Cardio Warm Up Exercises - Do Them!

What's The Purpose of Warm Up Exercises Before a Cardio Workout?

You're body's not a machine - you can't just flip a switch and suddenly be at full power. Warm up first!

The reason they call them "warm up exercises" is because, well, your muscles warm up, literally. The temperature of your muscles, tendons and ligaments increases which allows an increased freedom of movement. This means you'll be less prone to injury!

Warm up exercises also deactivate the parasympathetic nervous system, redirecting blood to areas that need it the most. You may notice that the urge to urinate, eat or drink during a cardio workout is diminished - this is a direct result! Blood has been redirected to areas where you need it the most: your muscles, ligaments and tendons.

It's important to remember that doing warm up exercises before a cardio workout is a gradual process. There should be no sudden bursts of energy or anything of the like. It's an increase in intensity that eventually leads into your main workout. Without this warm up routine, your heart rate will increase sharply, forcing blood away from your brain to supply the hard-working muscles. You'll feel weak, light-headed, dehydrated and you'll probably quit about 5 minutes into the workout. You need to do your warm ups!

Cooling Down After a Cardio Workout

Think of a nice bell-curve that represents the intensity of your workout. The up-slope represents your warm up, and the down-slope represents your cool down. You need to gradually come out of your workout just as you went into it. It stands to reason that the harder the workout, the longer and more dramatic your cooldown should be. The same rule applies for a weight lifting program.

Remember when I mentioned that you don't want your heart rate to increase sharply to a dangerous point? The same rule applies for your cooldown - you don't want your heart rate to drop suddenly by sitting down or laying down just after finishing your cardio workout. The point of a cooldown routine is to gradually slow your heart rate and redirect the blood back to your stomach, intestines and other parasympathetic organs. In general, the better shape you're in, the quicker your heart rate will decrease naturally following your workout. So, if you're not in such great shape at the moment, you'll need a longer cooldown period (you can track this in a strength training journal!).

Cooling down, just as the phrase indicates, implies a gradual decrease in body temperature. I know you'll be hot and sweaty, but this doesn't mean you should jump into a cold shower. This is a great way to really cause some problems like dizziness and fainting. Why?

Well, when you finish a hard cardio workout and you fail to do your cooldown routine, blood can collect in areas where you needed it the most. For example, if you went for a jog then immediately sat down, a large amount of blood will collect in the legs. This leaves less blood for the rest of your body, including your brain. Fainting and dizziness can result.

With that said, cooling down is especially important for those who aren't in shape - they won't be able to get the blood back into their system quick enough.

One more point about cooling down is to save stretching until last! You want to make sure your heart rate has gone all the way back to normal before you stretch. Why?

Bending over to touch your toes while your heart is still beating vigorously can cause the blood pressure in your brain to drop dramatically, causing dizziness and fainting. Not a good idea. Wait until the last possible moment before stretching!

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