Unleash Your Inner Hype Man or Hype Woman

Although I was involved in sports as a kid at some point I abandoned the almighty warm up routine. It seemed like a waste. There was so much conflicting rhetoric about which type of stretching was best, if it really helped or could it maybe hurt? I figured that as long as I did some quick, light cardio with a wide range of movements and motions I was good to go. After all, why waste time on wimpy things like stretching when I could be doing real work?

Well, I decided to ask science what it had to say about stretching and warming up. I wanted to find out the ‘why’ instead of the ‘just follow me’. I wanted proof that statements surrounding raising core temperature, increasing fluid flow in joints and helping with overall performance were based in something more than tradition. Here’s what I came up with:

Raising Core Temperature

Turns out that this is legit. Obviously, you feel warmer when you are exercising but I figured that the body is quite adept at temperature regulation and that there wouldn’t necessarily be a measurable rise in temperature. Maybe I’m naive for thinking that. But, it seems that a decent 10 minute warm up can create a rise from 1-3 degrees Fahrenheit. This rise in temperature causes a change in the partial pressure of gasses within the body. More oxygen will be leaving the blood and entering tissue. More oxygen means greater performance and efficiency. So, jog, skip, hop, cycle…whatever you have to do to get yourself breathing a little harder and starting to break a sweat. 1 point to warm-up.

Increasing Joint Mobility

Anyone who has ever had to stretch after a long car ride, or need to take a lap of the office after sitting all day knows that this is true. There is a kind of syrupy fluid called synovial fluid that acts as cushion, nutrition delivery and lubrication for your joints. This fluid is thixotrophic, which is pretty badass, really. With some time and constant motion (sound like anything we’re discussing here?) the fluid will become less viscous and flow more easily. This allows for greater range of motion with more ease. However, when confronted with a sheering force (think jumping), it will become thicker and protect the joint better. Also, with increased blood flow and movement of synovial fluid the transfer of nutritional molecules to the joint increases. Plus, you just plain feel better once you get moving. There is definitely a mental aspect to this as well.

Static Stretching

Yes, I’m bringing up static stretching. The trend now seems to be moving towards more dynamic stretches, which are also great, but have a greater risk for being performed improperly and causing more harm than good. While you are still just getting in to your workout performing some isolated static stretches will help to gently loosen up your muscles and prepare you for the more loaded or rigorous movements that you will do during your workout. In a perfect world where we have an extra few hours in our day you would stretch out your whole body holding each stretch for about 20 seconds. I know for me, sometimes 10 seconds feels like a lifetime during a stretch. You want to at least make sure to focus on the areas you will be hitting in your main workout. Leg day? Make sure to stretch out all the way from your feet to your back. Chest or arm day? Focus on the shoulder, neck and upper back. Hold for at least 15 seconds per stretch and listen to you body. if at the end of 15 seconds you feel like you could use a little more, then go for it.

Dynamic Stretches/Movement Work

Once you feel balanced, warm and more mentally ready to get into the ‘real’ workout start first by doing some dynamic stretches and movement work. Arm swings, front kicks, saw stretch etc..the point of this section is just as much mental as physical. Do movements that relate to the work you will be doing. Again, if it’s leg day do some bodyweight squats, lunges, inchworms etc. Upper body day? Arm swings, torso rotations etc. Work both the muscles that you will hit hard as well as the synergists as the whole point of this is to prepare you to use your best form possible so as to be as efficient and safe as possible. I also like to think of this as the hype of the warm up. Maybe you throw on Eye of the Tiger, turn it to 11 and really pump yourself up for your workout? Use this time to get your head in the game and really focus on directing your attention to having the best workout you can. Become your own hype man or woman.

There isn’t really one set time that works for everyone. A good warm up should be at least close to 10 minutes, if not longer. If you are coming straight from sitting all day you will probably want to give yourself a little more time. If you just walked the dog and now are headed to the gym, you can lessen the cardio warm up period a bit. No one can tell you what will work best for you. Listen to your muscles and that little, obnoxious voice in the back of your mind. You will know when you feel ready to get into the heavy portion of your workout. You will feel balanced (more in the tension of your muscles than in a spiritual sense), warm and, hopefully, the voice saying “Woo! Yeah! Let’s do this!” will be just a bit louder than the one saying “Dude, you have a perfectly good bed at home and a bunch of Netflix to catch up on.”

Have I reached the point where I actually do all of this? …uh, no. But, I’m trying. Now that I know there is some legitimate reasoning behind a good warm up I’m much more likely to include it and I think that you should, too. If you are going to put in the time to build yourself up you might as well do it the best that you can.