Let's Warm Up!

I runfess...I was a late arrival to the Warm-Up Party.

Sure, I would do a few (static) stretches before a race, and maybe an occasional march-in-place. But an actual warm-up? Even before a training run?  Not likely.

It's not that I thought I was above going through a warm-up ritual, I just never really thought it was especially necessary for just an average runner like myself. After all, I was never in contention to win any races (spoiler, I'm still not LOL). Did I really need to "warm up" if I wasn't seriously "racing?"

The short answer...yes.

I'm coming off what was probably one of my more successful seasons in running. Heck, this entire year has actually treated me pretty nicely. Looking back, one of the main contributing factors was my commitment to doing things the "right" way, and not just "my" way this time.

One such "right" thing I did, this year, was to respect the warm-up. I not only did this prior to my races, but also for most of my training runs.

There are many benefits to doing a proper warm-up prior to running (or any workout, for that matter). A good warm-up routine will loosen up your muscles and joints, which is a great thing if you work out early in the morning. There's less chance of pulling a muscle or injuring yourself if your body has had a chance to "work out the kinks" prior to actually working out. Also, especially in cooler weather, doing a brief warm-up before you head outside will give you a head start on battling the not-so-warm temperatures.

Here's a quick look at what's been working for me...

Since a lot of my runs happen first thing in the morning, some of my warm-up starts before I even climb out of bed. This usually includes foot massage (especially the arches to prevent plantar fasciitis from staging a comeback), ankle rotations and a few pointing-the-toes (to stretch the calf muscles) and flexing-the-feet (working the shins). This initial stuff takes only a couple of minutes.

There's also a quick once-over with either the foam roller or the beaded rolling stick (3-5 minutes). The main objective with this is to loosen up the muscles (plus, it just feels good).

Once dressed, there are several moves that work specific sets of muscles to get them ready before hitting the street:

Squats - lower body; I usually do a few slowly, then several more at a faster speed

Butt kicks  - these loosen up the quads and work the glutes and hamstrings.

High knees - dynamic stretching of the glutes and hamstrings

Toy soldier walk - more glute stretching, as well as hip flexors and core

Leg swings - front/back 

Leg swings - side to side

As a bonus, most of these warm-up moves are great for strengthening your balance. Remember, the act of running is actually a series of alternating balance moves on each foot. These moves only take maybe 30-45 seconds for each exercise.

Other dynamic warm-up moves (not pictured) are simply marching in place (great for those last few minutes right before the starter's gun goes off), torso rotations (like you're maneuvering a hula hoop) and (if there's room) you can do some grapevines (stepping sideways while alternating stepping in front and back), and/or good old-fashioned jumping jacks.

I also do most of these as a cool-down after I'm done running, but in a much more slow and controlled manner.

It's a little disheartening to think how many miles I've kind of wasted over the years by not warming up prior to running. There have been numerous miles that served as my warm-up when I could have already had the warming-up done before hand. Granted, all miles run do count as miles run...but the runs themselves (or races) may have served me better had I warmed up my legs and body prior to hitting the street. Oh well....

What are your thoughts on warming up? Do you warm up every time you lace up? Or do you save it for racing? Got any favorite warm-up moves that I haven't mentioned? 

 I'm linking this with Kim and Zenaida for the Tuesday Topics Link-Up

**I'm also linking this with Debbie and Marc  for the Running Coaches' Corner

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