Warm
up Drills for Athletes
An effective warm-up must
consist of a series of dynamic and active movements
that start with low impact, low intensity exercises
and progress naturally to high intensity, full
speed exercises that simulate the intensity
of the upcoming practice or competition.
As you know, in order for
you to be ready to perform speed work or compete
at high intensities,
you must get warmed up properly.
We often find that there is
some confusion as to what constitutes a proper
warm-up. For
example, some coaches are still using static
stretching to get athletes loose before practices
and competitions. Unfortunately, this outdated
method actually reduces speed and power.
Think about it: how often
during a practice or competition does an athlete
hold a stretch
position as part of their sport? That is right,
not very often. So if you are still using this
method to get ready to compete, you are not
getting the most out of your ability.
Instead, perform dynamic exercises
that are similar to the types of movements
you will
be going through during practice and competitions.
Keep moving and gradually increase the intensity
of your activity. That way you can get the
blood flowing into the muscles through a natural
progression.
Remember, a good warm-up should take at least
20 to 25 minutes to complete. This will reduce
the likelihood of injury by ensuring that you
do not try to go too fast too soon. In addition,
you will get the most out of your muscles because
you followed a thought-out progression of movements
that went from low intensity jogging and skipping
to high intensity speed development drills
and exercises.
By the time you have finished warming up,
you will be lightly sweating, fired up and
ready compete!
Another issue to note when doing any type
of speed drills is to make sure that you are performing
the exercises correctly. You compete like you
practice. If you are not performing the drills
correctly you are going increase the likelihood
ofinjury by adding unnecessary stress to joints,
muscles, ligaments and tendons.
Drills are designed to be done a certain way
for a specific reason. If you are not technically
sound during the warm-up you will not be technically
sound in games and competitions when it counts.
The warm-up is the foundation of the day's
activities and sets the tempo for all that
is to follow it.
So now that you know what types of activities
must be done and how to approach them, let
us take a look at an actual dynamic warm up
that top athletes and coaches use to get ready
each day.
Before trying this out, be
sure to jog and/or skip for about five minutes.
Here is a sample warm-up:
High knee walk - x 10 each leg
Jog 50 yards
Lateral lunge walk (both legs) x 10each leg
Jog 50 yards
Front leg swings - x 10 each leg
Jog 50 yards
Lateral leg swings - x 10 each leg
Jog 50 yards
Iron cross - x 10 each leg
Jog 50 yards
Scorpion - x 10 each leg
Jog 50 yards
Backwards run - 2 x 30 yards
'A' skip - 3 x 15 yards
'A' run - 2 x 20 yards
Fast leg - 2 x 30 yards (each leg)
Accelerations - 4 x 40 yards.
By performing this type of warm-up every day,
you will be loose, powerful and fast. In fact
it is the only way.
Be sure that you perform a
dynamic warm-up before each practice and competition;
otherwise
you are not competing to the best of your ability
and the likelihood of sustaining an injury
is increased.
For sample warm up routines,
step by step instructions for over 48 dynamic
warm up exercises
and active stretches (and how they fit into
your overall training program) check out: Complete
Speed Training Program
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