When planning any strenuous physical activity, it's important to warm-up beforehand to physically and mentally prepare your body, and to cool-down afterwords to relax and prevent any excessive muscle soreness
Warming up before exercise prepares your body for the stress of phsyical activity. Likewise, a cooling-down period allows your heart rate and breathing to return to pre-exercise levels.
"It's important to stretch after exercise to counteract muscle tightening and to reduce the chance of stiffness and sore muscles"
It is also important to stretch after exercise to counteract muscle tightening and to reduce the chance of stiffness and sore muscles. Even with a good warm-up and cool-down, you may still feel a little muscle soreness a day or so after exercise; you can alleviate most discomfort with a few more gentle exercises.
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Raising your body’s temperature and warming your muscles makes them looser and more pliable. It increases blood flow, bringing oxygen and nutrients to the working muscles, and prepares your mind and body for activity. Your warm-up should consist of gentle physical movements to raise your body temperature.
The routine shown here shouldn’t take more than five minutes. If you are in a hurry and you’re not planning to do any highly strenuous activites afterwards, you can pick just a few exercises. But, make sure you include at least one to two minutes of side steps or a similar aerobic activity in order to boost your temperature and elevate your heart rate.
"Your warm-up should consist of gentle physical movements to raise your body temperature"
If you have the time, you could continue your warm-up with movements specific to the intended activity. For example, if you plan to go running, warm-up by jogging at a slow pace to build up to your normal running tempo.
1. Side step
Bring your feet together. As you sway to your right, step your right leg to the side and allow your left leg to follow, so that you are standing with your feet together once more. Repeat the movement over to your left side, with your left leg stepping and your right leg following. Continue stepping in this way for at least one to two minutes.
2. Ankle circles
Lift your right foot and place your toes against the floor. Using your toes as a pivot, circle your ankle 10 times in a clockwise direction and 10 times anti-clockwise. Repeat the exercise with your left foot.
3. Knee circles
Bring your feet together and gently place your hands just above your knees. Bend your knees a little and slowly circle your knees 10 times in one direction, using your hands for support. Repeat 10 times in the opposite direction.
4. Hip circles
Place your hands on your hips. Keep your knees slightly bent and gently circle your hips 10 times to the right and then 10 times to the left. Imagine you are slowly twirling a large hula-hoop around your waist.
5. Arm raise and twist
Stand with your feet together, your arms down in front of you and your fingers interlocked. Inhale and raise your arms above your head, turning your palms towards the ceiling. Smoothly twist your torso to face to the right. Try to twist from the waist and keep your feet firmly on the floor. Take three or four normal breaths before twisting to the left.
6. Shake
Gently shake your hands, keeping your wrists and fingers loose and breathing normally. Do this about 20 times before moving onto your arms. Keep your hands, elbows and shoulders relaxed and shake your whole arms around 20 times. Finally, let your whole body bounce up and down around 20 times, keeping your limbs as loose and relaxed as possible.
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Caution
Always perform the aerobic warm-up phase before stretching. Your muscles and the connective tissue that surrounds your muscles will not stretch easily while cold, making it easier to injure yourself.
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Stretching reduces the risk of injury and stiffness, increases the range of movement in your joints and improves flexibility. You can make stretching the second part of your warm-up routine, if you have time, and you should always stretch after cooling down at the end of your exercise period. The stretch routine shown here should only take a couple of minutes to perform.
"Stretching reduces the risk of injury and stiffness, increases the range of movement in your joints and improves flexibility"
If your exercise routine targets particular muscle groups or areas of the body, try to include some stretches specifically for those areas. Perform the stretches in a slow and controlled manner and do not hold your breath or push yourself into you're in pain. Exhale as you move into the stretch and breathe normally as you hold the stretch. Hold each stretch for 15–20 seconds.
1. Calves
Step your left leg forward and bring your right foot up onto its toes. Bend your knees and place both hands on your left thigh for support. Press your right heel down towards the ground until you feel a slight stretch in your right calf. Hold this stretch for 15–20 seconds, then change legs and repeat. If you wish to increase the stretch, face a wall and use both hands to push against the wall.
2. Hamstrings
Place your right leg a little way out in front of you. Bend your left leg and place both hands on your left thigh for support. Slowly and without rounding your back, lean forward until you feel a slight stretch at the back of your right leg or behind your right knee. Hold this stretch for 15–20 seconds, then change legs and repeat. If you wish to increase the stretch, place your front leg on an elevated surface such as a step or low stool.
3. Thighs
Place your right hand on the back of a chair for balance. Bend your left leg behind you and take hold of your ankle with your left hand. Without bending, slowly move your knee backwards until you feel a gentle stretch in the front of your thigh. Hold this stretch for 15–20 seconds then change legs and repeat.
4. Chest
Stand next to a wall. Place your left palm flat against the wall at about shoulder height with your arm slightly bent. Without straining, gently rotate your body to the right until you feel a stretch across your chest. Hold this stretch for 15–20 seconds then change arms and repeat.
5. Shoulders
Cross your left arm in front of your body at shoulder level and place your right hand just behind the elbow. Use your right hand to gently pull your left arm further across your body until you feel a slight stretch at the back of your shoulder. Hold this stretch for 15–20 seconds. Relax both arms for a moment, then change arms and repeat.
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Always cool down for five to ten minutes after exercise to give your heart rate, temperature and breathing a chance to gradually return to normal. Cooling down properly will help to eliminate waste products in the muscles, such aslactic acid, reducing the potential for muscle soreness. You can cool down in one of two basic ways:
Continue your chosen exercise at a much lower intensity. If you have just been jogging, for example, spend a few more minutes jogging at a slower pace before gradually slowing to a brisk and then normal walking speed.
Or, design your own cool-down routine. This might be made up of light aerobic activity such as walking or cycling for five to ten minutes, followed by some breathing exercises.
1. Walking
Walk at a brisk pace for a couple of minutes before gradually slowing to a normal walking pace. Continue at normal walking pace until your breathing has returned to a relaxed and comfortable level. If space is a problem, you can walk on the spot.
2. Breathing
Stand with your feet a comfortable distance apart, raise your arms out to the side and then overhead, inhaling deeply as you do. Exhale as you bring your arms back down to your sides. Repeat this for five full breaths.
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