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Warming up the muscles before any demanding physical activity is very recommended. Your muscles don't have a mind of their own, you have to tell them what you want them to do, with your mind. That's a different subject but the point is, it is essential to warm up your muscles properly before any strenuous physical activity, especially any muscle building activity.
One common mistake is thinking that it is enough to jog for 10 seconds or do a few pushups and think that your muscles are warm enough to max out on the bench press. Could you safely max out on the bench press after doing a few pushups? Yes, just as easy as you could without having done any prior pushups.
A warm up is good for two things:
- Safety- A proper warm up greatly reduces your risk for injury. If a muscle isn't warmed up, it has a higher risk of tearing or pulling, this could put you on the sideline for months.
- More Productivity – A warm up does just that, it warms up cold muscles and prepares them to work hard.
- Muscle contracts more efficiently at warmer inner body temperatures
- Warm ups increase blood flow to the muscles being worked
- Increased blood flow equals better range of motion in the muscles and joints
- Increased blood flow also helps deliver more nutrients and energy to the muscles, while carrying away non productive waste products
- Warm ups stimulate the nerve pathway to the muscle. This helps the muscle contract more fully and powerfully.
The key to a successful warm up is to warm up the muscles without tiring them to the point that it hinders the actual performance of your lift. A good warm up regimen for weight training is to perform one or two sets per individual exercise, using half of the maximum weight that you plan to lift in the actual set. For example, if you plan to perform 10 reps of 200 lbs on the bench press, you should do a set or two of 10 reps of 100 lbs (rest about 30-60 seconds between warm up sets).
Enjoy a safe warm up, then get into the lift you just warmed up for. You will notice that you will be able to lift more, with a greater range of motion.
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