{"id":1913,"date":"2020-02-12T13:09:40","date_gmt":"2020-02-12T20:09:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/strengthsenseiinc.com\/?p=1913"},"modified":"2021-08-31T15:21:31","modified_gmt":"2021-08-31T21:21:31","slug":"what-is-a-good-warm-up-routine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/strengthsenseiinc.com\/2020\/02\/12\/what-is-a-good-warm-up-routine\/","title":{"rendered":"What is a good warm-up routine?"},"content":{"rendered":"
Stay away from people who overcomplicate things \u2026 the typical wannabe coach will prescribe moronic routines. You know the type that recommends cariocas to warm up for squats, having intercourse with foam rollers on end, twenty minutes on the cardio bike at 70% of max heart rate, cluster sets on the dance pole\u2026<\/p>\n
This set-up is more likely to earn you a restraining order than provide any significant muscular activation – just saying. Here is a simple rule. If the recommended warm-up takes as long as the actual workout, the article was written by fully-certified twatwaffle with zero real life results.<\/p>\n
The basic purposes of warm-up are to set the physiological milieu for best nervous and muscular performance as well as prevent injuries. As such, it should help you perform better in the gym, not drain you before the workout actually begins.<\/p>\n
A good warm-up should have the following components:<\/p>\n
– Specific mobility drills to lubricate and loosen the joints
\n– Active drills to increase muscles\u2019 active range of motion
\n– Specific exercises\/movements to prepare the nervous systems for the exercises being used during the workout<\/p>\n
Note the two keywords: specific and active<\/em>. We will explain why later those two matter during the warm up process later.<\/p>\n A good warm-up should not<\/strong>:<\/p>\n – Have static stretching Optimal muscular contractions and energy production can only be achieved under certain physiological circumstances. Here are a few principles I follow to make sure my athletes perform better after warming-up, not worse.<\/p>\n A warm-up should, funnily enough, warm your body up.<\/p>\n Research has shown that with every 1 degree Celsius increment max power goes up by 12%. In addition, increasing core temperature allows the disruption of transient bounds in connective tissue. Likewise, blood flow improves with rising temperature as oxygen dissociates more easily from hemoglobin or myoglobin. Also remember that all biological systems are governed by enzymes. Enzymes are protein based and therefore both pH and temperature sensitive. This is due to the way proteins fold or unfold. Secondary and tertiary structures of proteins are the best predictors of how efficient the contractile and energetic machinery is.<\/p>\n If the temperature is so high that you can feel Satan sliding seductively down your spine upon setting foot in the gym you might miss the point but I\u2019ve known athletes complaining about frost bites after performing squat.\u00a0Research shows that for best results in optimal hormonal production, the gym temperature should be 20 Celsius or 70 Fahrenheit. There really nothing you can do to get cooler. \u00a0Just be sure to hydrate adequately as performance drops as early as with a 2% decrease in body weight by dehydration. As for cold weather, the most bang for your buck sartorial life hack is to wear a hat as 10% body heat is lost through the head.<\/p>\n A slightly acidic pH is conductive to greater gains in hypertrophy. True. But as always there is a fine line between good and optimal. In fact an excessive drop in pH is highly detrimental to performance. This is why doing cardio pre-workout is not only a waste of time but also absolutely counter productive. Actually an over acidic pH disables\u00a0fast twitch fibers. Don’t shoot yourself in foot and ruin your best efforts at hypertrophy and strength by performing unnecessary cardio.<\/p>\n To make the matter worse, Dr Schwarzbein\u00a0top expert in endocrinology in relation to diabetes has pointed out that warming up on a treadmill or using the treadmill, per se, increases insulin resistance, by 46% in six to eight weeks. What can be said? There are no redeeming features to cardio.<\/p>\n Also warm-up should not create undue fatigue.\u00a0Simple rule is if the warm up takes as long as the actual workout, the coach who prescribed it has a very questionable grasp on the reality of weight training.<\/p>\n As mentioned earlier, warm-up prevents injuries. About 30% of injuries occur at the level of skeletal muscle, for recreational or professional athletes alike.\u00a0Even if static stretching is commonly used, and science is very clear on that, it elevates the likelihood of injury. When you think about it, stretching pre-workout makes absolutely no sense. Stretching diminishes strength and relaxes the CNS. In the same vein, foam rolling as a relaxing effect as well as the tendency to create scar tissue thus limiting ROM. No bueno!<\/p>\n Moreover in my experience, most weight training injuries occur when someone very keen on working out figures out (mistakenly) that warm-up sets are optional or a time waster. So if you came up with the genius idea to skip the warm-up altogether well, think again, Michelangelo. If you want to be strong and last in the Iron-Game you need to stay healthy.<\/p>\n So, for example, you\u2019ll have a squat workout consisting of 5\u00d75, at 100 kilos. With squats there\u2019s a lot of research that shows that the mobility of the ankle is what decreases the probability of injury of the lower extremities be it ACL tear, hamstring pull or groin or whatever.<\/p>\n So the first thing to do is go on a calf machine, and stretch the calves for\u00a08\u00a0\u00a0seconds. Select a weight that is enough to stretch you, it should be too heavy to lift. Then I finish off with a 2 seconds voluntary contraction\u00a0in order to\u00a0reset the pattern for strength.\u00a0If you do static stretching you don\u2019t finish with a contraction, you\u2019re more likely to get injured.<\/p>\n So, first thing is to make the ankles flexible.<\/p>\n Then, hit the bar, and squat. For example, you are squatting, and depending on which muscles are tight, hamstrings, ankle extensors, quadriceps or whatever. Using the same principle as above, do PNF stretching, to ensure mobility for the range of motion.<\/p>\n Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation stretching is superior to static stretching insofar as it helps “prime” the nervous system and potentiates the sympathetic nervous system.\u00a0PNF stretching is\u00a0done\u00a0by first performing a static stretch for the target muscle and then contracting the muscle to be stretched isometrically, followed by performing the same static stretch for the target muscle. This type of stretching will allow you to stretch through a greater range of motion than with a traditional static stretch.<\/p>\n This kind of stretching is done after the first warm up set, if need be. That first set should tell you what needs to be worked on.\u00a0Depending on the severity of the restriction in the ROM a specific remedial workout could be scheduled.<\/p>\n
\n– Include long slow aerobic work
\n– Last too long
\n– Be draining to the nervous system<\/p>\nPrepare the Biological Milieu – Load Your Guns<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Principle #1: Raise the core temperature<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Common Mistakes – when the workout does the actual opposite of what it’s intended to do in the first place<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Principle #2: Prevent injuries<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Principle #3: Address the ROM – Jam-Clearing Drills<\/strong><\/h4>\n