Warmups and warm downs tips

Written by Exercise Physiologist Morgan Farley, in collaboration with Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA)

Most people enjoy being fit and healthy and exercise is a key part of that process! Running, specifically, is a great tool to use throughout your health and fitness journey but injuries can occur if you don’t start and finish your exercise right.

It is important to prime your body before running through a warmup. Many different warmups exist, and it is important you find what suits your body best however, they all have the same principle, priming the body for the work it is about to perform. Here are some tips that you can implement to your warmup routine.

1. Perform 10 minutes of light activity to warm up your muscles and get the blood pumping. Some good activities are; jogging (below race pace), brisk walking or cycling on a stationary bike. These activities are using the muscles that you will use on your run.
2. Conduct some dynamic stretching. This involves your muscles working through a full range of motion through movement.
3. Whilst you are conducting a physical warm up you should also prepare your mind for the upcoming work. You can visualize the run you are about to perform, identify your goals for the run, even if it is a simple as getting outdoors and enjoying a run. Mental preparation can be a very useful tool for tough sessions.
4. Include some activation of the muscles you are about to use. This is particularly important if you are carrying some injuries. I find it particular helpful to warm up your glutes (muscles in hip/bottom) by performing some hip raises.

After your warmup and run you should conduct a cool down. These are important so your body is able to recover from the work it just conducted, gradually and safely slow your heart rate down and aid in the preparation for future runs.

Some main points to remember about cool downs are:

1. Conduct a slow run, jog or walk for 10 minutes with the aim to reduce your heart rate and breathing. These 10 minutes shouldn’t feel hard. I find it useful to practice my breathing here taking nice deep breaths.
2. Rehydration is important and should be started during the cool down if possible.
3. Stretching, foam rolling and trigger point release work is a good way to keep your body performing well and should be conducted post running sessions. Aim to release tight muscles so they can work though their full range of motion.

These tips are only a guide, your warmup and cool down can be different depending on what works for you individually. But trial and error is a good way to find what works for you, the most important thing is to enjoy exercising and remain fit and healthy for anything that life throws at you.

Happy running!