An important part of working out that is often overlooked is the warm up. Exercise can be dangerous without doing this correctly. I've been working with clients lately that have been experiencing some injuries. I have been focusing on repairing these injuries and it made me think about the importance of the warm up. Exercise longevity will be much higher if you start now.
A proper warm up exercise can increase your blood flow which will decrease your muscle stiffness, decrease risk of injury and improve performance. Your body temperature will increase. A warm muscle will contract more forcefully and relax more quickly. The chance of pulling a muscle is much lower as well.
Once you're warm, your blood vessels will dilate which in turn reduces the stress put on the heart. An article by Elizabeth Quinn states: "The temperature of blood increases as it travels through the muscles, and as blood temperature rises, the amount of oxygen it can hold becomes reduced. This means a slightly greater volume of oxygen is made available to the working muscles, enhancing endurance and performance."
So how should you warm up? Well warming up is best defined as gradually increasing intensity of a certain exercise until you are at your working intensity. When it comes to cardio, choose a nice steady slow pace to warm up with. A good method to use when warming up with weights is to have 3-4 warm up sets. Choose a very light weight to complete your first set. You should easily be able to complete 15 reps. This is usually around 50% of your working weight. On your second set, do 12 reps of 65% of your working weight. Your final set will be 8 reps at 80%. Once you have done this you are ready to start your workout.
Stretching is also a very important part of the warm up. Exercise can be much less painful with loose muscles. Stretch the muscles you will be using for the day. The best time to stretch before a workout is right after your warm up. This way the muscles will be nice and loose already from the increased blood flow. It will be less likely that you over stretch and accidentally pull a muscle.
Learn how to build that quality muscle, female or male, by checking out more articles from Go Healthy Fitness.
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