What are some reasons we warm up before exercising?

• It increases blood circulation to the tissues of the body, making the muscles more pliable and ready for work.
• The increase blood circulation also delivers oxygen and nutrients to the muscles, which means more resources for the chemical reactions creating energy.
• It is better to stretch warm muscles than cold to avoid muscle strain.
• Proper warm ups prevent a rapid increase in blood pressure by slowly elevating the heart rate.

• A warm up at a slower pace often can help you wake up, if early morning workouts are involved, getting you more mentally ready to go more physically intense.  Mental preparation often makes a huge difference in your performance level.
• Believe it or not, but, your nervous system is heavily involved in the use and progress of your muscles in physical exercise.  Warm ups help “pave the pathway” for nerve-muscle communications and coordination.

• In certain joints there is fluid called “Synovial Fluid” that acts as a lubricant between two bones coming together.  As the joint moves, the viscosity of the fluid changes and produces less friction.

To summarize what may seem a little “too much information,” a proper warm up is essential to help avoid injury to both muscles and joints.  It also is important to heart health and function.  If the body isn’t properly prepped for exercise, that includes nutrition, the chance of injury and illness goes up, which causes exercise time to go down as your body needs time to heal.  Be sure to stretch only warm muscles and do so before and after exercise.  Don’t overstretch as this can cause injury also.  Take extra care of your body, it’s the only one you have!