Two parts of the workout that people seem to forget is the warm up and the warm down. However these are both very important as they help prevent injury, improve performance and improve flexibility. In this article I will explain the best ways to do both and why it is important to do them differently.

The Warm Up

The warm up is preparing your body for exercise. It does this by increasing your body temperature and increasing the suppleness of the muscles you will be using. To increase your body temperature you can go for a short run or cycle on a bike for 5 minutes. This should be quite gentle but difficult enough to increase your heart rate and make you feel warmer. If you are out of breath then it is too hard.

For the next few minutes you should do exercises that workout the muscles you will be using. For example, squats and lunges are good for your lower body and arm windmills are good for your upper body. Again it is important that you do not do these too intensely as they are still the warm up and not your workout. One thing you should not do when warming up is static stretching (stretching a muscle for 30 seconds or more in one position). This has been shown to decrease the strength and power of your muscles if done before exercising and can lead to injuries.

The Warm Down

Once you finish your workout you shouldn't just stop. You need to give your body time to cool down and your heart rate to return to normal. The best way to do this is with a slow jog or walk for 5 minutes after exercise. Once your breathing has returned to normal you can start stretching.

The warm down is the best time to increase your flexibility as your muscles are already warm. This is the time you should do static stretching. Static stretching is when you gently stretch a muscle and hold the stretch for a period of time. Make sure that you ease into the stretch gently and hold the position for about 30 seconds.

Another great way to warm down is to use a foam roller. Foam rolling is like giving a massage to your muscles and has been shown to improve recovery and flexibility. This is because it improves circulation to your muscles and also releases any 'knots' or tight areas you may have in your muscles.

So remember the warm up and warm down are two important parts of your workout that you need to be doing as they help prevent injury, improve your performance, increase flexibility and help you recover!