Warming up
'Warming up' is a part of stretching and preparation for physical exertion or a performance by exercising or practicing gently beforehand, usually undertaken before a performance or practice. Athletes, singers, actors and others warm up before stressing their muscles. It is widely believed to prepare the muscles for vigorous actions and to prevent muscle cramps and injury due to overexertion.
"Warm up" redirects here. For other uses, see Warm up (disambiguation).Stretching is part of some warm-up routines, although a study in 2013 indicates that it weakens muscles in that situation.[1] There are 3 types of stretches: ballistic, dynamic, and static:
Warming up in other contexts[edit]
Psychologists, educators, singers, and similar professionals use warm-ups in therapeutic or learning sessions before starting or after a break; these warm-ups can include vocal and physical exercises, interactive and improvisational games, role plays, etc. A vocal warm-up can be especially important for actors and singers.
Benefits[edit]
Preventing injury[edit]
There is contradictory evidence in terms of benefits of comprehensive warm-ups for preventing injury in football (soccer) players, with some studies showing some benefit[4] while other showing no benefit.[5] It has been suggested that it is specifically warm ups aimed at increasing body temperature, rather than targeting stretching, which can prevent injury.[6] Warming up before an eccentric exercise has been shown to reduce the severity of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).
Increasing performance[edit]
In baseball, warm-up swings using a standard weight bat are effective in increasing batting speed.[7] In a 2010 meta-analysis, the authors concluded that in about four-fifths of the studies there was improvement in performance with various physical activities with warm-ups as opposed to without warm-ups.[8] An increase in body temperature, specifically in the muscles, improves explosive skeletal muscle performance (e.g., jumping and sprinting).[9]