The warm up and cool down are the bookends of a successful workout. But often we see them as extras - the parts of our workout that we can skip when we’re short on time. Really, we need to stop seeing warm ups and cool downs as bolt ons and reinstate them as an essential, unmissable part of our workout routine.
If we understand the science behind the warm up and cool down, and understand the benefits for our bodies and minds, then we can see why skipping them is not such a good idea.
A warm up is exactly what it says: a period of movement that slowly ‘warms up’ the body's respiratory and cardiovascular systems in preparation for the more intense exercise to come.
In practical terms, slowly increasing heart rate and blood flow to muscles during your warm up will help reduce muscle soreness and protect against injury. It also activates and primes the connection between muscles and nerves, improving efficiency of movement.
Physiologically, there is a lot going on in your body during your warm up (get ready, this is the science bit):
Cooling down is all about recovery, for you and for your body. It’s also way more about the mind, allowing you time to adjust from the energy of working out, to something a bit more relaxed.
By allowing your body time to adjust back to a resting, pre-workout state, you will:
Lowering your heart rate slowly will help prevent post-work out light-headedness, reduce the build-up of lactic acid and help prevent injuries.
Obviously the world isn’t going to end if you skip the odd warm up, but your body will certainly know about it. Warming up and cooling down are all about preparing your body for the exertion of intense activity, and for the reset back to a relaxed, resting state. If you miss these stages you are essentially shocking your body, which will put both your heart and your muscles under unnecessary stress.
If you skip your warm up you’re making your body more susceptible to sprains, cramps and other injuries, and putting yourself at a greater risk of experiencing DOMs. Skipping the warm up can also leave your body feeling sluggish, which will affect your overall performance.
Have you ever felt light-headed straight after a workout? If you have, it could be because your blood pressure has dropped too fast after you finished exercising. Even a quick 5 minute cool down can eliminate this, allowing your blood pressure to drop gradually. Skipping the cool down could also result in muscle tears and strains.
Basically, don’t skip them.
The basics for a great warm up are low intensity aerobic exercise coupled with dynamic stretching (dynamic stretching has been shown to be more effective than static stretches during warm up activity). But to really maximise the benefits of warming up, you should try to mirror the drills in your workout - for example, if you’re planning to do some resistance training, then your warm up should be composed of a few lighter sets to get you started.
A cool down doesn’t have to take long - anything from 4 to 10 minutes will be enough to kickstart your body’s recovery process. To reap the most rewards from your cool down, you need to focus on two things: slowing down and stretching out.
Focus on static stretches in the muscle groups you’ve been working the hardest during your session, and, even if your workout has been predominantly strength-based, a gentle walk will help regulate your heart rate. If you’re running, or doing any other cardio-based exercise, gradually slow your pace, finishing at a gentle walk. This will allow your heart rate to slow down with you.
By prioritising your warm ups and cool downs you're also prioritising your body, decreasing the chance of injury, and setting your brain up for some much needed post-workout relaxation. It’s all about getting the best out of you and your body, which is why we workout in the first place, isn’t it? You’ve got this.
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