{"id":345849,"date":"2025-12-13T05:42:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-13T05:42:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/345849\/"},"modified":"2025-12-13T05:42:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-13T05:42:11","slug":"you-can-run-3-5-faster-just-by-following-this-simple-10-minute-warm-up-routine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/345849\/","title":{"rendered":"You can run 3.5% faster just by following this simple 10-minute warm-up routine"},"content":{"rendered":"

A lot of us are guilty of throwing on our kit, lacing up our running shoes<\/a> and hitting \u2018go\u2019 on our watches<\/a> without properly warming up. But new research<\/a> from Edith Cowan University suggests that might be costing us more than we think. For every 1\u00b0C increase in muscle temperature, the researchers found, performance improves by around 3.5%, with the biggest gains seen in rapid, high-power movements.<\/p>\n

The researchers wanted to understand whether warm-up routines really influence performance. They found that simply raising muscle temperature improves the speed and force of muscle contractions. In other words, warmer muscles fire faster and more powerfully, which is especially important for rapid, high-output efforts.<\/p>\n

They also compared passive warm-ups (such as heat pads or a hot shower) with active warm-ups (such as ten minutes on a bike or a lighter version of the upcoming exercise). While both methods boosted muscle performance, the team didn\u2019t see any major differences between them overall. They suggested this could be because many of the included studies used very general warm-ups that didn\u2019t match the actual test movements particularly well. The evidence more generally, they said, still leans towards warm-ups that replicate the movements you\u2019re about to do.<\/p>\n

\u2018While both active and passive warm-ups result in better speed and power, a lot of research shows that the warm-up exercises should be similar to the exercise you will be doing,\u2019 said co-author and PhD student JP Nunes. \u2018If you are lifting weights, start out by doing the exercise with lighter weights, because the practice actually helps us to activate our muscles more and to use more efficient movement patterns.\u2019<\/p>\n

Lead researcher Dr Cody Wilson agrees: \u2018Any warm-up is important, whether that\u2019s walking to the gym or doing a ten-minute cycle. But there\u2019s some indication that warm-ups unrelated to your main session don\u2019t have as strong an effect as simply \u201cpractising\u201d the performance.\u2019<\/p>\n

How to warm-up properly <\/p>\n

When it comes to how long you should warm up for, Tony Blazevich, Professor of Biomechanics at ECU, says that there\u2019s no strict rule \u2013 but a good guide is when you feel lightly sweaty, coordinated and noticeably warmer. These are signs that your muscles are primed and ready to shift into the main session.<\/p>\n

So rather than static stretches, go for a dynamic routine \u2013 a sequence of moving drills such as leg swings, skips or hops. And if you\u2019re worrying about how long a dynamic warm-up needs to last, the answer is not long at all. Research has found that a 10-minute warm-up can be just as effective as one lasting 20 minutes or more.<\/p>\n

Do three minutes of form drills, such as high knees, side skips and butt kicks. These will prepare your body to move through the fuller range of motion you\u2019ll need to hold during a race or fast session. Do four 30-second runs<\/a> at your goal pace for the day. Walk for one minute after each so that your breathing returns to normal but your heart rate stays elevated. These pickups will raise your body temperature and prepare your cardiovascular system for the rigours of a race.Related Story<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A lot of us are guilty of throwing on our kit, lacing up our running shoes and hitting…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":345850,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[872,172812,874,337,97,2245,172811],"class_list":["post-345849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-content-type-news","tag-contentid-08585fda-6217-4f35-93b5-417708e10833","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-locale-gb","tag-shorttitle-you-can-run-3-5-faster-just-by-following-this-simple-10-minute-warm-up-routine"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=345849"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345849\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/345850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=345849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=345849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=345849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}