These Are The Best Warmup Exercises You Should Do Before A Workout
Warmups before a workout are like foreplay before sex. While you can skip the foreplay and go for sex right away, it won’t be as pleasurable. You certainly wouldn’t want to miss out on the fun because you didn’t put in 5-10 minutes of work before a workout.
Warming up before a workout pumps blood into your muscles and lubricates your joints. This can help you lift more weights while minimizing the chances of an injury. For most people, warming up consists of a couple of arm rotations and standing toe touches.
These warmup exercises are great if you do them on waking up in the morning but they aren’t going to do much for you if your workouts consist of deadlifts and T-bar rows. Your warmups should be adjusted as per your workouts.
1. Pull-Ups – 50 Reps
Pull-ups are one of the best warmups you can do before any upper body workout. Performing pull-ups will pump blood into your upper body and get you ready for your workout. There is no fixed number of sets you need to complete these 50 reps in.
If you are comfortable performing pull-ups, complete the 50 reps in three sets. If you’re a beginner and can’t perform pull-ups, use an assisted pull-up machine if you have an access to it or use a spotter.
2. Supine Knee Cross – 20 Reps (10 Reps on Each Leg)
Your lower back is highly prone to injuries. If you have a stiff back or are sore from a previous workout, you should put in a few minutes to loosen up your lower back. The supine knee cross helps in warming up your lower back, glutes, hams, and quads.
Lie down on a mat facing the roof. Stretch out your arms and keep your shoulders pinned to the floor. Bend your right knee, move it across your body and try touching the floor without lifting your right shoulder off the ground. Repeat it for the left leg.
3. Surya Namaskar – 10 Reps
Surya Namaskar is the ultimate full body warmup exercise. You can perform this exercise before any workout. Surya Namaskar (meaning: sun salutation) is made famous by the Yoga gurus and it promotes a healthy body and mind.
Surya Namaskar is a 12-step exercise which will get you ready for your workout. Performing this exercise will work every single muscle in your body. The 12-steps make one rep, perform 10 reps of Surya Namaskar without resting in between reps.
4. Prone Chest Opener – 10 Reps (5 reps on Each Side)
Most people warm up on the bench press on their chest day. The bench press doesn’t warm up your shoulder flexors. You should be performing the prone chest opener and a set of light rotator flexors exercises using one pound dumbbells on your chest and shoulder day.
For the prone chest opener, lie facedown with your arms outstretched while keeping the arms in line with your shoulders. Lift your left arm and shift your weight to the right side. Allow your left hip to come up as you raise your left leg and sweep it over the right leg to touch the floor.
How long do your warmups last? Let us know in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook and Twitter.