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NIFS Healthy Living Blog

Upper-body and Lower-body Warm-up Routines

GettyImages-641796518I am often asked what is a good warm-up routine, and my answer typically consists of, “it depends.” A warm-up is typically done at the beginning of a training session and involves low-intensity movements to help get your body ready. The reason I tend to say “it depends” is that your goals, limitations, and what kind of training you have planned for a specific day will dictate your optimal warm-up.

Tailoring Your Warm-up

Now, a warmup does not have to be something innovative, but you do want to perform movements that will mirror your actual workout session. For example, if you have a lower-body day, I would recommend warming up with lower-body movements (and the same for the upper body).

How Long Should a Warm-up Be?

The time a warmup should last can range from 5 minutes to 10 minutes depending on how you are feeling that specific day. If you feel ready to go or have a time limitation, staying closer to that 5-minute limit would be best. If you are feeling a little tired and have no time restriction, then closer to 10 minutes would work better.

Sample Warm-ups

Here I provide a quick sample warmup for a lower-body day and an upper-body day. I do want to emphasize that this is a very basic warmup and it is not meant to fix any compensation that you may have.

Lower-body Warm-up

Perform 2 rounds for 10 repetitions for each exercise. If an exercise is unilateral, perform 10 repetitions for each side.

  1. Glute Bridge x 10
  2. Glute Bridge with Marches x 10e
  3. Downward Dog x 10
  4. Shoulder Taps x 10e
  5. ½-Kneeling Hip Stretch x 10e

Miniband Series: Perform 10 repetitions for each exercise. If an exercise is unilateral, perform 10 repetitions for each side.

  1. Squat (miniband around top of knees)
  2. Standing Marches (miniband goes around shoes)
  3. Standing Hip Circles (miniband goes around ankles)
  4. Lateral Walks (miniband goes around ankles)
  5. Monster Walks (miniband goes around ankles)

Upper-body Warm-up

Perform 2 rounds for 10 repetitions for each exercise. If an exercise is unilateral, perform 10 repetitions for each side. You will need a Superband for this as well.

  1. Sidelying Thoracic Rotation
  2. Downward Dog
  3. Superband Chest Press
  4. Superband Chest Fly
  5. Superband Pull Apart

As you can see, you do not have to reinvent the wheel when it comes to the warm-up, but you do want to make sure that the warm-up will get you ready for your workout.

This blog was written by Pedro Mendez, CSCS, FMS, Health Fitness Instructor and Strength Coach at NIFS. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

Topics: workouts warmups lower body upper body low-intensity warm-up

Go With the Flow: Spice Up your Warm-ups Using Flow Circuits

With the winter months settling in, and maybe traveling becoming part of your routine, it may become harder to carve out time for workouts. Limited access to equipment may also throw a wrench into your plan for a quick training session. But by incorporating bodyweight movements into a flow circuit, you can bypass the excuses and be workout ready any time, any place.

What Is a Bodyweight Flow?

Flow circuits typically include bodyweight movements that are linked in succession one after another with minimal or no rest in between. They can be used as a dynamic warmup, a low-intensity recovery circuit, or an entire workout in and of itself. They can also be a great way to sprinkle some physical activity into your day, especially if time and equipment are lacking.

How to Implement a Flow Circuit

If you’re looking to spice up your standard dynamic warm-up (or add one in general), a simple two-minute flow circuit fits perfectly. You can perform each movement three to five times, and when the movements are linked together in succession, they help increase blood flow, improve mobility, and increase your overall core body temperature to prep you for the workout ahead. Bodyweight flow circuits also allow you to hit large, compound movements that address stability at multiple joints in a shorter amount of time. Overall, they are a great bang for your buck. Examples of movements include bear crawls, cross-under lunges, inchworms, and rocking patterns.

Here are a couple of bodyweight flow options that you can take for a spin next time you’re at the gym in need of a warm-up.

  • Video 1 (Hip Flow Series)

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  • Video 2 (Crawling/Rolling Patterns)

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If you’re interested in learning more about how to use bodyweight movements and flows for warm-ups, circuits, cool-downs, or recovery routines, check us out down in the Fitness Center. You can also reach out to me via email to lzakrajsek@nifs.org for any and all questions. Happy lifting!

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This blog was written by Lauren Zakrajsek, NIFS Health Fitness Instructor, Personal Trainer, and Internship Coordinator. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

Topics: fitness center circuit workout videos recovery warmups bodyweight flow bodyweight flow flow circuits low-intensity