IF YOU FAIL TO PREPARE, YOU PREPARE TO FAIL

Optimal athletic warm-up : Is it just warmth that matters ?

PRESENTATION DESIGN : 1) Optimal warm-up principles 2) Optimal warm-up objectives 3) Most common mistakes 4) Warm-up research overview 5) Foam rolling research overview 6) My favourite warm-up exercises 7) Example warm-up for runners 8) Resources and links 9) Fun begins

OPTIMAL WARM-UP PRINCIPLES :Optimal warm-up takes in consideration : Lifestyle adaptations Individual weaknesses / assymmetries Modern methodologies Upcoming training specificity

OPTIMAL WARM-UP OBJECTIVES :Optimal warm-up has to : To raise body temperature Optimize muscle length / tone / flexibility Prepare nervous system Activate core muscles Prepare for specific movement patterns Prepare vestibular system Give immediate feeling of freedom of

movement Be possible with minimum to no equipment

MOST COMMON MISTAKES Only jogging / riding stationary bike Using fast, ballistic movement early in the

warm-up Overusing static stretching Skipping warm-up Not taking shoes off Using exactly the same warm-up routine for

years Upper body emphasis Ignoring pain Not using the time efficiently

CATS ALSO WARM UP

WARM-UP RESEARCH OVERVIEW 73 studies Jesse Irizarry Bret Contreras synopsis on the subject : Dynamic stretching is king Don’t hold static stretches for too long prior to

explosive performance Do dynamic stuff after static stuff to clear the

negative effects prior to explosive performance Don’t fatigue the body too much during warm-ups Increasing temperature is a primary priority (and

maintaining an increased temp) PAP works but, needs to be individualized to the

athlete

Moving the body through large active ranges of motion might be more important than core stability and glute activation drills for sprint warm-ups, however, the opposite may be true for rotational power such as swinging

Exercises themselves such as hang cleans can make for good warm-up activities prior to explosive performance testing

FOAM ROLLING RESEARCH OVERVIEW 10 studies Chris Beardsley overview :

Foam rolling pre-workout seems to be able to improve flexibility without the risk of reducing neuromuscular performance in either high-force-low-velocity or high-velocity-low-force muscular actions, as can occur with static stretching.

Foam rolling post-workout or post-competition seems to be able to reduce deterioration in countermovement jump performance in order to improve the ability to perform again more expediently.

Foam rolling post-workout or post-competition seems to be able to reduce muscle soreness in order to improve the ability to train again more frequently.

Foam rolling may acutely reduce arterial stiffness, improve arterial function and improve vascular endothelial function. These findings may indicate that foam rolling is beneficial for cardiovascular health.

MY FAVOURITE WARM-UP EXERCISES

1) Walking spiderman 2) Pushup walkout 3) Squat to stand (+ hand raises) 4) Prone Elastic Shoulder Rotations 5) Hip-flexor stretch with PPT and core activation 6) Single Leg Deadlift 7) Various crawls 8) Various somersaults 9) Thoracic Bridge 10) Hindu (Yoga) push-up 11) Wall dorsiflexion mobilization 12) Cat-camel 13) Push-up position hand raises

ORDER OF EXERCISES

1) Foam roller 2) Dynamic mobility drills 3) Sport Specific warm-up 4) Primary Training 5) Static Stretching

EXAMPLE OF GOOD WARM-UP FOR RUNNERS Hip-flexor stretch with PPT and core

activation (double the time on tighter side if assymetry is present)

Supine glute bridge Wall dorsiflexion mobilization (straight and

bent knee) Walking spiderman Single leg deadlift Quadruped T-spine mob Lateral lunge

RESOURCES AND LINKS Amped warm-up http://

www.strengthandconditioningresearch.com/2013/10/01/foam-rolling/#button

http://bretcontreras.com/what-does-sports-science-research-have-to-say-about-warming-up/

Eric Cressey http://www.ericcressey.com/ Mike Robertson

http://robertsontrainingsystems.com/ My lovely wife Anna