When it comes to warm-up, we tend to skip it as we are not aware of the benefits that it has. Performing a warm-up exercise before hitting the gym will not only keep injuries away but will also activate your body to go through any sought rigorous training, that you will undertake in your gym session. Before starting any sports or exercises, it is highly recommended that an individual should perform warm up strictly to evade any possible injuries.
In our series of articles catered to warm-up exercises, we have come up with another segment, where we will figure out some of the relevant exercises that one should perform as a warm-up before hitting the gym or fitness centre. The warm-up exercises have been defined in stages and they should be done as it is. However, we recommend that you should consult your coach or a sports physiotherapist to have a better understanding of the warm-up exercises required for yourself.
Benefits of Warm-up Exercise
The importance of warm-up exercises should be considered by anybody who works out. Although warm-ups probably won’t help much with burning calories or building muscle, they are add-ons, which make a workout successful, if done at the beginning. Before you even think about running or using the machines at the gym, you ought to make sure you complete a warm-up and do a few stretches. Below are some of the benefits that are enlisted which prove why warm-up exercise is important.
- Increases Body and Muscle Temperature – A good warm-up exercise will raise your body temperature, which is particularly helpful to your muscles. As your muscle temperature increases, oxygen becomes more available to your muscles, allowing them to contract and relax more easily so you’ll be able to perform more strenuous tasks with ease. Your heart is also given a chance to prepare, meaning it won’t be too strained during your workout.
- Reduces Chances of Injury – The last thing you need when you have been faithfully attending the gym and reaching your goals is to become injured. Warming up will improve muscle elasticity and allow for efficient cooling, meaning less chance of accidentally hurting yourself or overheating during your workout and ruining your day.
- Prepares You Mentally – Jumping straight into a workout without being adequately prepared can throw you off completely, especially if the preparation is mental rather than physical. It’s easy to give up when working out gets difficult, but you will be much less likely to do so if you have given yourself time to remember why you are working out. Use your time warming up to think about what you are about to do, guaranteeing that both your body and mind will be ready to succeed.
- Increases Flexibility – Stretching is often considered something that should be done in addition to regular warm-ups. Stretching will increase blood flow to your muscles, and allow your body to increase its flexibility in both the short and long term. If you haven’t stretched your muscles completely then there are chances that you may lead to an injury.
- Activates Body for Heavy Duty Exercises – Using machines to help build muscle is a great way to spend your time at the gym, but they shouldn’t be used before you had a chance to loosen your joints. This can only be possible with a proper warm-up exercise which will ensure that both your body and mind are in the right state to handle gym equipment, again reducing your chances of injury.
Best Warm-Up Exercises Before Hitting The Gym
1.) Squats – Bodyweight squats help to warm up the glutes and hip flexor muscles, the quadriceps, abs, calves, and hamstrings. Performing squats is an excellent warm-up if you plan to do any loaded squats during your workout. Since squats are a compound full-body movement, they help warm up multiple muscles at a time and get your central nervous system ready for work.
Steps To Perform
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your toes pointing straight ahead or slightly outward.
- Place your hands on your hips or in front of your body.
- Hinge your hips backwards while bending your knees and keeping the weight on your heels. Lower your hips toward the floor. Maintain a straight back.
- Continue lowering until you feel a stretch in your quadriceps. Pause and hold for a count of one before returning to the starting position by pushing through your heels and extending your hips.
- Repeat 10 times.
2.) Banded Row – Performing a banded row will help to activate your back muscles. Banded rows also warm up your shoulder joints and shoulder blades.
Steps To Perform
- Place a resistance band under your feet and hold the handles in your hands. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart, with your toes pointed slightly out.
- Keep a slight bend in your knees and bend forward at your hips. Keep your core engaged and your back flat.
- Pull the handles of the resistance band back, leading with your elbows and bringing your shoulder blades closer together. Feel the contraction in your upper back and hold for one count.
- Release slowly to the starting position.
- Repeat 10 times.
3.) Inchworms – The inchworm warm-up exercise helps to strengthen the muscles in the front body and stretch the muscles in your back body. Your whole body will become engaged during this movement, which is excellent for an active warm-up. The stabilizing muscles in your shoulders, hips, glutes, quadriceps, and core will all start to fire up and prepare your body for your workout.
Steps To Perform
- Stand tall in a natural stance.
- Hinge from your hips and touch the floor with your fingertips or palms, if you can.
- With your legs straight, walk your hands as far forward as you can without letting your hips sag.
- You should end with your hands under your shoulders in a plank position.
- Slowly walk your hands back to your feet and straighten back to the starting position.
- Repeat 10 times.
4.) Lunges – Performing lunges adds rotation and abduction in the hip rather than just flexion and extension at the knees and hips. This warm-up lunge is an active movement that helps build stability in the hips to prevent injury and get you ready for hinging movements like the squat and deadlift.
Steps To Perform
- Stand tall and take a long stride forward with your right foot, leaving your left foot behind.
- Lower your torso toward the floor while bending your right knee and lowering your left leg almost to the floor.
- Open your right knee slightly by rotating it to the right. Make sure to keep your right foot planted.
- Slightly open your left leg by rotating it gently and slowly to the left. Hold for a count of one before returning to the starting position. Switch sides and repeat.
- Try 10 repetitions on each side.
5.) Arm Circles – The shoulder joints are very mobile and are prone to injury. Since many of us spend the majority of the day sitting and working at a desk, in such a condition it has been observed that our shoulders tend to become tense and weakened over time. Properly warming up the shoulders by dynamically moving the joints and tissues before a workout is essential to prevent injury and activate the muscles. To warm-up shoulders, arm circles are a classic warm-up exercise that you may have performed in gym class. Adding a reach will help increase your range of motion and further warm up your shoulders.
Steps To Perform
- Stand tall with your core engaged.
- Focus on your shoulders while slowly reaching your arm back behind you until you must flip your arm around, so your palm is facing forward.
- When you reach behind you and need to flip your palm to face up, reach as far back as possible while keeping your hips straight.
- Flip your palm forward and circle your arms overhead until it is straight out in front of you. Again reach forward, trying to increase your range of motion while maintaining a straight core.
- Repeat 5 times and then reverse the motion for another 5 repetitions.
- Switch sides and repeat.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a health advice. We would ask you to consult a qualified professional or medical expert to gain additional knowledge before you choose to consume any product or perform any exercise.
