Warm-up before exercise: 30 exercises to warm up + ready plan

Warm-up before training is set of exercises to prepare the body for physical activity, which will help you to avoid injury and to exercise as efficiently as possible. The main purpose of the warmup is to gradually increase the temperature of the body and warming the muscles in a state of inactivity.

We offer you a selection exercisefor warm-up and prepared a coherent plan for their implementation. These exercises are equally suited to perform the workout at home, at the stadium or in the gym.

Why warm up before exercise?

Performing warm up prior to exercise is an important part of fitness classes. A good warm up will gradually increase heart rate, increase blood circulation in the muscles, tendons and ligaments, and prepare you for training with the mental point of view. Regardless of whether you are going to engage in power or cardio exercises to warm up before a workout is a must.

Use the warm-up before exercise:

1. You warm up the muscles, ligaments and tendons, it improves their flexibility and reduces the risk of injuries and sprains.
2. Warm-up before exercise will help to stretch the joints that get heavy load during the training. Your joints at risk of injury if not performed preparatory exercises.
3. Warmed muscles are compressed better and relax during a workout, so your strength and capabilities during exercise will be higher.
4. Exercises to warm-up optimize the activities of the cardiovascular system: this will help reduce the load on the heart during exercise.
5. Warming up before exercise improves circulation, which will saturate your muscles with oxygen and nutrients. This helps to improve endurance during sessions.
6. During a workout your body increases the production of hormones responsible for energy production.
7. Training is a kind of stress to the body, therefore, good warm-up will prepare you for the physical mental point of view, increase coordination and attention.
8. During light warm-up exercises before a workout is the release of adrenaline into the bloodstream, making your body will cope better with physical exertion.

A good warm-up before exercise will help you not only avoid injury and problems with the cardiovascular system, but also more effectively carry out the lesson. If you want to skip the workout and save time to pay more attention to power loads for fast results, then this is the wrong path. After a workout your body will work better, you will be more vigorous and hardy, which will give a much better result in the future.

Dynamic warm-up should be carried out before any workout regardless of loads: strength training with weights, running, cardio-training, Cycling, kickboxing, dance workouts, stretching, the splits, crossfit and any other sport. Warm-up before exercise is needed as when doing a room or house (on the street).

Why people don’t do the warm-up before training?

Many people do not do warm-UPS before exercise, considering it an unnecessary waste of time. You probably had to hear from friends or acquaintances: “I regularly hit the gym and cardio-workouts and never do a warm-up and hitch. No harm in itself not felt”. Never focus on someone else’s questionable experience!

First, each person has their own individual level of strength, the reserves of your body no one knows. It may not fail for a month, two, year and even a couple of years, gradually wearing, but how long this can continue is unknown. Secondly, in terms of excess and very often contradictory information on fitness, many of us and so allow a lot of errors that may affect health. So try to follow at least the Canon recommendations — perform warm-up before each workout just one of them.

It is important to note that even personal trainers and coaches group classes may not be given a minimum warm up time. But for your health you are responsible for yourself, so do not be lazy come 10 minutes before your workout and perform workout. Even if until today you passed injury, remember that the cold tear of the tendon or other nasty injury can happen at any time.

The situation is similar with home workouts, which are now produced in large quantity. Usually programs are designed for 20-30 minutes, in conditions of high employment is very important for many people. And of course, in such short programs, in the best case scenario for the warm-up will be given 2-3 minutes, and at worst warm-up will not do.

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What are the dangers of the lack of warm-up?

Studies show that only 5% of people make a good warm-up before training, this is a very sad statistic. Many practitioners believe that this is a waste of time and so limited at the gym. Let us once again recall than can be dangerous the lack of warm-up before exercise besides reducing the effectiveness of the classes?

1. The most common problem that occurs in the absence of a warm-up before training, this is a sprain. A very unpleasant and painful syndrome, which will have to take a break in training.
2. An even more troublesome problem is injury of the joints. If you do on a cold joint, there is a high risk to damage it. The risk of trauma to the joint is not only the duration of recovery, but that after the injury he will remind himself constantly. Due to improper loads most often affects the joints of knee, ankle, shoulder and hip joint.
3. Without proper warm-up due to high load on the heart may experience dizziness or even fainting.
4. A sudden sharp load without a preparatory warm-up part can cause a sharp pressure jump, which is equally dangerous for people with hypertension and hypotension.

The structure of the warm-up before exercise

It is advisable to pay the warm-up before exercise a minimum of 7-10 minutes. Start to warm up better with the walk in place to warm up the body. Then execute joint exercises and dynamic exercises to stretch muscles. Completed a warm-up cardio exercises with moderate intensity. At the end of the warm-up recovering breath, making a deep breath and exhale.

The structure of the warm-up before exercise 7-10 minutes:

1. Walking in place: 1 minute
2. Articular exercises: 2-3 minutes
3. Dynamic stretching: 2-3 minutes
4. Cardio warm up: 2-3 minutes
5. Recovery breathing: 0,5-1 minute

Articular exercises activates joints, tendons and ligaments, improve their mobility and help to work out the periarticular muscles. Dynamic stretching will make your muscles more elastic, which will help them work as efficiently as possible throughout the workout. Cardio warm-up will increase body temperature, enhance blood circulation, will prepare your muscles for further stretching.

With this workout you will force the heart to work faster, accelerate blood circulation, gently Wake the muscles of the body. After a proper warm-up the body spreads pleasant warmth, you will feel fit and full of energy. If the workout you have planned stretching or stretching to do the splits, then the final cardio warm-up can be increased to 5-7 minutes.

Do not confuse warming up before exercise and stretching after exercise. In the workout your goal is to warm up the muscles and joints, increase blood circulation and prepare the body to stress. The warm up should be slow and static, you should have a good warm up. After a workout, you on the contrary must breath, slow my heart rate down and perform static stretching exercises.

STRETCHING exercises after workout

Stretching exercises

The importance of warm-up is difficult to overestimate, is a fundamental part of the training. First, a good warming up before exercise reduces the risk of injury. Second, warmed up muscles work more efficiently. The warm up should include a full and thoughtful set of exercises that will help prepare your body for exercise.

Step 1: Walk in place

Warm-up is better to start with walking on the ground, a little to warm up the body and not to pull muscles during dynamic stretching. During the walk your pulse is slightly raised, and the body temperature will increase. Perform the two exercises for about 30 seconds each.

1. Walking with lifting the knees

Begin with a warm-up walk on the spot. Lift your knee up, simultaneously sliding your hands along the body. Don’t overdo, start workout, a relaxing pace.

How to perform: 10 knee lifts on each leg.

2. The lifting of hands and knees

And another soft one warm-up exercise. Continue to raise knees, but now turn to the work of the hands. Raise your hands up over your head and lower down by bending at the elbows.

How to perform: 10 knee lifts on each leg.

Stage 2: Joint gymnastics

Articular gymnastics is an essential part of the warm-up before exercise, if you do not want to joint problems in the future. Joint exercises usually performed top-down, starting with neck and ending with the feet, but the principal role of the order of the exercises is not playing. Rotational exercises remember to try both clockwise and counterclockwise.

Articular exercises will be useful, by the way, as usual morning exercises.

1. Head turns

Begin the warm-up before training with neck. Turn your head to the right-forward-left-forward, trying not to make any sudden movements. Ago the head does not throw back.

How to perform: for 5 turns in each direction.

2. The rotation of the shoulders

Put your hands down at your sides and start to perform rotational motion of the shoulders in a circle. Gradually increase the amplitude, trying a good stretch your shoulder joints.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise)

3. The rotation of the elbows

Before exercise be sure to warm up the elbow joints that get heavy pressure during exercise of the upper body. To do this, raise your arms parallel to the floor and perform a rotational motion of his forearms.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise)

4. The rotation of the hands

Continue warming up before training with rotations of the hands. Raise your hands up over your head and begin to rotate them, good flexing shoulder joints. Move your hands wide and amplitude, rotation should not be sluggish.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise)

5. The rotation of the wrists

If you train arms or perform planks and push-UPS, don’t forget to stretch well before exercise wrist joints that get heavy load. To do this, bend your arms at the elbow and start to rotate your wrists in a circle.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise)

6. The rotation of the pelvis

Put your hands on the waist, legs spread wider than shoulders. Now rotate your hips in a circle as if trying to draw a circle buttocks. The feet are not lifted from the floor, the rotation occurs due to the movement of the pelvis and not the case.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise)

7. The rotation of the feet

The hands are lying on the waist, the feet closer to each other. Lift one leg off the floor and start spinning her in a circle, flexing the hip joint. Knee like describes a circle, the torso remains stable.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise) on the right and left leg.

8. The rotation of the knees

Tilt your body slightly bend your knees and put them on the palm of your hand. Now rotate the knees, the heels are not lifted from the floor. This is a great exercise to warm up the knee joints that get heavy load during training.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise)

9. Rotation stop

Stand up straight, put his hands on your waist. Raise your knee up. Now rotate your foot, good flexing ankle joint. Try to rotate just the foot, keeping the leg and thigh still.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction (clockwise and counterclockwise) on the right and left leg.

Stage 3: Dynamic stretching

After joint exercises is a stage for dynamic stretching of different muscle groups. Here you are waiting for more vigorous exercise to warm up before exercise that will prepare your body for the stress.

1. Breeding hands for the shoulders, back and chest

Stand straight with feet shoulder width apart. The arms extended and parallel to the floor. Then cross the hands, keeping them at the breast. During this exercise to warm up before training, you feel a pleasant stretch in the back between the shoulder blades.

How to perform: 10 repetitions

2. Breeding elbows for deltas and shoulder joints

Remain standing upright, bend your elbows at a right angle and lift them parallel to the floor. Put your hands together. Then widely spread arms to the sides without dropping the elbows. Make work the shoulder joints and the tension in the delts (shoulder muscles) and the triceps (muscles in the back of the hands).

How to perform: 10 repetitions

3. The bending of the arms for biceps and triceps

This is a very simple exercise to warm up before exercise that will help you to stretch your arm muscles – biceps and triceps. To do this, take a direct hand farther back and start to bend and unbend hands in maximum amplitude.

How to perform: 10 repetitions

4. Twists for the abs and oblique muscles

Stand straight with feet spread wide. The arms extended parallel to the floor. Start alternately to rotate the body left and right. The rotation must be due to the twisting of the body, and not rotate the pelvis. This exercise is very useful to warm up the abdominal muscles.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

5. Tilts to the side for the abs and oblique muscles

Another effective exercise for the abs and oblique muscles. Put your hands on the belt and start to do alternating tilts right and left, stretching up over his outstretched hand. Also this exercise is good to relieve the tension from the back and straightening the spine.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

6. Bending for back and spine

This is a very simple and extremely effective exercise, not only to warm up before exercise but for the relaxation of the spine. It can be done, if you feel tension and stiffness in the back. Sit in a shallow half squat, hands put on hips, in the back of a small deflection. Round the spine in the thoracic, a little lifting of the squat. Then again, arch your back.

How to do: 7 reps

7. The tilt in the squat for the back and shoulders

Descend into a deep sumo squat, back slightly tilted, hands put on knees. Start bending first one leg, then the other. Do this exercise to warm up before training in the dynamics.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

8. Bending to the floor with a turn

Stand straight with arms extended, the feet wide. Start doing the slopes to the floor, turning the body and trying to touch the floor first with one hand then the other. Keep your back straight, do not strain your neck, pull the shoulders away from your ears.

How to perform: 5 bends to each side

9. Squats with lifting arms

Widely spread your legs and raise your arms up over your head. Lower the pelvis down, doing squat until thighs parallel with the floor. The arms move synchronously, sinking down along with the squat. During the squat do not put the knees forward toe and keep your heel from the floor.

How to perform: 10 squats

If you want to facilitate this exercise for warming up before training or do you not plan heavy training, you can perform propriedade:

10. Side lunges to warm up legs

Widely spread your legs, hands folded near his chest. Start to squat, shifting body weight on the right leg parallel to the floor. sinking into a side lunge. The left leg remains fully extended. Then straighten up and do a lunge on the left leg. Do rifts in a side lunge for a quality warm-up the legs before exercise.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

11. Lunges to warm up legs

Stand straight with feet slightly narrower shoulders. Start doing lunges back, simultaneously raising his hands up over his head. Optional lowering your knees to a right angle, in the warm-up before training valid partial range exercises. If you find it hard to keep balance, can put hands on hips or hold onto a wall or chair.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

If you want to facilitate this exercise or do you not plan heavy training, you can perform polyvyany.

12. Tilts for the back of the thigh

Stand with your right hand put on waist, raise your left arm over your head. Right leg put a foot forward with support on the heel and completely straighten. Then bend down to the right leg with a straight back, touching the left hand of the right sock. Left leg bent at the knee. Feel the stretch in the back of the thigh, the hamstring and the calf.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

13. Raising of the legs forward to stretch buttocks

Stand up straight, arm bend and keep near him. Lift up the knee of one leg and pull his hands to his chest. Feel the tension in the gluteal muscles. Then return to original position and tighten to his other leg.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

14. The leg lifts to stretch the quadriceps

Stand up straight, hands lower along the trunk. Bend one leg and pull your hand a foot to the buttocks. Hold on a second, stretching the quadriceps (anterior thigh). Then return to starting position and pull your foot the other foot to the buttocks.

How to perform 5 repetitions in each direction

Step 4: Cardio warm-up

At the final stage of the warm-up we will perform a few cardio exercises to further warm up to raise body temperature. The speed and intensity of the exercise you can increase or decrease the length of the final cardio warm-up is 2-3 minutes. The speed and pace of the exercises look at its capabilities.

1. Running in place with zahlest Shin

Stand up straight, arm bend at the elbows, palms facing forward. Start to run in place, lifting legs high, hands move freely along the body. Feet do schlecty like you’re trying to hit his heels on the buttocks.

How to run: at 15 leg lifts each side

If you do not run, walk in place at a fast pace, highly lifting knees (exercise #1 in the first stage).

2. Jumping rope

Stand up straight, arm bend at the elbow and spread to the side as if holding the rope. Enjoy light and soft jumping jacks, simulating jumping rope. We should not jump too rapidly, it’s still a warm-up before training, not the training.

How to do: 30 jumping

If you do not jumping, then continue to walk in place at a rapid pace, raising their knees high. Turn to the work of his hands, moving them up and down (exercise #2 at the first stage).

3. Jumps breeding arms and legs

You should stand straight with feet together. Bouncing, widely spread legs and put your hands over your head. Keep your knees slightly bent. Land softly on your toes to reduce stress on the joints. Breathe in the rhythm of the jumps. Such jumps are called Jumping Jack, and they are perfect for warming up and for any cardio workout.

If you do not jump, instead of jumping ostavlyaite alternately, first one foot, then the other. The arms move synchronously.

How to do: 30 jumping

Step 5: Restoring breathing

Always remember to breath after performing cardio exercises, doing the deep inhale and exhale for 30 to 60 seconds. Select one of the following exercises or perform them both.

1. Restore breathing with tilt

Lift straight arms over your head and take a deep breath. On the exhale, tilt your body and hands, making a deep breath with full chest. Feel like reduced heart rate and calms rapid breathing.

How to perform 10 bends

2. Restore breathing with the squat

This exercise is better suited for those who feel dizziness when tilting the head to the floor as in the previous exercise. Sit down with crossed at the breast with hands while taking a deep breath. On a deep exhale fully straighten and raise your hands above your head.

How to perform 10 bends

Step 6: Special warm-up

If you perform strength training with more weight, then also be sure to pay attention to the special workout. It aims to make warming up of the muscles that will be actively involved in the training. In the framework of the special workout you should perform exercises from the main complex, but without weights or with light weight (20-30% of maximum).

Here is an example of a special workout. Let’s say you have a scheduled squat with a barbell weighing 80 kg. So, before this exercise, you should do the kneading approach of 10-15 repetitions with a blank fretboard or fingerboard with a weight of 20-30% of your max weight.

Special warm-up must be performed immediately before exercise or before exercise for a muscle group. Attention, special warm-up does not replace the General warm-up before training! This is just one of the stages of the lesson, but is also very important.

We emphasize once more, that special warm-up is performed after common, not instead of it.

How to stretch before a run or cardio?

How to warm up before a run or other cardio trenirovki? In this case, the act is absolutely the same scheme: light cardio warm up for 2 minutes (running in place, easy jumping rope) and then articular exercises + stretching. And only after that proceed directly to a cardio workout, gradually increasing the intensity.

Many people think that before the cardio workout to warm up is not necessary. However, this is incorrect. Muscles, joints, heart get a serious load during running and jumping, so without a warm-up to do is very dangerous. Just walking, and gradually increase the intensity without performing warm-up exercises for the joints and muscles enough! Make sure to do joint exercises and stretching before a cardio workout.

Ready to warm-up and hitch for running and cardio

Features warm-up before exercise:

1. Workout running top to bottom (neck, shoulders, arms, chest, back, core, legs). But it is rather traditional approach to warm-up exercises, the principal role of the order of the exercises is not playing.
2. Warm-up should take place in a dynamic but gentle pace. Your objective is gentle warming and prepare for more intense loads. You should feel warm all over from the workout, but don’t overdo it.
3. To start the warm-up should be with a slow tempo and a small range of motion, gradually increasing the tempo and amplitude.
4. Avoid prolonged static provisions, the warm-up before training should include dynamic exercises. Not to be confused with stretching after a workout, during which it is supposed to freeze in one position for 30-60 seconds to stretch the muscles.
5. During the warm-up before training at home or in the gym, avoid sudden movements, try to perform the exercises smoothly. It is impossible to prevent pain or discomfort in the joints (crunch in the joints can be, it’s scary).
6. If you are in a cool room (or outdoors), then please dress warmly for the more rapid heating or increase the warm up to 15-20 minutes.
7. If you know that today will train some part of the body particularly intense, it will pay special attention to when you workout. For example, in day of training of the lower body thoroughly mash of hip and knee joints and stretch the muscles of the legs and buttocks.
8. If you are in the gym, the cardio warm-up can use a treadmill or an elliptical trainer. Always start with a slow tempo, the pulse should rise gradually.

Video warm-up before training

If you need options warm up before exercise, then offer you 6 a short videothat will help you to warm up and prepare for heavy loads. Programs last 5-10 minutes and are suitable for both men and women.

Video for warm in Russian

1. Universal workout pre-workout for 7 minutes

2. Warm up pre-workout for 7 minutes

3. Warm up pre-workout for 8 minutes

Video for warm-up in English

1. 5 Minute Total Body Warm Up Workout

2. 5 minute Quick Warm Up Cardio Workout

3. 10 Minute Pre-workout Warm Up

Wherever you are: at home, on the street or in the gym, make sure to do the warm-up before training, and then physical activity will bring you pleasure, benefit and result.

See also:

• Universal warm-up before exercise for 5-10 minutes
• Power program for men with dumbbells
• Top 30 exercises to slim legs without equipment
• Top 30 asanas for beginners: a selection of poses of yoga

Yoga and stretching