Warm Up Before you Hit the Gym

Before you hit the gym take a few moments to get your body ready by including a warm up cycle into your fitness program.

View Forum | Print Article | Font Size + / - | Back

Warming up before exercising is crucial in order to get the most from your workout and to avoid possible injury.  Many people don’t incorporate enough warm-up exercises into their workout routines.  If you watch people in the gym, you may see them do a couple of stretches and then dive right into a full-fledged workout.  They would benefit much more if they were to incorporate a warm-up routine before they begin.  Just remember to warm up at a low intensity.

What are the benefits?

Increased body temperature – slowly increasing your body’s core temperature helps to minimize muscle and connective tissue injuries.

Increased blood flow – increases the amount of fuel that is supplied to the muscles.

Preparing the muscular and cardiovascular system – warming up provides an easy transition from the resting state to strenuous physical activity state. This can help reduce injuries and muscle soreness.

It is important to remember to always warm up before conducting any stretching exercises.  Increasing the temperature in your muscles will give you greater flexibility and help to avoid common injuries due to over stretching.

For more fitness information visit

www.marinecorpsfitness.com

To order the March 2010 SPORTS 'N SPOKES, Click Here.
To Subscribe, Click Here.