Exercise Archives
Three Key Components to a great workout! Part 1
A Safe Proper Warm Up for Increased Results
I know the trend in personal training is to do thirty minute sessions with your clients as they are expected to warm up, cool down and stretch on their own time. But, I have yet to partake in a thirty minute session with a client of mine as I prefer to make sure they have a proper warm up and cool down with stretching.
My three key components to a fantastic workout include a proper warm up, a planned out training session and a proper cool down that includes stretching. Today I want to talk to you about a proper warm up.
I have been around long enough to see plenty of injuries, cramping, and just poor performances that probably could have been avoided with a proper warm up. Would you rather spend a short amount of time doing a proper warm up, or would you rather get injured and spend three weeks away from the gym healing from your injury due to the fact that you didn’t do a proper warm up? I know, I know, you barely have time to get your work out in as it is without adding a warm up and cool down with stretching. Well, if you want to risk injury and have poorer results from your workout, then keep doing what you are doing.
However, if you want to be safer and get more out of your workouts then listen up!
My first point regarding this will be especially important to those people that barely have time to do a full workout. Mental preparation during your warm up is point one. When I am warming up I am using that time to get myself mentally prepared for my workout that lies ahead. I am an Olympic athlete that had to balance on a four inch beam while flipping and turning all over the place in front of thousands of people, and millions more watching on television. Therefore I know the benefits of mental training while warming up. This is where you focus in on the job at hand. You prepare yourself for having the best workout you could possibly have. This is where you remember what you achieved last workout and you decide to go above and beyond that. You focus in on your short term and long term goals to keep that motivation peeked. You need to use this time to clear your mind of everything else that is hectic in your life and relax it to what you know you need to do and can do in the upcoming workout. Try and remember the form you want to have in your exercises, especially if you are just learning a particular exercise or have been recently corrected by someone. If you learn to focus in on your workouts you will see dramatic improvements in your achievements and you will dramatically cut down your workout times due to selectively focusing on your performance.
How would you like increased energy, endurance and performance for your workouts? Of course you would. While you do a proper warm up your bodies various hormones responsible for regulating energy production make more carbohydrates and fatty acids available for energy production. As you start to warm up your blood temperature will raise as it travels through your muscles, as this happens the amount of oxygen it can hold is reduced. This results in a higher volume of oxygen available to the working muscles, enhancing endurance and performance.
As your body and muscles continue to warm and rise in temperature even more benefits kick in that you should be aware of. A warmed muscle contracts more forcefully and relaxes quicker, translating into enhanced speed and strength. On the safety side of things which should always be considered, your muscles will also have improved elasticity thus reducing the risk of strains or pulls.
A proper warm up activates more efficient sweating which in turn helps prevent overheating during your workout. This will enable you to perform better and endure longer. Thanks to Elizabeth Quinn, I have also learned that your blood vessels dilate which reduces the resistance to blood flow and lower stress on the heart.
The last thing I wanted to mention to you is to listen to your body as you warm up as well. It will tell you how it feels and if any precautions should take place during your workout. You are not going to be in optimum condition every time you workout. Pay attention to your body before you go ahead and over train or injure yourself. There are times when I have to stop my clients from coming in, usually against their wishes, because they just need a break. Or perhaps they were doing vigorous work the day before and they just weren’t up to lifting quite as much as usual. That’s understandable. So take the time and pay attention to any warning signs before it’s too late. Now get yourself mentally prepared to tackle your goals and elevate that motivation level and enjoy your workout.
A couple points I would like to finish with when it comes to actually doing your warm up:
It’s a good idea to start slow and gradually increase your speed, range of motion and intensity of movements. Although I always do a full body warm up, I hope that you would at least concentrate on warming up the muscles that you will be targeting in your workout.
If you are going to stretch as part of your warm up I highly suggest waiting until near the end of your warm up when your muscles are more warmed up and ready to be stretched without damage.
Vanda Hadarean
Health and Fitness Personality
Ms. Fitness World
Olympic Medalist
A Safe Proper Warm Up for Increased Results
I know the trend in personal training is to do thirty minute sessions with your clients as they are expected to warm up, cool down and stretch on their own time. But, I have yet to partake in a thirty minute session with a client of mine as I prefer to make sure they have a proper warm up and cool down with stretching.
My three key components to a fantastic workout include a proper warm up, a planned out training session and a proper cool down that includes stretching. Today I want to talk to you about a proper warm up.
I have been around long enough to see plenty of injuries, cramping, and just poor performances that probably could have been avoided with a proper warm up. Would you rather spend a short amount of time doing a proper warm up, or would you rather get injured and spend three weeks away from the gym healing from your injury due to the fact that you didn’t do a proper warm up? I know, I know, you barely have time to get your work out in as it is without adding a warm up and cool down with stretching. Well, if you want to risk injury and have poorer results from your workout, then keep doing what you are doing.However, if you want to be safer and get more out of your workouts then listen up!
My first point regarding this will be especially important to those people that barely have time to do a full workout. Mental preparation during your warm up is point one. When I am warming up I am using that time to get myself mentally prepared for my workout that lies ahead. I am an Olympic athlete that had to balance on a four inch beam while flipping and turning all over the place in front of thousands of people, and millions more watching on television. Therefore I know the benefits of mental training while warming up. This is where you focus in on the job at hand. You prepare yourself for having the best workout you could possibly have. This is where you remember what you achieved last workout and you decide to go above and beyond that. You focus in on your short term and long term goals to keep that motivation peeked. You need to use this time to clear your mind of everything else that is hectic in your life and relax it to what you know you need to do and can do in the upcoming workout. Try and remember the form you want to have in your exercises, especially if you are just learning a particular exercise or have been recently corrected by someone. If you learn to focus in on your workouts you will see dramatic improvements in your achievements and you will dramatically cut down your workout times due to selectively focusing on your performance.
How would you like increased energy, endurance and performance for your workouts? Of course you would. While you do a proper warm up your bodies various hormones responsible for regulating energy production make more carbohydrates and fatty acids available for energy production. As you start to warm up your blood temperature will raise as it travels through your muscles, as this happens the amount of oxygen it can hold is reduced. This results in a higher volume of oxygen available to the working muscles, enhancing endurance and performance.
As your body and muscles continue to warm and rise in temperature even more benefits kick in that you should be aware of. A warmed muscle contracts more forcefully and relaxes quicker, translating into enhanced speed and strength. On the safety side of things which should always be considered, your muscles will also have improved elasticity thus reducing the risk of strains or pulls.A proper warm up activates more efficient sweating which in turn helps prevent overheating during your workout. This will enable you to perform better and endure longer. Thanks to Elizabeth Quinn, I have also learned that your blood vessels dilate which reduces the resistance to blood flow and lower stress on the heart.
The last thing I wanted to mention to you is to listen to your body as you warm up as well. It will tell you how it feels and if any precautions should take place during your workout. You are not going to be in optimum condition every time you workout. Pay attention to your body before you go ahead and over train or injure yourself. There are times when I have to stop my clients from coming in, usually against their wishes, because they just need a break. Or perhaps they were doing vigorous work the day before and they just weren’t up to lifting quite as much as usual. That’s understandable. So take the time and pay attention to any warning signs before it’s too late. Now get yourself mentally prepared to tackle your goals and elevate that motivation level and enjoy your workout.
A couple points I would like to finish with when it comes to actually doing your warm up:
It’s a good idea to start slow and gradually increase your speed, range of motion and intensity of movements. Although I always do a full body warm up, I hope that you would at least concentrate on warming up the muscles that you will be targeting in your workout.
If you are going to stretch as part of your warm up I highly suggest waiting until near the end of your warm up when your muscles are more warmed up and ready to be stretched without damage.
Vanda Hadarean
Health and Fitness Personality
Ms. Fitness World
Olympic Medalist
1 Comments
Posted on 13 Jan 2009 by IbV
