Actually, you did a pretty good job of it IMO! Here's the link to the specific page in your log, for the sake of posterity: Wendy's Transformation
But I can always add links and say more, if that's what you want!
Most of you already own NR4W, so open it back up and reread pages 129-134. I really like this section of the book. Lou did a very good job of explaining why it's important to warm-up and the specific purpose of different warm-up options. With this basic understanding, you'll be able to put other things you read about warming up into context.
I wish everyone owned Magnificent Mobility by Eric Cressey and Mike Robertson, and Inside-Out: The Ultimate Upper-Body Warm-up by Bill Hartman and Mike Robertson. I think both of those DVDs are excellent. They teach the dynamic mobility movements and give you guidelines for how to choose which ones you, as an individual, might want to use as part of your warm-up. These movements can be used as warm-ups before lifting or running. They can also be used at anytime as corrective movements to help improve mobility in areas where a person might be especially restricted (like a lack of hip mobility or if your shoulders are really tight and restricted).
Mark Verstegen's Core Performance Essentials also covers an excellent selection of mobility drills in book format (and it's inexpensive).
Here's a pretty good article (posted on another forum) that goes into more detail than Lou did about what you want from a warm-up and how to achieve it. Guide to a Proper Warm-up
Mike Boyle wrote a very good article on mobility drills, complete with videos of the movements: The Essential 8 Mobility Drills
I think there are a whole lot of people who need more thoracic and scapular mobility (upper back and shoulder area). If you're tight there, then the three drills Eric Cressey demonstrates in these video will really help. I include these particular drills for myself and many of my clients.
Scroll down to Lesson #9 in this article by Eric Cressey: What I Learned in 2006. That whole article is a good read, BTW.
Eric also demonstrates one of my favorite hip mobility drills (or sequence of drills actually) in this article: 10 Uses for a Smith Machine (It's not just a coat rack). I love this article. The hurdle drills are shown in numbers 1-5, but the whole article is worth reading!
I have also recommended the warm-up drills from the College of the Holy Cross, especially for the runners out there. The Continuous Dynamic Warm-up would be a great choice before you run. Here's the Holy Cross Warm-up page if you want to look at all their warm-up drills: College of the Holy Cross Warm-ups
And I'll end with a small, but needed, warning. Some people, especially females, are too flexible. There are women who've spent too much time static stretching and really need to learn some control through a specific ROM. As Joe Stankowski warns in this blog post, what we need is a functional ROM. Most people I see need more hip mobility and more scapular/thoracic mobility, but everyone in a while I'll have a female client who is best served by learning to control the ROM she already has. This doesn't mean she won't need a warm-up. It just means that the selections are chosen to improve control within a specific ROM, because excessive flexibility without control can lead to injury.
The article as a whole is about program design and how Alwyn sets up programs in his facility. It's a great article and very instructive. They always start with MAMP.
I like the terminology: MAMP = Mobiity, Activation, and Movement Preparation.
Alwyn writes:
Quote:
This is a term that essentially describes a "modern" warm-up. The point of a warm-up has been lost over the years. It is designed not to just get you warm, but to prepare you for the activity that is about to follow. Jogging on a treadmill for ten minutes is not getting the job done, although for psychological reasons we sometimes keep this type of activity in.
...
The time invested should be related to how poorly you can move. A very tight athlete may spend 20–30 minutes on this phase.
...
A more athletic client may only spend 5–6 minutes on this phase.
Lisa~,
As I was the one to initially ask this question on Wendy's thread, thank you very much for your replys. You are definitely the Link Queen :-) Guess I have some reading to do.
But now a question about this stretching thing you alluded to... is static stretching bad? I've been dancing since I was little so I've got some pretty good flexibility in my legs, especially hamstrings. Since graduating college in May I haven't done any dancing and my flexibility is starting to lessen, but I can still do a full split and essentially bop myself in the face when doing high kicks, lol. After I "warm-up", which I now realize isn't exactly the best way to do it, I stretch out my legs and my upper body as well as I know how. Should I stop doing this? Maybe they allude to this in the links you posted, I have not checked them out yet.
I know it seems silly, but I didn't do the warm-ups in the book for fear of looking funny in the gym, lol. I know it's an insecurity issue I need to get over asap, but do you think it would be counterproductive to do the warmup at home, then drive to the gym? It's only 5-10 minutes away.
Thanks again for the links!
Lisa~,
As I was the one to initially ask this question on Wendy's thread, thank you very much for your replys. You are definitely the Link Queen :-) Guess I have some reading to do.
I hope you will read the links I've provided. I think you'll begin to understand when to stretch, when not to stretch and the difference between flexibility and mobility. Most people are too tight, so that's usually the audience being addressed. Keep that in mind as you read.
Quote:
But now a question about this stretching thing you alluded to... is static stretching bad? I've been dancing since I was little so I've got some pretty good flexibility in my legs, especially hamstrings. Since graduating college in May I haven't done any dancing and my flexibility is starting to lessen, but I can still do a full split and essentially bop myself in the face when doing high kicks, lol.
Static stretching isn't bad, we just want to find the best time and purpose for it. If your hip mobility is superior (as your high kicking ability indicates), then your goal for a dynamic mobility warm-up for the hips would be to move the hip joint through a full ROM and increase bloodflow (and therefore temperature) before doing a loaded exercise like squats or deads. It will only take a couple of movements, like the lateral lunge and reverse lunge w/twist from NR4W. While doing those, focus on muscular control throughout the ROM of the movement.
You also need to assess you upper-body warm-up needs, and add whatever you choose to be most appropriate.
Quote:
After I "warm-up", which I now realize isn't exactly the best way to do it, I stretch out my legs and my upper body as well as I know how. Should I stop doing this?
Yes. Stop. Static stretching (except in special cases of extreme tightness, which you don't have) is not appropriate before lifting. It calms the CNS, slows your heart rate, reduces a muscle's ability to produce power, and leaves the tendons around a joint in their most lengthened and vulnerable position. Static stretching can be very beneficial when used at other times, like at night before bed, after exercise (either cardio or lifting), or whenever you are already warm. One of the biggest benefits of static stretching is as a method of body awareness, to learn where you tend to be tight. It can be very revealing.
But if you're already hypermobile in a particular joint, then very little static stretching (or none) will maintain that flexibility, if you're already using dynamic mobility drills.
It's called functional flexibility (or functional mobility), meaning that for whatever your particular sport or activity, there is a ROM that is superior to assist your function for that activity. A dancer or gymnast or martial artist needs a greater ROM than, say, a sprinter. But all of them need to be able to produce power out of their specific ROM. The sprinter is a good example because a tighter achilles tendon is actually superior for sprinting. It provides a spring to propel the sprinter forward. A big ROM at the ankle would not benefit a sprinter. If you think about squatting and deadlifting, being tighter in the hip joint provides stability and rebound; but being too tight reduces ROM and promotes injury from compensating movement patterns; but being too loose invites injury as well, from lack of joint stability. There's a right amount of mobility that works to produce the most effective movement. For each individual, that perfect functional mobility is what we're trying to achieve.
Quote:
I know it seems silly, but I didn't do the warm-ups in the book for fear of looking funny in the gym, lol. I know it's an insecurity issue I need to get over asap, but do you think it would be counterproductive to do the warmup at home, then drive to the gym? It's only 5-10 minutes away.
Thanks again for the links!
Well, there's ideal and then there's what we'll actually do. If you won't do the dynamic mobility drills at the gym, then do them at home. It's certainly better than not doing them. I could say, "Just get over it." And I hope you will. Maybe the people at your gym can learn from what they see you do. But until then, get as close to the ideal as you're willing.
wow, lisa. the runners warmup was particularly interesting to me. thanks for your comprehensive discussion of the topic. I have some reading to do.
I thought you'd like that. BamaDave has been using that warm-up ever since I introduced it to him. You might ask him how much he loves it! (And I know he does because he's recommended it to others.)
Guess I have some reading to do.
... is static stretching bad?
Here are some articles for anyone who wants to understand more about the differences between static flexibility and dynamic mobility.
Bill Hartman discusses the functional flexibility required for golf in this article: Understanding Golf-Specific Functional Flexibility. Even if you don't play golf, this is a good article to read because it's short, clear, and educational on our functional flexibility topic.
Oh, a word about terminology. There aren't really any standards for terminology, so be aware that what I've called mobility could be called dynamic flexibility or active flexibility, or maybe even something else depending on the author's preferences.
Here is a comprehensive e-book on flexibility. I'm linking the chapter related to our discussion, but you can access the whole book from this page (if anybody wants to know that much about the subject! HA!). Stretching and Flexibility - Flexibility
Mike Robertson recently wrote an excellent article, The Mobility-Stability Continuum, that discusses the more-isn't-always-better concept. Mike's promoted mobility for the masses for years, and now he felt the need to clarify his position. Most of us need more mobility, but it has to come in balance. I hope you'll all read this article.
Eric also demonstrates one of my favorite hip mobility drills (or sequence of drills actually) in this article: 10 Uses for a Smith Machine (It's not just a coat rack). I love this article. The hurdle drills are shown in numbers 1-5, but the whole article is worth reading!
I think most peole see that article as a joking jab at the smith machine, but those are VALID dymanic exercises. The step under with warrior lunge looks to be a great lower and upper body dymanic stretch.
I want to thank Lisa~ for recommending Magnificant Mobility a few threads back. I checked out the website and immediately purchased the DVD and manual. Even though I've only been doing the simpler exercises for the last week or so, it has made a WORLD of difference to my flexibility and how well I do squats, deadlifts, etc. I look forward to moving on to the more advanced exercises soon.
Thank you Lisa~.
__________________ The Evolution of a Dream:
Dream is implanted into brain.
Dreamer becomes thrilled.
Dreamer becomes terrified.
If no action is taken, terrifying thoughts grow into flesh-eating monsters. Dream is considered unrealistic.
If action is taken, terrifying thoughts are revealed to be paper tigers. Confidence soars, miracles unfold and dreamer begins to saunter.
Either way, nothing remains the same.
I'm so glad you like MM! I know it made a big difference for me too. I'm pretty high on both of those DVDs. I have been especially helped by I/O. My shoulders feel so much better when I'm consistently including the I/O movements. It's really amazing how much difference it makes.
So I'm thinking I should look into getting this MM dvd... can you buy it anywhere other than the site? It's so expensive!!! (Poor starving college kid here...) I tried ebay and it wasn't on there... any ideas where else I might be able to find it a bit cheaper?
Keep checking ebay. I saw it there a few weeks back, you never know sometimes. Although, I will say it is worth the investment for both of those DVD's. I have incorporated both into my warmups and my workouts have shown so much improvement (especially my shoulders)! Thank you Lisa for your recommendation...spot on advice as usual.
I will keep checkign Ebay... I checked my school's library website and the public library in these parts and neither came up with core performance or MM/IO. Iknwo it's worth the investment but I just can't afford that right now... more important to buy food! lol
Okay, so my head is about ready to explode with all this information on dynamic flexibilty. I'll get one of the DVD's mentioned above, MM or I/O is either one of these more geared to someone who lifts and runs?
Lisa- Active Dynamic Warmup Question
Linear Mode
