How do you warm-up? If you think that pulling your heel to your butt or jumping on the stationary bike for 5mins is the way to go, then this article is for you. There are a few main goals of a warmup which are supposed to improve performance, and reduce the risk of injury:
- increase core temperature
- lubricate joints and increase range of motion
- activate the central nervous system (muscle command centre)
People can get carried away, so it's important you don't turn your warm-up into your workout. In fact, if you have caused any sort of fatigue which may affect the performance of the exercises you are scheduled to perform, chances are you've worked too hard (or very unfit). All of our members know exactly what to do before beginning their workout. This article is to reinforce the reasons behind it, and help out those who are doing it wrong.
I) SOFT TISSUE WORK
We have gotten a hold of some nice little toys for SMR (self-myofasical release) - lacrosse balls, quad-ballers, sticks, foam rollers and anything else that looks like it will be painful. We have identified certain trouble areas (thoracic spine, glutes and ITB) and athletes are asked to roll up and down the length of the muscle/area until pain begins to subside. The goal is to break down scar tissue, and relax the muscle. Not time for the workout yet...
II) ACTIVATION EXERCISES
Next is re-learning how to fire certain muscle groups. Dave Tate released a book called 'Gluteal Amnesia' where he identified the inability of a muscle or muscle group to contract can cause compensatory patterns to develop which could potentially lead to injury. The trouble areas we primarily deal with are the glutes, shoulders and knees. The goal is to switch on certain muscle groups so that they will fire correctly during the workout.
III) MOBILITY EXERCISES
We finish with mobility exercises to promote range of motion (ROM) around joints. This part also increases the core body temperature which has been correlated with an increase in force production. We encourage full ROM for all our exercises, and this component makes sure we are ready.
IV) CORRECTIVE EXERCISES
We have all new members undergo an individual assessment when they first sign up with us. This involves the standard health waiver, but we also look at their injury history, their strength levels, flexibility levels and posture. If we see anything major that needs work, we prescribe certain exercises which they are supposed to do at the end of the warm-up.
Below we have one Underdog Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Co-Founder, Owen Gee Kee, performing the warm-up.
Yep, we get all our clients to go through that whole protocol before every workout to ensure that they get the most out of the training session, and more importantly, leave our gym injury free!
