and cool-down are the so often misunderstood part of training for workouts and athletics. But the warm-up and cool-down for lifting, running, or sports is as important as the activity itself!
How you ask? Good question!
|
|
Don'tDon’t skip your warm-up when running short on time
You’ll be performing with cold muscles leading to risk of injury and negatively impacts performance. |
DoDo instead a shorter more intense workout
This allows you to shock your muscles with more intensity over a shorter time. Even if you’re not running short on time this is good to do occasionally. |
|
Don’t stretch without knowing what stretches to use and how to perform them
Stretching wrong for your warm-up and cool-down can lead to an injury; you might not feel it right away, but eventually you will. |
Do Dynamic Stretches for warm-up (Pre-workout): Dynamic movement stretching is ideal prior to exercise to prepare the joints for movement and muscles for optimal activation. These stretches are designed to take a joint or a muscle through a challenging and repetitive motion, moving a body part further with each repetition. This improves your performance for lifting, running or a sport.
Do Static Stretches for cool-down (Post Workout): Static sustained stretches are designed to hold a position for a joint or a muscle that is minimally challenging. The focus is on relaxing the body part being stretched and letting it go further on its own. Research suggests that holding the position for 30–60 seconds will increase flexibility in the tissue; conversely, done prior to activity, static stretching may actually inhibit the muscle’s ability to fire. |
|
Don’t use improper form to be able to do an exercise
Improper form is counterproductive because cheating incorporates other muscles to help with the lift leading to less muscle growth. |
Do focus on feeling the exercise stimulating the muscles they are intended to; you’ll get faster results and diminish the chance of injury. If you still can’t do the exercise properly do an alternative exercise that is similar.
|
Following are just a few sports mistakes I made in the past from my being in a hurry that led to injury!
Weight training for bodybuilding mistake I made from not warming up correctly
On a July 4th (5 weeks before a competition in LA) I was running late to train with a friend from Austria. After we did my workouts for 4 days we were doing his arms workout. I didn’t have much time afterward so I decided to skip my warm-up…I knew better than to skip it but I did anyway. We were doing barbell curls with 135 pounds which was heavy because I was cutting water weight for the bodybuilding competition. On the 5th repetition I felt my muscles flexing more than ever…closed my eyes to put more effort into it and heard a loud POP…I looked down and my left bicep was unattached from my shoulder. After surgery I found out my bicep tendon ripped from the bone. This could have been avoided if I followed the proper lifting procedure of shortening the workout so I could warm-up and cool-down correctly.
Stretching is not a competition so don’t stretch beyond your capabilities
The day after doing a photo shoot in LA for Ironman Fitness Magazine I was at Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach stretching the soreness out of my muscles. In the stretching area of the gym a female model was stretching next to me and her flexibility was amazing, as were her looks. Seeing her being so flexible led to my Type A Personality rising to the surface and my trying to stretch even farther. Big mistake…my right hamstring went POP! From improper stretching, and my male ego, I not only spent the next few days limping around Santa Monica/Venice Beach, but it became a nagging injury.
Softball League game injury from not warming up correctly
Softball players typically consider a warm-up to be standing and throwing the ball back and forth. I rarely saw a player jogging or stretching. To fit in I would always stretch and jog at home before leaving for the ballpark. One time I had to leave from a previous event so I just threw the ball and played the game. After hitting the ball to the outfield I was going for a double, halfway between first base and second base I felt my right hamstring pull and barely made it to second base. I had to leave the game and finished the season with my leg wrapped and playing at about 70% of my ability.
Racquetball game injury from not warming up correctly
I was in a league and running late for a match. Instead of asking for a few extra minutes to warm-up I started the match with cold muscles. Now if I was smart, and less competitive, I would have started out slowly to allow my muscles to warm-up, but not this guy, I went hard after all the shots; sprinting forward to make a shot I heard a POP again from my right calf. I pulled the muscle really bad and had to forfeit; I not only lost that match, but my season was done.
Running mistake I made from not warming up correctly
Don’t pass up a slow jog as part of your warm-up. For my first 5K race I stretched well enough, but I ignored what I had read about doing fast runs for short bursts before the race. I decided I’d save my steps for the race. The gun went off and so did the racers and myself. At the first mile marker I felt pain in my shins and had to mentally block the pain the whole race. My time wasn’t as good as it could have been if I only would have followed the runner’s race warm-up formula and prepared my body for the race speed to come. For all the races I ran afterward I never had that problem again.
In conclusion, to skip a warm-up and a cool-down is like playing Russian roulette with one bullet in the chamber which will eventually be fired, eventually there will be the one time your improper warm-up will lead to injury. Trust me, I know from experience!
Here are Dynamic and Static Stretches: https://www.mesbodysculpting.com/stretches.html
A related blog on Personalized Stretching for Your Sport: https://www.mesbodysculpting.com/personalize-stretching-for-your-sport.html
To help prevent injury I also recommend strengthening your Core: https://www.mesbodysculpting.com/core.html
Weight training for bodybuilding mistake I made from not warming up correctly
On a July 4th (5 weeks before a competition in LA) I was running late to train with a friend from Austria. After we did my workouts for 4 days we were doing his arms workout. I didn’t have much time afterward so I decided to skip my warm-up…I knew better than to skip it but I did anyway. We were doing barbell curls with 135 pounds which was heavy because I was cutting water weight for the bodybuilding competition. On the 5th repetition I felt my muscles flexing more than ever…closed my eyes to put more effort into it and heard a loud POP…I looked down and my left bicep was unattached from my shoulder. After surgery I found out my bicep tendon ripped from the bone. This could have been avoided if I followed the proper lifting procedure of shortening the workout so I could warm-up and cool-down correctly.
Stretching is not a competition so don’t stretch beyond your capabilities
The day after doing a photo shoot in LA for Ironman Fitness Magazine I was at Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach stretching the soreness out of my muscles. In the stretching area of the gym a female model was stretching next to me and her flexibility was amazing, as were her looks. Seeing her being so flexible led to my Type A Personality rising to the surface and my trying to stretch even farther. Big mistake…my right hamstring went POP! From improper stretching, and my male ego, I not only spent the next few days limping around Santa Monica/Venice Beach, but it became a nagging injury.
Softball League game injury from not warming up correctly
Softball players typically consider a warm-up to be standing and throwing the ball back and forth. I rarely saw a player jogging or stretching. To fit in I would always stretch and jog at home before leaving for the ballpark. One time I had to leave from a previous event so I just threw the ball and played the game. After hitting the ball to the outfield I was going for a double, halfway between first base and second base I felt my right hamstring pull and barely made it to second base. I had to leave the game and finished the season with my leg wrapped and playing at about 70% of my ability.
Racquetball game injury from not warming up correctly
I was in a league and running late for a match. Instead of asking for a few extra minutes to warm-up I started the match with cold muscles. Now if I was smart, and less competitive, I would have started out slowly to allow my muscles to warm-up, but not this guy, I went hard after all the shots; sprinting forward to make a shot I heard a POP again from my right calf. I pulled the muscle really bad and had to forfeit; I not only lost that match, but my season was done.
Running mistake I made from not warming up correctly
Don’t pass up a slow jog as part of your warm-up. For my first 5K race I stretched well enough, but I ignored what I had read about doing fast runs for short bursts before the race. I decided I’d save my steps for the race. The gun went off and so did the racers and myself. At the first mile marker I felt pain in my shins and had to mentally block the pain the whole race. My time wasn’t as good as it could have been if I only would have followed the runner’s race warm-up formula and prepared my body for the race speed to come. For all the races I ran afterward I never had that problem again.
In conclusion, to skip a warm-up and a cool-down is like playing Russian roulette with one bullet in the chamber which will eventually be fired, eventually there will be the one time your improper warm-up will lead to injury. Trust me, I know from experience!
Here are Dynamic and Static Stretches: https://www.mesbodysculpting.com/stretches.html
A related blog on Personalized Stretching for Your Sport: https://www.mesbodysculpting.com/personalize-stretching-for-your-sport.html
To help prevent injury I also recommend strengthening your Core: https://www.mesbodysculpting.com/core.html