myfitnesshut

I can’t tell you how many times I have seen it: people “goofing off” during their warmup before the workout. What do I mean by this? Well, let me think:

1) Terrible running mechanics: little or no arm swing, lazy feet and terrible body position. Those bad habits carryover into the workout.

2) Inadequate duration of the warmup. One to 2 minutes for a warmup is not enough to get your body ready for the workout.

3) If you only do static stretches for your warmup, that is not enough. It is better to warmup your body with a dynamic exercise such as running or jumping rope to warm your muscles and get the blood flowing. Do your static stretches after the workout to bring your muscles back to normal length.

4) Talking with your friends for 5-10 minutes is not a warmup! Don’t laugh because I have seen this happen.

5) I saved the best one for last: Your 5 minute warmup is not your workout! Again, don’t laugh because I have seen this happen too!

Here is a good warmup tip: use the warmup to burn calories. I use my 10 minute warmup to burn 125 calories. I do this by using a low-level interval routine (about 65% effort). If my goal is to burn 600 calories during my workout, then I have already accomplished about 20% of my goal. This type of warmup also insures that my body is ready for the tough 50 minute workout to follow. Have a nice warmup and workout today!

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