A structured Warm Up should consist of the following key routines

Mobility Exercises
Pulse-Raising Exercises
Short Stretching
Re-Warm

There are two types of active warm up: General and Specific.

General - involves using rhythmic body movements unrelated to the proposed activity. For example, you may use the cross trainer or stepper to warm up to prepare yourself for a resistance training session. Although it is a must to warm up before any activity this type o warm up has weaknesses. The main weakness with this type of warm is that is doesn’t prepare the body’s neuromuscular pathways for the specific activity. However, as already mentioned it is better than not warming up t all & allows you the freedom of choice to warm up according to how you feel.

Specific -is related to the main activity itself, and allows you to rehearse the specific movement patterns (neuromuscular response patterns) providing skilful & specific co-ordinated movements. If you intend to do a weight training work out you might perform specific joint mobility range of movements such as small squats, leg curls, shoulder press, upright row etc. As a pulse raiser you may perform one or two sets of 8-10 that use the major muscle groups & use a light resistance & high repetition (15-20 reps)

Another release was Kick-boxing & Boxing. The cardio burn out with this type of training is exceptional.

I’ve always had a sporting background. My parents encouraged me from an early age & supported me implicitly taking me to so many sporting events so I could compete. I was a keen footballer playing for Tamworth & my county Staffordshire & had trials for Aston Villa. I also ran for my county, Staffordshire in various events from sprinting, to long distance endurance running.

Mobility Exercises - Before an exercise session it’s essential to mobilise & prepare the specific joints & actions to be used. Mobility is referred to as ‘limbering up’ & refers to the performance of slow & gentle rhythmic joint movements. For instance, shrug your shoulders & gently roll them back & repeat in the opposite direction is an example of a mobility exercise for the shoulder girdle.

The logic behind the mobility exercise is simple; it generates heat & stimulates the Synovial membrane around the joint to release Synovial fluid. Synovial Fluid when cold is like treacle, when warm it gets runny. When warmer the fluid assists with smoother & easier joint movement to occur.

Pulse Raising - The purpose of a pulse raising exercise is to prepare (warm) the body & gradually elevate the heart rate. Graduation of the exercise intensity is important as this provides the heart with time to increase stroke volume (amount of blood pumped in each contraction) & cardiac output (amount of blood pumped in one minute). Sudden exertion without gradual pulse-raising can lead to abnormal heart rate & inadequate blood flow to the heart along with sudden changes in blood pressure. All of this could be potentially harmful to e beginner to exercise or an unfit exerciser

Preparatory Stretching - This, if done correctly & under a controlled manner, prepares all the major muscle groups that will be used in the proposed activity. The stretches should be statically with a regular, maintained breathing pattern (avoid holding the breath!) for 10 seconds. The stretch should be taken to a position of mild discomfort, meaning it should not be over stretched, nor should it be under stretched. In short you are stretching in order to prepare yourself for the next step of your warm up.

Re Warm - Your pulse rate & muscle warmth will have dropped while you were doing your prep stretches so a re warm is essential to gradually bring your pulse rate & body temperature back to the level it was on your initial pulse raiser. So for this to happen, it’s a good idea to use your pulse raiser piece o equipment to re raise your pulse & body temperature.

Duration of you Warm Up - A reasonable duration would be between 5 – 10 minutes, dependant upon your fitness & level of capability.

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