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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Have you ever skipped a warm-up before getting active? If so, you’re far from the only person to neglect this often overlooked but vital component of any fitness routine. While you may get away without properly preparing your body for sports or a workout a few times (especially when you’re younger), sooner or later you’ll likely encounter a pulled muscle, pain or injury as a result.

Why is Warming Up Important?

It is crucial to warm up your body before a workout to reduce the risk of injury and make the most out of your training session or sport. However, much of what you’ve likely been taught regarding proper warm-ups contradicts what your body needs before a workout. To make the most of your warm-up, you must build stability through your movement to prevent injuries. It’s also ideal to have your nervous system on board. Activating your central nervous system (CNS) ensures your body is ready to react to the demands you’ll place upon it. If our CNS is still stuck in boring-work-meeting-mode when you hit the gym after, well, a boring work meeting, then it’s not likely you’ll perform as well as you could if you sent the message that it’s time to get moving.

How to Warm Up Before a Workout

There are several beneficial movements that you can do to prepare your body correctly. Traditional stretching exercises, such as bending over to reach your toes, may not be ideal for warm-ups (though excellent for cool-downs) as they tell your body to relax the muscles protecting your joints. This is not helpful, especially when you need protective mechanisms for stability during heavy lifting sessions and quick direction changes in sports training. Instead, focus on dynamic movements similar to what you will be doing during your workout. These movements will prepare your CNS for the activity while increasing your range of motion and stability more naturally and safely. When choosing which movements to do during your warm-up, stick with ones that simulate what you will be doing during your training session. For instance, bodyweight squats are excellent as a warm-up movement for weighted squats, while banded pull-aparts or rows help increase mind-muscle connection to your back muscles before pulling exercises like dumbbell rows.

5 Minute Warm-Up for Any Activity

It is essential to keep in mind that everyone’s abilities and needs differ in terms of joint stability, range of motion, mobility and flexibility. When performing warm-up exercises, paying attention to your body and avoiding pushing yourself beyond your limits is crucial. If you feel any pain or discomfort, stop immediately. Perform the following warm-up routine in order, which will take about five minutes. For a longer warm-up, perform each of the first four exercises for two minutes.

Shin box

The shin box is a fun hip mobility exercise to help prepare the hips for activities with a lot of hip movement and muscle activation. Shin boxes are ideal for working on your hip mobility and loosening up tight hips before working out, running, cycling, hiking or playing sports. You’ll work both internal and external rotation of your hips, which helps prevent the tendency of rounding the lower back (flexing the lumbar spine) during exercises like squats, which can lead to back pain and injury. It deepens your range of motion, allowing for better movements and performance.

1. Assume a seated position on the floor with one leg in front of you, bent at the knee. The other leg should also be bent at the knee, facing backward, with the foot facing away from you. You can either have the foot touching the knee or maintain an open stance, whichever is more comfortable for you.
2. Move your hips in a swiveling motion, starting with your back knee and allowing your front knee to follow. As you do so, your knees will lift off the ground, swiveling across like a windshield wiper. You need to ground your heels and lift your knees while rotating them across your body. This will bring you back to the starting position but on the opposite side, with the opposite knee in front.
3. Repeat this swiveling motion a few times till you get used to it.
4. Next, attempt to lift your hips and glutes off the floor after a swivel, raising yourself into a kneeling position at the top. Make sure to control your body weight as you lower yourself and swivel up onto the opposite side.
5. Continue for 60 seconds.

Lateral lunge stretch

This is a fantastic stretch for tight hips and legs. This lateral squat stretch focuses on the lateral plane, an often-neglected plane of motion for exercise, but requires strength and stability to avoid injuries. You can hold on to a wall for balance, if necessary.

1. Start standing with feet wide apart, holding your hands in front of your chest for balance.  Bend your left knee as you drop down and shift your weight over the left leg while keeping your right leg straight.
2. Maintain an upright torso, going as deep as you can with comfort. Hold for a count at the bottom of the movement, actively contracting your glutes, before returning to the starting point. Repeat on the same side for 30 seconds.
3. Switch sides and repeat for 30 seconds.

Hinge squat & spinal rotation combo

This masterful combo is an efficient warm-up movement for your hips and spine. It also stretches out your hamstrings and lower back while increasing the range of motion in your upper back and shoulders.

1. Stand with your feet a bit wider than hip-width apart or in your normal squat stance.
2. Hinge at the hips, keeping your knees straight as possible, bending them as needed to reach down and touch your toes.
3. Drop your hips with control to the floor to enter a deep yogic squat. Press your hips outward using your arms against your knees.
4. Next, lift your right arm and twist to the right, reaching your right arm toward the ceiling, letting your gaze follow. Come back to the center and repeat with the other arm.
5. Return to center and raise both arms straight upward, elbows locked.
6. Press through your feet and contract your glutes to stand up.
7. Repeat for 60 seconds.

Dolphin push-ups

To get your body ready to work as a stable unit, try the dolphin pushup. It works the entire body, relying on core strength and stability while opening the chest and shoulders, stretching the legs, and mobilizing the hip, shoulder, elbow, knee and ankle joints.

1. Start in an elbow plank position with your palms flat on the floor.
2. Push upward, straighten your elbows, shoulders, and knees, pressing your hips up and back.
3. Keep a bend in your knees if you need to, and focus on achieving a full extension of your shoulders.
4. Walk your feet toward your hands and press through your hands into a downward-facing dog.
5. Carefully lower your elbows to the floor, pulling your chest through your shoulders, to return to an elbow plank.
6. Push back up to perform the movement again. Repeat for 60 seconds.

Medicine ball jump squat throws

Activating the CNS with an explosive movement will round off your warm-up so you’re ready for action. You can do this without a medicine ball, but adding one will increase the benefits, especially if you will be lifting weights next.

1. Stand comfortably in a squat-ready stance, holding a medicine ball at chest height in both hands.
2. Hinge at the hips and bend your knees toward your toes, pushing your legs outward in line with your feet, still holding the ball.
3. Once you reach the bottom of your squat, explosively rise up—jumping if you wish, extend your arms, and toss the medicine ball a few inches over your head.
4. Carefully catch the ball and immediately drop into another squat-jump with control in one smooth movement.
5. Repeat for 60 seconds.

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