Don’t Stretch… Be Dynamic!

I hate to stretch.

Let me repeat that opening sentence. I.Hate.To.Stretch.

Not only do I hate it, I avoid it. Throughout 33 years of running, I avoided it. Successfully, I might add. I’ve been injury-free for three decades.

When experts started debating the safety and effectiveness of static stretching — especially pre-workout stretching — I felt more than a little smug. My vindication had finally arrived.

Even as I pursued weights, I avoided stretching. I began warming up, though. Sometimes. For the first few months decade of strength training, when I remembered, I would walk briefly around the gym or on the treadmill.

Probably not such a bad idea if you’re working legs that day…. and nothing BUT legs. What about warming up everything else? Shoulders, hip flexors, and everything in between?

[For the record: Do as I say, not as I did!]

The main purpose of a warm-up is to raise the temperature of your body and prepare your muscles and joints for the specific work you expect them to do. A good warm-up will increase your heart rate a little and lubricate your joints before you start.

Joints. Oh, yes. Now that I’m in my mid-50s, it’s all about the joints and keeping them lubricated. No doubt it ALWAYS was, but neglect is more likely to show itself these days with a twinge here and a creak there.

Two years ago I discovered a dynamic warm-up from Rachel Cosgrove that I really like. [Rachel is business and marriage partner of Alwyn Cosgrove, the brains behind the workouts in the “New Rules of Lifting” books.] These days, I warm up faithfully before starting my at-home gym workout.

In yesterday’s post, I mentioned that my warm-up routine takes about 15 minutes. It includes the exercises shown in the video below, along with several other elements (including jumping jacks, plyometric jumps, and balance exercises). However, the routine Rachel demonstrates should get you off to a good start.

If you haven’t exercised for a while, this routine alone might be enough “workout” for the first few days. Occasionally, when I’m running short on time, I do my 15-minute warm-up plus a set of push-ups and call it even.

If you’re interested in some exercises to add to this routine, you can reach me via the Contact page…

P.S. — Although I don’t stretch before I run, for the past few years I walk for at least 3 minutes before beginning my run. Until I was 50 years old or so, I simply walked to the end of my short driveway and took off running. Ouch. I don’t do that anymore.

What type of warm-up — if any — do you do before a workout?