Proper Warm up

A proper warm up is important to any physical activity. Whether you are new to exercising or have been working out for years; the warm up should be a part of your routine that should never be skipped. The warm up also helps to prevent the risk of injury.  Every individual is different so not all warm ups will be the same, but there are a few guidelines to help you insure that you are fully warmed up before proceeding to your exercising activity.

 

 

The main goal of the warm up is to increase the temperature of your muscles. Cold muscles are referred to as tight muscles therefore trying to stretch and move them quickly can lead to strains and pulls.  When your muscles and joints are cold there is a lack of range of motion. Range of motion is the movement potential of each joint.

 

 

Your warm up should take 10-15 minutes beginning with a moderate level of cardio. For example, jogging, high knees, moving arms across your body and jumping jacks are a good place to start. As you start to feel you muscles loosen up you can increase the intensity level. A good signthat your muscles are fully warmed up is when you begin to sweat, but do not overdo it, you should not exhaust yourself during the warm up. After you begin to sweat, you want to stretch all major muscle groups such as: quadriceps,hamstrings, deltoids (shoulders), and back. If there are certain muscles youk now you will be using during your workout, now is a good time to stretch those as well. Also you will want to roll out your ankles and wrist and other commonly used joints.

 

 

Remember, everyone is different so if you need to take longer than 15 minutes to warm up that is okay. Factors such as age, prior injuries, or even the activity can cause you to have different warm ups. Just be sure to understand what your body is telling you and begin to exercise when you feel ready!



 

Author, Jill Parrott, has been a UCA instructor for 5 years.She won three UCA national titles when she was studying in Morehead State University and was a member on the 2011 USA all-girl cheerleading team which won the gold medal. Jill has had the chance to teach across the United States and Switzerland. She is extremely excited to be teaching here in China!



For more information, please call us at 020-37031336.


 
 

 

Varsity Cheerleading Academy

 

Address: Zhuguang Newtown International Center Block A, 4th Floor

Qingyi Street No.1, Zhujiang Newtown

Tianhe District Guangzhou City.

(Metro Line 5, Exit D, next to Zhujiang Park)

Tel:     020-37031336

Website: www.varsity.com.cn

www.varsity.com

Wechat ID: varsitychina