Tag: Warm-up

Proper Warm Up for Strength Training
Articles, Guest Articles, Strength Training

How To Do a Proper Warm-Up for Strength Training

Resistance bands offer a better way to warm up dynamically alongside various non-resistance band movements. A mixture of both is the best way to activate your muscles prior to lifting and increase your joint range of motion (ROM) temporarily to perform better. There are a variety of ways to warm-up properly prior to training, such as foam rolling, and adding resistance bands could make several beneficial changes.

Get our in-depth How To Warm-Up Guide >>

What’s the Purpose for a Warm-Up?

A proper warm-up is recommended to improve your performance regardless of what your training focus is. The intent behind a warm-up is to physically and mentally preparing your body for the workout through increased heart rate, range of motion, and muscle activation.

Muscle stiffness and soreness often reduce flexibility, which can affect the way you execute exercises, especially when the resistance is higher. For example, tight hamstrings and glutes can make it difficult to execute squats efficiently.

Foam rolling and dynamic stretches help relieve this tightness and improve overall flexibility. Then light muscle activation for stabilizer muscles to be used that day may help drastically.

This is accomplished through mobility work and a dynamic warm-up. Injury prevention may be a factor for the warm-up with some, but the overall purpose is doing better during your training. Studies are very mixed when it comes to preventing any injuries.

Learn more with our complete How To Warm-Up Guide >>

Different Phases of the Warm-Up

Your warm-up prior to training doesn’t need to take a long duration. The point is to choose areas for foam rolling purposes to improve mobility for the focus of the day. Then dynamic stretches for flexibility and priming muscles through activation exercises.

Increasing Heart Rate

This is a quick 5-minute portion for your warm-up to increase your body temperature and blood circulation. Flexibility occurs better chances to improve and relieve muscle tightness after they have been warmed up.

During this phase, you can do a brisk jog, cycle, rowing, and other various cardio activities. This is an important phase for your warm-up and is often overlooked. But it is not an intense set of sprints or anything. Simply brief cardio to increase your heart rate and get the blood pumping.

Mobility Support

Sustained pressure from foam rollers, lacrosse balls, and other various myofascial release tools help with mobility. This is not to be confused with actual mobility work, which is taking a limb through its entire range of motion.

Instead, you are working on the tight muscles to relieve this stiffness in order to allow joints the ability to move freely in their ROM. The main ones for lifts are shoulders, knees, hips, elbows, and ankles.

If mobility is still difficult after muscle release techniques, then you may want to consider adding some actual mobility exercises that are necessary for the areas that need focus.

How To Foam Roll Properly >>

Dynamic Stretching

This type of stretching is active movement instead of static holds. You will be able to get your muscles warmed up and activated better through this method. Static stretching is okay to do at the start within short holds but holds over 10-15 seconds may possibly signal your muscles to relax as opposed to activating.

Effective bodyweight dynamic stretches can be single-leg raises, pendulum swings, arm circles, and even the cat-cow warm up. Exercises such as these assist with the muscle warm-up phase and offer activation also, but better activation for stabilizer muscles occur when resistance bands are used.

Muscle Activation

The muscle activation phase is often executed wrong when the resistance bands come out. Due to their elasticity, many often do quick movements and allow the band to slingshot back into position. Short, quick movements with little control would be more dynamic stretch opposed to muscle activation.

Controlling your movements with resistance bands and fighting against the pull help the stabilizer muscles to activate. You can understand this need for activation by understanding how prime movers work.

Prime movers are essentially your larger muscle groups working to move the weight during an exercise such as the quads and glutes for back squats. The muscles supporting these prime movers with proper movement patterns and control are the stabilizer muscles. These muscle groups supporting the prime for squats would be hamstrings and calves, amongst others.

Together they create the force necessary to move weight effectively. However, during warm-up some smaller stabilizers may not be activated, such as the gluteus medius, which affects external hip rotation.

This could be one reason for knee caving since the knees cannot be kept in alignment during the squat. The following resistance band exercises help activate the gluteus medius and strengthen it as well.

Resistance Band Exercises for Muscle Activation:

  • Clamshells
    • Lay on your side and loop a hip circle or resistance band around your legs, near your knees. Keep both knees bent about 90 degrees, then simply raise and lower your top leg, while keeping your lower leg pressed into the floor. Make sure to work both sides equally.
  • Side-Lying Hip Abduction
    • Lay on your side and loop a hip circle or resistance band around your legs, anywhere between your ankles and knees. Then simply raise and lower your top leg. Make sure to work both sides equally.
  • Monster Walks
    • Stand with both feet inside a hip circle or resistance band, and pull it up anywhere between knee and mid-thigh height. Then walk around both forwards and backward, taking big steps and maintaining constant tension on the band.
  • Lateral Walks
    • Stand with both feet inside a hip circle or resistance band, to where there is light tension. Squat down and walk laterally (side to side) while maintaining constant tension on the band.

The hip circle bands work best for these exercises since they maintain their circular shape and easily slid up and down where needed. Victorem Gear has some quality products in sets to choose from. You can go here to check them out.

Learn more with our complete How To Warm-Up Guide >>

Warming Up is Simple and Effective

Warm-up phases seem like they would take an hour. But in reality, they should only take 20 minutes if you are moving through the phases and not allowing distractions to occur, i.e. conversations, phone use, etc.

Each phase has its own purpose and importance to the workout that follows. And some do choose to skip them after figuring out what works best for them. You should do the same and develop your own style of warming up after you get into the rhythm of using this concept.

The biggest thing is to not rush the movements while muscles are still “cold” leading to injury. Going straight into the activation phase with expectations to lift immediately may result in muscle strain or other injuries. Have patience and do everything correctly.

Learn more with our complete How To Warm-Up Guide >>

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600 lb deadlift

Muscle Activation Technique Exercises

Muscle Activation Techniques

The Mathias Method Strength System emphasizes the importance of a proper warm-up before you begin any strength training routine or workout program. This is to help decrease pain, prevent injury, and fully prepare your body for the workout ahead. This page will go over our Muscle Activation Technique Exercises for the Squat and Deadlift. 

Get our complete How To Warm-Up Properly for Strength Training Guide today! And learn why you should NOT do cardio to warm-up before a weight training workout!

600 lb deadlift

About Muscle Activation Techniques

First, do a complete full-body dynamic warm-up routine and lower-body warm-up exercises before you start these Muscle Activation Techniques.

Then, the next part of the Mathias Method Strength System’s warm-up uses muscle activation technique exercises, to fully prepare your muscles for the workout ahead. These muscle activation techniques teach the correct muscles to turn on, or activate, and bring blood flow to the muscles before the workout begins.

Muscle activation exercises are specific to every workout’s main strength movement. These muscle activation techniques include balance training to improve neuromuscular proprioception, or muscle activation, and joint stability.

By combining your dynamic bodyweight warm-up with these muscle activation techniques, you are improving your range-of-motion and strength in those positions.

After completing these muscle activation technique exercises, then you will be fully warmed up and ready to Squat 500+ or Deadlift 600+ pounds!

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

More Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

Muscle Activation Technique Exercises

Single Leg Romanian Deadlift

Reps: 10 each side

Purpose: Hamstring Activation

  • Stand erect at an arms distance away from a stable object, if needed for balance. 
  • With a slight bend in your knee, hover one foot off the floor while maintaining a straight line from your head to that foot.
  • Then, lean your torso forward as you extend your opposite leg behind you.
  • Keep your hips square and internally rotate (toes in) your foot as it moves behind you.
  • Stop when you feel a stretch in your hamstrings or reach 90 degrees of hip flexion.
  • Pause for 2 seconds before flexing your hamstrings to return back to the starting position.

Hip Airplanes

Reps: 10 each side

Purpose: Glute Activation

  • Stand erect at an arms distance away from a stable object to use for balance.
  • Hover one foot off of the floor and lean your torso 30-45 degrees forward, keeping your raised leg in line with your torso.
  • Then, bend your grounded leg to a more stable position and keep your hips in line with your shoulders throughout the movement.
  • To start, internally rotate your raised leg’s hip inward towards your opposing knee before flexing your glute to reverse the motion, externally rotating your hip away from the opposing knee.
  • Control the motion with your glute and maintain a straight line from your raised foot to your head.

Bulgarian Split Squat

Reps: 10 each side

Purpose: Activate Quadriceps and Mobilize Hip Flexors

  • Start by standing erect and placing the ball of one foot on a raised surface (6-12 inches) behind you.
  • While maintaining a vertical torso, hips square and your glutes activated, dip your raised knee down until you feel a stretch in your anterior thigh, or reach 90 degrees of knee flexion in your front leg.
  • Hold this position for two seconds before flexing back to the start position.
  • To increase the stretch further, raise the surface higher or put your front foot out in front of you farther.
  • Do not let your front knee go over your toes at any point.

When you finish these muscle activation technique exercises, then you will be fully warmed up and ready to Squat 500+ or Deadlift 600+ pounds!

All Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

how to warm-up properly for strength training book

430 Squat by Team stronger Reid England

Shoulder Dislocation Mobility Exercise 2

Shoulder Warm-Up Exercises

The Mathias Method Strength System emphasizes the importance of a proper warm-up before you begin any strength training routine or workout program. This is to help decrease pain, prevent injury, and fully prepare your body for the workout ahead. This page will go over our Dumbbell Shoulder Warm-Up Exercises for the Bench Press.

Get our complete How To Warm-Up Properly for Strength Training Guide today! And learn why you should NOT do cardio to warm-up before a weight training workout!

Dumbbell Shoulder Warm-Up for the Bench Press

A Proper Shoulder Warm-Up

First, do a complete full body dynamic warm-up routine and our upper body warm-up exercises before you start this Dumbbell Shoulder Warm-Up Routine.

Then, the next part of the Mathias Method Strength System’s warm-up uses muscle activation technique exercises, to fully prepare your muscles for the workout ahead. These muscle activation techniques teach the correct muscles to turn on, or activate, and bring blood flow to the muscles before the workout begins.

Muscle activation exercises are specific to every workout’s main strength movement. These muscle activation techniques use dumbbells to improve neuromuscular proprioception, or muscle activation, and joint stability.

By combining your dynamic bodyweight warm-up with these shoulder muscle activation techniques, you are improving your range-of-motion and strength in those positions.

After completing these dumbbell shoulder warm-up exercises, then you will be fully warmed up and ready to Bench BIG!

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

More Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

Dumbbell Shoulder Warm-Up Exercises

Purpose: Activate Deltoids and Improve Shoulder Function.

Lateral Raises

Reps: 10-15

IMG_0418IMG_0419

  • Holding 5-10 lb dumbbells, lean slightly forward, with arms slightly bent.
  • Then, slowly raise the dumbbells out laterally until they are above shoulder height.
  • Pause before slowly controlling the motion down to the start.

Front Raises

Reps: 10-15

IMG_0415IMG_0416

  • Holding 5-10 lb dumbbells, stand erect and slowly raise the dumbbells in front of you until they are above shoulder height.
  • Pause before slowly controlling the motion down to the start.

Reverse Flyes

Reps: 10-15

IMG_0413IMG_0414

  • Holding 5-10 lb dumbbells, lean your torso forward and allow your arms to extend down until they are nearly touching the floor.
  • With arms slightly bent, slowly raise the dumbbells out laterally until they are above shoulder height.
  • Pause before slowly controlling the movement down to the start.

Dumbbell Military Press

Reps: 10-15

IMG_0410IMG_0409

  • Holding 5-10 lb dumbbells just over your shoulders externally rotate your elbows out to the sides as you press the weight overhead.
  • While maintaining a vertical torso, try to continuously maintain a backward pull throughout the movement.
  • Reverse the motion by lowering the weights and pulling your elbows back and down towards your hips, until the dumbbells are once again set over your shoulders.

Shoulder Dislocations

Reps: 10 total

Purpose: Improve Shoulder Function and Mobility.

  • Grasp a band, strap or light pole with a much wider than shoulder width grip.
  • Flex your glutes, brace your core and pull your shoulder blades back and down throughout the motion.
  • Starting in the front, keep your arms fully extended as you raise them in front of you, over your head and all the way around to your glutes.
  • Then, reverse the motion back around towards your hips.
  • Try to grasp your hands as close as you can while still maintaining the full extension of your arms.
  • Only use a grip that brings a slight stretch to be felt as you rotate about the motion.

Note: If you cannot rotate around the through the full motion then only go as far as you can and pause in this position each time.

When you finish these dumbbell shoulder warm-up exercises, then you will be fully warmed up and ready to Bench BIG!

All Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

how to warm-up properly for strength training book

Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Routine Stretches and Exercises

Weightlifting Warm-Up Routine

Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Routine

The Mathias Method Strength System emphasizes the importance of a proper warm-up before you begin any strength training routine or workout program. This is to help decrease pain, prevent injury, and fully prepare your body for the workout ahead. This page will go over our Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Exercises.

Get our complete How To Warm-Up Properly for Strength Training Guide today! And learn why you should NOT do cardio to warm-up before a weight training workout!

Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Routine Stretches and Exercises

How To Warm-Up for Weightlifting

First, do a complete full body dynamic warm-up routine before you start these Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up exercises and stretches.

Then, the next part of the Mathias Method Strength System’s warm-up includes these workout specific warm-up exercises. These are done after your full body dynamic warm-up stretches but before your dumbbell shoulder warm-up.

This Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Routine will include a few specific mobility stretches for the calf-hamstring complex, hip flexors, ankles, chest, and shoulders. These will help prevent injury and increase strength as you teach your body how to move properly for strength.

When you are done with these Olympic weightlifting warm-up exercises, begin your technique work.

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

More Warm-Up Exercises

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Stretches

Calf-Hamstring Stretch

Reps: 30-120 seconds each side

IMG_0423

Purpose: Improve Knee Extension, Ankle Dorsi-flexion, Calf, and Hamstring Function.

  • With your knee fully extended, place the ball of your foot on a slightly raised surface and allow for your ankle to fully dorsiflex (pull your toes up towards your face).
  • Keep weight on the ball of your foot and your knee fully extended as you lean your torso forward.
  • Maintain a neutral spine and lean until you feel a stretch behind your knee.
  • Be active in the stretch by coming in and out of tension under control, contract-relax techniques and by flexing the opposing muscles (Quadriceps, Anterior Tibialis) to deepen the stretch.

Exaggerated Lunge

Reps: 30-60 seconds each side

IMG_0447

Purpose: Improve Hip Extension, Hip Flexor Function, and Hip Mobility.

  • While keeping your hips square, place one foot on a raised surface (12-20 inches high) in front of you and the other behind you.
  • Keep your front foot pointed forward and slightly internally rotate your back foot as you extend your leg behind you.
  • Keep your torso vertical, core braced and tension on your rear glute as you bend your front knee to initiate the stretch.
  • When you feel the tension in your hip flexor, hold that position.
  • To increase the stretch you can flex your glute to further press your hips forward or flex and extend your posterior knee slightly to find other tense positions to hold.

Single Leg Calf Stretch

Reps: 1-2 minutes each side

Purpose: Improve Ankle Dorsi-flexion and Calf Function.

  • With your knee fully extended, place the ball of your foot on a raised surface, high enough to feel a stretch in your calf.
  • Allow your heel to sink down as you put your weight on your foot.
  • Actively move around in this position by flexing in and out of it, forcing your knee into further extension, or pulling your toes towards your face.

Weighted Deep Squat Calf Stretch

Reps: 2-3 minutes

Purpose: Improve Ankle Dorsi-flexion and Calf Function.

 

  • While holding a barbell, place it just above your knee caps and go into a full depth squat.
  • Ensure that your heels are down in this position, and only rise slightly as you push the weight and your knees forward.
  • Move around in this position to create change, by flexing the opposing muscles and moving under control.
  • You may put more stress on one side by leaning the barbell to that side or placing all the weight on one side at a time.
  • Use this stretch sparingly as it is more intense than non-weighted mobility techniques.

Shoulder Dislocations

Reps: 10 total

Purpose: Improve Shoulder Function and Mobility.

 

  • Grasp a band, strap or light pole with a much wider than shoulder width grip.
  • Flex your glutes, brace your core and pull your shoulder blades back and down throughout the motion.
  • Starting in the front, keep your arms fully extended as you raise them in front of you, over your head and all the way around to your glutes.
  • Reverse the motion back around towards your hips.
  • Try to grasp your hands as close as you can while still maintaining the full extension of your arms.
  • Only use a grip that brings a slight stretch to be felt as you rotate about the motion.

Note: If you cannot rotate around the through the full motion then only go as far as you can and pause in this position each time.

When you finish these Olympic weightlifting warm-up exercises, begin your technique work.

All Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

how to warm-up properly for strength training book

Olympic Weightlifting Warm-Up Exercises

315 lb bench press

Upper Body Warm-Up Exercises

Upper Body Warm-Up for the Bench Press

The Mathias Method Strength System emphasizes the importance of a proper warm-up before you begin any strength training routine or workout program. This is to help decrease pain, prevent injury, and fully prepare your body for the workout ahead. This page will go over our Upper Body Warm-Up Exercises for the Bench Press.

Get our complete How To Warm-Up Properly for Strength Training Guide today! And learn why you should NOT do cardio to warm-up before a weight training workout!

Upper Body Warm-Up Exercises for the Bench Press

Bench Press Warm-Up Routine

First, do a complete full body dynamic warm-up routine before you start these Bench Press Warm-Up Exercises.

Then, the next part of the Mathias Method Strength System’s warm-up includes these workout specific warm-up exercises. These are done after your full body dynamic warm-up stretches, and before your muscle activation techniques.

This Upper Body Warm-Up Routine will include a few full range-of-motion exercises and mobility stretches for the chest, back, arms and shoulders. Together these will help prevent injury and increase strength as you teach your body how to move properly for strength.

When you are done with these upper body warm-up exercises, move onto our dumbbell shoulder warm-up exercises for the Bench Press.

You can do these warm-up exercises using an adjustable & multifunctional weight set for your home.

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

More Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

Upper Body Warm-Up Exercises

Note: Yes, many of these exercises will seem and look “dorky”. However, they ALL have a purpose!

Arm Circles

Reps: x 10 each direction

Purpose: Improve Shoulder Mobility and Function.

  • With your glutes flexed, core braced and spine neutral, simply circle your arms slowly through their full range of motion in each direction.
  • Do this under control at a slow-moderate pace.
  • Keep your head in line with your torso and do not flex or extend your thoracic (upper) spine.

Horizontal Hug & Open

Reps: x 10 total

Purpose: Improve Scapular Protraction and Retraction Function and Mobility, Pectoral Function, Thoracic Spine Flexion, and Extension Mobility.IMG_2368IMG_2369

  • With your palms facing down, cross your arms in front of your body and wrap them as far around your torso as you can allowing your thoracic (upper) spine to flex forward as needed.
  • Then, reverse the motion externally rotating your hands so that your palms face up as you extend your arms horizontally to your sides and try to pull them together behind you, allowing your thoracic spine to extend backward.
  • Let your scapula protract forward as you hug and retract back to open your chest.
  • Pause at the end of each motion and switch the crossing of your arms in front each time.

Shoulder Flexion-Extension

Reps: x 10 total

Purpose: Improve Shoulder Function, and teach proper shoulder movement.

  • With your glutes flexed, core braced and arms extended, raise your hands over and behind your head as far as you can with palms facing each other.
  • Then lower your extended arms under control and internally rotate your hands to palms facing backward as you extend behind your torso.
  • Do not allow your spine to flex or extend as you go through the full range of motion.
  • Keep your shoulder blades pulled back and down as you extend behind your hips.

Single Arm Swings

Reps: x 10 each way

Purpose: Shoulder Joint Synovial Fluid Lubrication and Improve Shoulder Function.

  • With your one arm slightly flexed, circle it at a fast pace through its full range of motion each direction.
  • Be sure to cross your arm in front of your body as you swing it.
  • Go fast, but maintain control of the motion.
  • After going each direction, repeat with the other arm.

Scapular Rotations

Reps: x 10 each direction

Purpose: Improve Scapular Function and Mobility.

  • With your arms flexed about 90 degrees, circle your shoulders forward and backward through their full range of motion in both directions.
  • Ensure that your scapula is moving up and down with the motion and can move freely.

Chest Stretch

Reps: x 10-30 seconds

upper body warm up chest stretch

Purpose: Improve Pectoral and Shoulder Function and Mobility.

  • With your arms extended out horizontally, grasp a stable object with each hand.
  • Pull your shoulder blades back and down as you push your chest forward until you feel a slight stretch in your chest.
  • Breathe calmly as you relax into the stretch before starting to move through the tension under control.
  • Maintain tension in your back as you pull your shoulders back actively.

Lat Stretch- Overhand

Reps: x 10-30 seconds

Purpose: Improve Shoulder Flexion and Latimus Dorsi Function and Mobility.

  • Grasp a stable object, near your head height, with an overhand grip (palms down).
  • While maintaining a neutral spine and hips square, extend the same side leg behind you as you lean forward until you feel a stretch in your lat.
  • With your arm and leg fully extended keep a forward torso lean as you attempt to push your head through, in front of your arm.
  • Work through the tension in this position by internally and externally rotating your torso.

Note: If you can flex your arm beyond your ear, then this movement is not necessary.

Doorway Pec Minor Stretch

Reps: x 10-30 seconds

Purpose: Improve Breathing Function, Scapular Elevation, and Depression Function.

  • Standing in a doorway, flex your arms 90 degrees and place the inside of your forearms against the outer frame with your elbows shoulder height.
  • With one foot, step through the doorway until you feel a stretch in your anterior chest.
  • Take deep breaths and relax into the motion to increase the effectiveness of this stretch.
  • By leaning your torso forward you can increase the stretch towards the external rotation of your shoulder.
  • This stretch may also be done one arm at a time against any stable object.

Scapular Protraction Stretch

Reps: x 10-30 seconds

Purpose: Improve Scapular Function and Mobility.

  • With one hand, grasp a stable object at shoulder height with an overhand grip.
  • Step the same side foot back and lean away from your hand.
  • Both internally and externally rotate your entire torso, to and away from your hand allowing for your scapula to stay protracted forward.

After completing these upper body warm-up exercises for the bench press, do our Dumbbell Shoulder Warm-Up Exercises. Then you will be fully warmed up and ready to Bench BIG!

All Warm-Up Routines

See all of our Mobility Stretches or Strength Training Exercises.

For all of our specific workout based warm-up routines, you can check out our How To Warm-Up Properly Guide.

how to warm-up properly for strength training book

Bench Press Warm-Up Exercises