Fitness-Warm Up & Cool Down
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Why Warm Up?
You need to warm up before you exercise because:
- It will increase your body temperature and warm up your muscle fibers.
- Warm muscles, tendons and ligaments are more fluid. They can stretch and contract more easily, which helps make them stronger and decreases risk of injury.
- It gets your heart pumping faster, which helps increase blood flow to muscles.
Try These Warm Ups:
The wall push Stand about 1 and ½ feet away from the wall. Then lean forward pushing against the wall, keeping your heels flat. Count to 10 (or 20 for a longer stretch), then rest. Repeat one to two times.
The palm touch Stand with your knees slightly bent. Then bend from the waist and try to touch your palms to the floor. Count to 10 or 20, then rest. Repeat one or two times. If you have lower back problems, do this exercise with your legs crossed.
Toe touch Place your right leg level on a stair, chair, or other object. With your other leg slightly bent, lean forward and slowly try to touch your right toe with your right hand. Hold and count to 10 or 20, then repeat with your left hand. Do not bounce. Then, switch legs and repeat with each hand. Repeat the entire exercise one to two times.
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Cool Down After Your Workout
You need to do two to five minutes of continuous mild activity after your vigorous exercise. Gradually decrease the intensity of the exercise and then do some slow stretching exercises to re-stretch your muscles.
Cooling down is important because it gradually slows down the pumping action of your heart. This prevents blood from pooling in your lower muscles which can reduce blood flow to the heart and brain.
Cool down stretching can also prevent muscle stiffness and soreness by re-stretching muscles that are shortened during exercise.
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