A warm up is a vital and often forgotten component of any exercise or sport. It allows for the body to get used to the demands and loads about to be applied in a gradual and controlled way. 

Your average warm up needs to cover 3 main areas; 

Joint and muscle preparation 

• Work joints and muscles through their available ranges and prepare supporting ligaments. This can also mean specific muscle activation you’ve been advised by your therapist or coach. 

Cardio component (heart, vessels and lungs) 

• Raises body temperature and readies the heart and lungs for a higher demand and oxygen requirement. This can be skipping, riding, a light jog or anything that raises your heart rate. As a guide, you should still be able to hold a conversation with someone at this level of effort. 

Sport specific routine 

• Prepares the body more specifically for the sport or activity you’re about to do. This one is up to you! What areas do you need to target to make your sport or exercise session work the best for you? These may be drills you’ve completed in training sessions or starting with lighter weights in a warm up set.  

What about foam rolling? 

Foam rolling is a great tool that can be added into a warm up routine to aid in joint and muscle preparation as well as part of the cool down process to aid in the stretching of muscles to help decrease soreness and improve muscle length. Foam rolling will be featured in part 3 of our injury prevention week. Stay tuned… 

Check out our short video with CSSM’s Kelsey Thomas.

Do you have any questions about what might be appropriate for your warm up? Ask our practitioners at CSSM for some additional tips or drills to add to your routine!