Warm Up To Warming Up!

Most of us dislike working out. Add to that the fact that the seemingly endless hours involved are stolen from things we'd rather be doing - and it quickly becomes a chore that we want to get through as quickly as possible.

So far, so good. We all feel that way at times. (Btw- working out becomes more enjoyable with time.) So in our rush to "get it over with" we are tempted to skip or at least gloss over our warm up routine.

Warning - disaster ahead! Don't do it. Skipping your warm up routine puts your body at risk for injury - but then you knew that. It's amazing how easily people can rationalize things away and think..."It won't happen to me" or even "Just this once won't hurt."

Evidence of this sort of rationalization is all around us. There's been a health risk warning printed on every pack of cigarettes for over 30 years, yet look how many smokers there are! Everyone knows that drug abuse is illegal, addictive, dangerous, will destroy your life, and eventually kill you...yet illegal drug sales is one of - if not THE biggest industry in the world!

So the thought that you can "get away with it" and can save a little time by skipping your warm up WILL occur to you. Fight it.

Here's a little good news - by properly warming up, the rest of your workout will actually be a little easier and will be more effective! So skipping the warm up routine doesn't really save you anything. To get the most benefit and avoid injury, make it a practice to warm up every time.

A warm up routine doesn't have to be a long and laborious process. A quick 5 minutes will do the job! Plus, there's no need for it to be boring either. There are a number of great moves that will work, if you mix and match them, you won't fall into a dull routine.

Be sure to do a complete warm up and get all of your muscles stretched and moving, even if you don't plan on working on a particular set of muscles during any given session. For example, if you're scheduled to do some weightlifting to increase your upper body strength, be sure to stretch and warm up your legs as well. Warming up is vital whether you are working with weights or aerobic exercises.

Your warm up doesn't have to be hard. The main goal is just to get your muscles moving. Stretch them out, get the blood flowing. Jogging in place, skipping rope, jumping jacks, lunges are all effective options.

Stretching your various muscle groups is frequently considered as more of a cooling down strategy, but there is good reason to include stretching in your warm up as well. Plus, it can't hurt do a little extra, it can hurt not to do it at all.

If you really object to spending the time, why not try warming up before you even get to the gym? Park several blocks away from the gym and power walk the rest of the way. When given a choice, take the stairs instead of an elevator. That way, once you are ready to get going, you are well on your way to being warmed up.

I once went to a gym and saw more than 15 people waiting for an elevator to go up ONE floor! And the stairs (about 20 steps) were right next to the elevator! It boggles the mind. After all, there were ALL there to get a workout. Heck, half of them got off the elevator and went right over to the stair master.

Whether trying to maintain levels of good health, bulk up or just drop a few pounds a good workout will start out easy and constantly build in intensity. This is only risky if you skip the warm up.

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