5 of the Best Warm-Up Exercises Before Hitting the Gym

Warm up is one of the most important parts of any workout. You don’t rev your car’s engine on a cold winter morning without warming it up first, right? Similarly, you shouldn’t exert your body without a warm up either.

You’d probably be thinking, “I barely have enough time to work out and you expect me to spend time on warming up?” But, whether you’re just starting out or a regular at the gym, EVERYONE needs a good warm up!

When you’re inactive, your muscles are stiff, and the body temperature is low. This is the perfect recipe for sustaining an injury, which leads to missing workouts for weeks or even months. When you warm up, your body temperature increases and your muscles loosen up. This increases their efficiency and endurance level, reducing the risk of injury. And here comes the best part – all you need is 10 minutes!

“Okay, I’m convinced. But how do I go about it?”

Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. Here are some of the best exercises for warming up before your workout:

1. Dynamic Stretches

Dynamic stretches activate the muscle groups you will use during your workout. These stretches should form the bulk of your warmup routine if your goal is to build more muscle and increase overall performance. For your warm up, you can complete 10 reps of forward lunges, high kicks, lateral squats, hip stretches, and arm circles.

2. Jump Around

By jumping, you can quickly increase your heart rate and blood flow while increasing the body temperature. Two of the best exercises that involve jumping are skipping and jumping jacks. 2-3 minutes of skipping with a jump rope and 50 jumping jacks will prepare your body for an intense workout.

3. Supine Bridge

To do a supine bridge, lie on your back, bend your knees about 90 degrees, and squeeze your glutes while lifting your hips. The supine bridge is the perfect warmup exercise to strengthen your glutes. So, before you do your deadlifts, squats and bench presses, do 10 reps of the supine bridge to enhance performance and reduce injury.

4. Light Jogging

If you’re a runner, then directly gearing up to full speed is a sure to cause an injury. Jogging at a conversational pace for 5 minutes will warm up your muscles and prepare you for your run. Even non-runners can benefit from jogging. However, make sure that your posture is correct while jogging.

5. Good Old Push Ups

While push-ups are great for toning your upper body, doing 10-15 push-ups daily act as a splendid warm exercise as well. Push-ups before working out will help you improve your bone mass and core strength while activating major muscle groups. But, make sure that you don’t overdo it, as higher reps require warm up of their own.

So, increase your heart rate and make the most of your workout with these exercises. And don’t forget to cool down once you’re done working out.