Don’t Skip the Warm-up: 10 Minutes to Reduce Injuries and Run Stronger

Whenever I think of warming up, I think back to my college cross country days: panting at the back of the pack on our pre-race 25 minute warm-ups and praying I had enough energy for the race. Looking back now, I realize my “easy” pace was nowhere near our national champion’s “easy” pace. No wonder I was exhausted before the race even started—I was racing the warm-up! 

Whether you’ve been overachieving your warm-ups or barely getting them in, we’ll go over a strategy to set you up for an optimal workout.

If you have ever wondered…

….can I get away without a warm-up?

…how long do I actually need to warm-up?

…what does the perfect warm-up look like?

We’ve got you covered.

Why start with a warm-up?

What does warming up accomplish?

• Reduces your injury risk up to 70%!

• Improves your performance! Race times, endurance, power and explosiveness all improve.

Is warming up always important?

• Speed work or races: yes. 

• Easy runs: involved warm-ups are not required. 5-10 minutes of brisk walking can be enough, especially on a cold day or easing back from an injury.

Think of warming up like getting everything ready for a big party. You throw on some music to get excited, set up the snack table, fill up the water jug, put out extra trash cans…you are doing your body a favor by getting everything ready so things run smoothly for “game time.”

On a scientific level, after warming up, our nervous system is more awake/active and ready to hit the “go” button when we want to go faster, drive up a hill, or tackle uneven terrain. Our muscle temperature goes up and our tissues become more extensible/flexible. We breathe more efficiently by priming our respiratory muscles. We also experience more joy and are better mentally prepared for the workout.

How to design the perfect warm-up

Make it individualized: Know the purpose of each phase of the warm-up and use the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) or your heart rate to gauge intensity. Easy should feel easy—and that may change day by day. An RPE of 3/10 today may be an RPE of 5/10 tomorrow depending on how stressed or fatigued your system is.

If you are susceptible to certain types of injuries (e.g., hamstring strains), you may want to always add a dynamic stretch of that muscle within your warm-up.

Only do as much as you need to: Research shows ideal warm-up runs are between 10-20 minutes. Warming up more than 25 minutes shows no further benefit and can even be detrimental to your performance by causing earlier fatigue.

Make it progressive: Start light and build up intensity. Begin with 5-10 minutes of easy jogging, then hit running-specific muscles and motions with a dynamic warm-up, potentially ending with jumping and sprinting.

Sample 15 Minute Warm-Up:

1. 5 minute easy jog

2. 5 minutes of dynamic warm-up

   (walking knee to chest→single leg RDL→forward lunges→lateral shuffle → A-skips)

3. 3 x 100m sprints with slow to fast build-up (5 minutes)

Still have questions?

If you're still wondering what to include in the perfect warm-up routine for you, reach out today and see how our coaches would fine-tune your personalized warm-up strategy! Plus, get their recommendations for staying injury-free and more:  https://www.trailtransformation.com/contact