Arm Swings With Lateral Steps |
Duration : 30sec
Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, and stretch your arms to the sides. Then step back with your left leg to the right side, and cross your arms in front of your chest. You can bend your right leg slightly. Go back to the start position, and repeat on the other side.
| Skipping Without Rope |
Duration : 30sec
Place your arms at your sides and pretend to hold a skipping rope handle in each hand. Jump and alternately land on the balls of your feet, rotating your wrists at the same time as if you were spinning a rope.
| Cross Touch And Reach |
Duration : 30sec
Stand on the floor with your arms extended to your sides at the shoulder height . Then bend your body and use your left hand to touch your right foot or get as close as you can. Switch sides and repeat . Exhale when you bend your body and inhale when you come up .
| High stepping |
Duration : 30sec
Run in place while pulling your knees as high as possible with each step. Keep your upper body upright during this exercise.
| Adductor Stretch In Standing |
Duration : 30sec
Stand with your feet wide distance apart and your hands rested on your hips. Then bend your left leg and lean your body to the left side. Hold the position for a few seconds, then return and repeat with the other side.
Exercise Specific Warm-Ups
After this warm-up, it’s advisable to do one or two warm-up sets of every exercise you’re going to do in the weights room. This not only properly prepares the specific joints, but also gives your body time to learn that movement as well as priming your nervous system.
How To stretch For A Treadmill Session
| 1. (A)Static hip flexor stretch |
Time 30sec each side
Get on one knee with the other foot in front. Push forwards to stretch your hip, keeping your core tight and squeezing your opposing glutes as you do so. Move straight into 1B, then perform 1A and 1B on the other sides.
| 1. (B)Deep lunge |
| 2. Downward dog walk-out |
From a press-up position walk your hands backwards towards your feet, pushing your hips upwards and keeping your legs as straight as possible to feel the stretch in your hamstrings and calves – in yoga this is known as the downward dog position. Then walk your hands back to the press-up position and repeat.
| 3. Single-leg calf raise |
Reps : 15 each side
Stand on a step on one foot, with the ball of the foot on the step and your heel off it. Using your hands for support – put one hand against a wall, for example – raise your heel. If this is too difficult then perform the movement with two legs at the same time. This helps warm up the ankle joint as well as activating the calf muscles to provide support at the ankle joint for running. The single-legged nature of this exercise will also activate the gluteus medius (side of the bum), which any physio will tell you is crucial for knee and back health when running.
| 4. Resistance band crab walk |
Sets : 3 Reps : 10 each direction
Place a resistance band around the outside of your knees so that you have to resist the pull of the band when you push your knees out. Then walk sideways with your knees slightly bent, like a crab. If you have the space go ten steps left, then ten steps right, three times.
How To stretch For A Weights Session
| 1. Static hip flexor stretch |
Time : 30-60sec each side
Many of us, particularly deskbound workers, have tight hip flexors from sitting down all day. If not addressed, this can lead to lower-back injury while weight training. For this stretch, get on one knee with the other root in front. Push forwards to stretch your hip, keeping your core tight and squeezing your opposing glutes as you do so.
| 2. Deep lunge |
Reps : 5 circles each leg
This helps to start mobilising the hips and increasing synovial fluid at the joints, which reduces friction. While holding a deep lunge position with your hands on the floor in front, start circling the front knee to stretch and mobilise the hip.
3. Deep lunge thoracic rotation |
Reps : 5 reaches each side
In a deep lunge position, reach to the floor with one elbow, then rotate your torso and reach to the ceiling with the same arm. This mobilises the spine and helps prepare for rotational movements.
| 4. Downward dog walk-out |
Reps : 5
From a press-up position walk your hands backwards towards your feet, pushing your hips upwards and keeping your legs as straight as possible to feel the stretch in your hamstrings and calves – in yoga this is known as the downward dog position. Then walk your hands back to the press-up position and repeat.
| 5. Band shoulder dislocate |
Reps : 10
Grasp a resistance band and pull it apart so your arms are straight out to the sides. Keeping the band stretched and your arms straight, move the band in a large arc over the top of your head and onto the back of your shoulders, keeping your torso upright throughout. This helps improve the range of movement in your shoulders and increases synovial fluid at the shoulder joint in preparation for upper-body exercises.
| 6. Lunge with overhead reach |
Reps : 20
You’re almost finished warming up – you just want to make sure the heart rate is elevated and all your joints are warm and ready for action. Lunges with overhead reaches will get the heart working and prep almost every joint in your body for movement. Step into a lunge and reach above your head with both arms. Alternate legs.