The Benefit of a Functional Warm Up for Runners

This post first appeared on The Stick and Zealous Vitality Inc.'s wordpress site.  I was asked to contribute a piece to Ken's blog about warming up for running workouts and races.

Check it out below:

Traditionally, the warm up had the focus of improving flexibility.  Static stretches would be performed on all major muscle groups with hopes of reducing injury risk and preparing the body for exercise, in our case a running workout or race.

The idea of a flexibility-based warm up has been proven to be ineffective and actually detrimental to subsequent power development and endurance running performance.  Static stretches are an important component of a strength and conditioning program, but it shouldn’t be placed prior to a running/gym workout or an intense race.

Having said that, the focus of the warm up needs to change.  A more appropriate warm up will focus on actually preparing you for that tough workout by increasing your internal body temperature and priming the cardiovascular and nervous systems.

The warm up should contribute to the development of balance, coordination, running mechanics, core strength, tissue quality and muscle activation.

A proper warm up should prepare the body physically and mentally for the intense workout or race that follows.  An active warm-up will enhance performance by improving:

•       range of motion
•       joint lubrication
•        oxygen uptake because of increased oxygen delivery to the working muscles and via an enhanced      utilization of oxygen from the blood
•        the speed and force of muscle contractions because nerve impulses travel faster in a warm muscle   compared to a cold muscle

A runner can start with foam rolling, otherwise known as self myofascial release prior to starting his/her easy jog, typically lasting 5-20 minutes.  Foam rolling will promote tissue quality and higher quality muscle contractions.  After this general warm up, it’s a great opportunity to perform dynamic stretches – stretches that are held for 2 seconds max, which are performed in a slight ballistic fashion, but under control. 

After the mobility drills are performed, your body should be quite warm now.  This is a great time to perform some muscle activation drills.  One of my favorites for runners is a single leg hip bridge – one variation I like to perform is called the knee hug hip lift.

After the muscle activation section of your warm up, proceed to your form drills and running strides.  This is the last phase of your functional warm up.  Stay tuned for a future blog post describing the best form drills for runners.  After your running strides you will be ready for a great workout!

But remember, don’t fatigue yourself before you even start your workout/race!  Take it easy in the warm up and take many breaks.  Remember, the warm up is supposed to prepare you for the workout/race, not tear you down!

A movement focused cool down is also beneficial to the runner to promote recovery after the intense workout/race.  Blood will be drawn back to the heart to prevent venous pooling and nutrient rich blood will be delivered to the broken down muscles.  The body’s internal temperature will drop and slowly return to the pre-workout/race state.  This usually consists of a 5-20 minute easy jog. 

A flexibility focused cool-down following the easy cool down run will further lower the body’s core temperature while promoting proper muscle length.  This is the perfect time to promote flexibility – while the muscles are warm.  So hold each stretch for roughly 30 seconds.  Runners would benefit from stretching their upper and lower calf muscles, quads, hip flexors, hip rotators, hamstring muscles, chest and/or lats.

Thanks for reading,

Jon-Erik Kawamoto, CSCS, CEP