Dynamic Warm-up

Our "drunken lunge" exercise has been the target of many jokes.  That's okay, we are Warriors and we can take it.  But what are we really trying to accomplish with the crossover lunge with a torso rotation, aka "the drunken lunge"?  As you know, the exercise is part of our dynamic warm-up and we want you to understand why the movements we do in that warm-up are important and how you can apply them outside of metabolic training. 

Perhaps in the past you participated in a fitness class or a sport where your warm-up consisted of static stretching, or holding a stretch for a prolonged period of time.  Current research is telling us that performing static stretching prior to an activity could be diminishing our performance and could possibly be increasing our risk of injury.  Studies have found that static stretching before participating in an activity or sport may make you slower and weaker by as much as 30%.  Static stretches have a neuromuscular effect on the muscle’s performance and may decrease strength in the stretched muscle group for up to one hour. It is also believed that this induced weakness could contribute to an increased risk of injury.

In contrast to static stretching, with a dynamic warm-up, we are firing up our muscles and simultaneously increasing circulation, heart rate, and mobility.  In other words, we are preparing our bodies to move.  In addition to properly preparing our bodies for our workout, there is research that indicates that doing a dynamic warm-up can help reduce post-workout muscle soreness. 

You can also benefit from performing a dynamic warm-up before your other activities or fitness endeavors.  So the next time you play golf or tennis, or head out for a run or a hike, start with a dynamic warm-up and your body will be better prepared for the activity and you may reduce your risk of injury.