Q: In your Gassing article you mentioned that improper warm up could be the cause; could you explain that further?

A: A proper warm is not just about your body/muscle temperature. It’s about preparing your body for what it is about to do.

If you are doing a lower body workout, you don’t warm up with push-ups. If you are getting ready for a fight you wouldn’t want to ride a stationary bike as your only warm up.

A proper warm up will greatly improve your performance and should be done before every workout and competition with the same methodology.

You want to prepare all the systems you are going to use. So, you want to get the blood to the muscles you are going to use, get your heart rate up to the same as what you will do during your workout or competition without burning yourself out.

Using running as an example; Start off walking for about 10 minutes, then jog a few minutes taking the heart rate to just above Lactate threshold (80% of max HR), then back down to aerobic (under 80%). Without a heart rate monitor you can talk normally while aerobic and not while anaerobic. Although I have noticed that at the higher altitudes here in Denver the first few intervals feel like I am anaerobic but the heart rate does not show such. After staying under 80% long enough to catch your breath and remove any lactic acid, do another interval that is a little longer and takes the heart rate up a little higher, then bring it down under 80% where you can talk. Repeat this system till you have done a few intervals at a pace that will exceed your training/race pace. You must do this without building any lactic acid or burning yourself out. It’s almost impossible to explain what burning yourself out is, but you will “over do” a warm up at some point and will learn then. I would recommend a 30-minute warm up at least. If I am doing a 5k, I do a full 5k before the race at pace. If you train properly, a race as short as a 5k should be easy to do several times in one day. If you are doing a marathon, obviously you don’t do a full marathon, but a hard 5k may be exactly what you need to do your best in the marathon. You learn these things during training.

Remember, your training is to prepare for competition and even if you never plan to compete, you should train as if you may. It will make you a fitter person in the long run and you will never be the one buying the beers for being last.

For the fighter, warm up should be sparring for the same number and time of the rounds you are going to fight. The problem with fighting is it involves another person. So be sure to spar with someone you have sparred with before, someone who knows it is warm up. An overzealous warm up partner could hurt you before the fight. I would also be sure to include not only the striking but the grappling as well. When in a hold, being the aggressor or not, you will have all your muscles fully contracted and that needs to be something you are ready for. Just be careful not to over do it. Your warm up should finish just a few minutes before the fight or race begins. It only takes about 5 minutes for your body to revert to a state of rest.

In training I would probably train 30 seconds to a minute longer than the fight times and do an extra round because then the fight will seem short. I believe my training should be harder than any competition. Doing proper warm up and learning the best warm up takes time and practice. You will learn what works for you best and when the warm up is over. What I have discussed here is based on both the physiology of the body and my experience.

I hope this answers your question. Please keep in mind; no one short article can include all that may be right for you as an individual, but what I have written can be a beginning. This fact is why so many people are confused about health, fitness and training. A two-way conversation face to face is the only truly effective form of communication. So as you study fitness on your own, remember to put all the information into the best computer there is…YOUR BRAIN…it will all come together sooner or later.

Brian Paul is owner of Green Mountain Fitness, with 28 years of experience in
coaching, nutrition counseling, and personal training. Check out his page at
Green Mountain Fitness or look him up on Facebook at Brian Paul.