Warm-up Mistake (huge)

A Warm-up mistake is pretty commonplace these days. For instance, many athletes I work with are very hot or cold in their approach to the warmup. Some don’t do much of anything yet expect to be ready to lift at their best. Juxtaposed to doing too little, some athletes do far too much than necessary. But the biggest warm-up mistake I see is not breaking a sweat before getting under the bar. But wait, there’s more.

Warm-up Mistake: Missing the point of the warm-up

Unfortunately, many miss the entire point of the warm-up. As discussed in 10/20/Life and Gift of Injury, Luckily for them, I have a 4-tiered system for warming up. 1. – break a sweat. 2 – Stiffen the core. 3 – fine-tuned mobility (if necessary). 4- Get under the empty bar to grease the groove. The MAIN point of warming up is to prepare you for work to come under the bar, nothing more. The good news is: that your approach is easy to fix – ask yourself, ‘am I ready to get under the bar to train?’

Address the warmup mistake

To ensure you are doing the correct things, ensure you are ready and have broken a sweat. You can carry a Kettlebell (suitcase carry), do push-ups for time, or go for a walk. Then, stiffen your core to ensure your hips are ready for work (for example, if you’re squatting). Prime your body for the work to come, and only do what you need to do to become ready.  Too many athletes make the mistake of not being warmed up for the need to do incessant mobility work, which is a waste of time and can detune the body and lessen performance output. Further, in some cases, it can even make you more prone to injury. Your warm-up is essential.

Brian Carroll can help you dial in your warm-up.

For those of you who are lost or confused and have already read Gift of Injury and 10/20/Life but would like some help deciding how to approach your warm-up or want to bounce some ideas off of Brian Carroll, you can book a video virtual consult HERE.

Brian offers both 30min and 60min sessions.