Whether you’re a casual runner or an aspiring professional, it’s important to warm up before you run. A good warm up is one of the most overlooked elements of a well-rounded exercise regimen. Here’s a closer look at how professional runners warm up. We encourage you to borrow tips for your own warm-up routine, no matter what kind of exercise you are doing.
Why Warm Up Before You Run?
We like to think of it as priming the pump. You simply cannot expect to perform optimally without getting the blood flowing and loosening up the muscles. This is especially true if you are competing, or getting serious about improving running times. Indeed, a good warm up can help:
- Focus the mind
- Prevent injury
- Improve performance
- Increase longevity
A Few Tips on How to Warm Up Like a Professional
Whether you are a professional, amateur, or casual runner, applying the following three principles will enhance the efficacy of your warm-up. They will give it structure and give you room to tailor the warm-up to your specific exercise or sport.
- Don’t Rush It – When preparing for longer distance events, some professionals will spend the good part of an hour warming up. Though this might be overkill for the casual enthusiast, it’s still important to build enough time into your own runs—however long they are—to allow for an adequate warm-up.
- Walk or Jog Lightly – Give it about five or ten minutes to get the blood flowing. As an alternative, you can jump on a treadmill or stationary bike, or complete a five- or ten-minute jump roping routine.
- Keep it Dynamic – The dynamic warm up has grown rather ubiquitous in recent years. You’ll find it on football fields, track and field events, even swim meets. The dynamic warm-up is designed to target the muscles used during a specific sport or exercise. Runner’s World has a great dynamic warm-up routine on their website.
Bonus tip: Don’t forget the cool down! A good cool down routine after the workout can help prevent soreness and stiffness the next day and aid your body’s recovery processes. It’s also one of the most oft-overlooked elements of a running or exercise routine.