Our muscles are like a muscle car. They drive fast, look cool, and both have ‘muscle’ in their name. But, like a high performing car, our bodies have to warm up before we can be at maximum performance.

Contrary to popular belief, static stretching before a workout isn’t really that beneficial. What will help you however is a 5-10 minute regimen of dynamic movements followed by some mobility work.

“What in the name of Great Odin’s Raven do you mean, great master of swole?”

Here is a basic warmup template (modify based on YOUR needs):

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Phase 1: Foam Rolling

• Do 10-20 rolls over each muscle group to get blood flowing into the muscles
• For especially sore groups, do 20-30 rolls

Phase 2: Dynamic Warmup

• 100 Single Unders (aka jump roping) OR sub 75 jumping jacks
• 2-3 rounds- 10 bodyweight squats, 10 pushups, 10 good mornings (w/ very light weight)
  • Go through these in a slow and controlled manner. These rounds should be easy and allow blood to start flowing to your muscles.
  • Feel free to create your own custom warmup circuit; make sure to hit all the major muscle groups.

Phase 3: Mobility Work

• Depending on the day’s exercises/ any personal weak points, do some targeted mobility movements. Watch the videos below to gain a basic understanding of how to do this. For more extensive information visit MobilityWOD.com or read “Becoming a Supple Leopard.”

• Hip/Lower Body mobility work

• Upper Body mobility work

• Wrist mobility work– do a few of the stretches from the video linked (jump to 5:10), especially before days w/ a lot of wrist stress (cleans, snatch)

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To warm up for lower body days, I highly recommend Joe DeFranco’s Limber 11 warmup:

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#SwoleCAR only takes premium protein fuel and does dynamic warmups before cruising the strip to ensure maximum performance potential.