Is Stretching a Warm Up !?

If you’ve ever played sports then I’m sure you already understand the use and importance of dynamic warm-ups. If sports were never your thing, then you may be wondering what a dynamic warm-up is and why it is so important. A dynamic warm-up typically takes place before any type of physical activity and helps to decrease the chance of injury. As an added bonus, it also helps to improve overall performance.

Fairly often, individuals believe that the optimal way to prepare the body for exercise is to perform stretches. Although stretching has its benefits, doing them before exercise may not benefit you as much as you think. By performing sport related movements that increase your heart rate prior to exercise, you are increasing blood flow to your muscles and properly preparing them for activity. Let me explain this in a bit more detail…

The majority of athletic injuries occur during the eccentric phase of activity, which is when the muscle is being stretched in a controlled manner. By performing a dynamic warm-up, you are engaging the muscles both concentrically and eccentrically. Don’t get too caught up in the technical lingo. All that you need to focus on is that your muscles are working through all types of contractions, which is what your body needs to get ready for that workout! Additionally, dynamic warm-ups increase muscle temperature, thus allowing them to optimally stretch which prevents the risk of injury. Lastly, remember that added bonus I mentioned about improved performance? Dynamic warm-ups increase what is referred to as nerve conduction velocity, which basically means the rate at which your brain and muscles communicate. The quicker they communicate… you guessed it, the better your overall performance will be! I hope these benefits have convinced you to start incorporating dynamic-warm ups into your exercise routine. I guarantee that with prolonged use, you will begin to experience much of what I’m talking about!

Check out some ideas for dynamic warm ups below: