Warm Ups

Warm-Ups
A performance-based approach
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Why warm-ups
are important
Planning the warm-up should be given as much attention as

the main training content itself, and the content of the warm-
up should be relevant and harmonious to the specific training
session objectives.
For example, a training session that is primarily focussed upon

maximising an athlete’s explosive jump capacity (which will
include the use of plyometrics) should incorporate the use of
‘priming’ exercises such as lower-limb movements (e.g. squats
and lunges), hopping, jumping, and landing. All of which should
be progressively planned and translate unidentifiably into the
main content (exercises) of the session.
As well-designed warm-ups have been continuously proven to

reduce injuries and enhance performance, exercise
professionals should pay great attention to the objectives and
content of every warm-up delivered. Furthermore, warm-ups
should not only be tailored to each training session or
competition, but also to each athlete’s highly-specific
strengths and weaknesses.

How to perform a
proper warm-up
Warm-ups most commonly last for approximately 10-30 minutes, meaning all
desired content must be strategically factored in this short period of time. Though
each warm-up is short, over a long timeframe such as a 12-week training cycle, the
accumulation of a 10-30 minute warm-up each session equates to a huge increase
in total training time. For example:
A 15-minute warm-up performed 4 x per week for 12-weeks = 12 hours of training

time.
Over a 12-week training cycle, the exercise professional can utilise an additional 12-
hours of high-quality training time. This further demonstrates the importance and
potential of a strategic and effective warm-up.
In an attempt to advance current performance preparation practices, two primary

warm-up models have been developed by Dr. Ian Jeffreys (4) and Mark Verstegen
(11). The framework “RAMP” protocol developed by Dr. Jeffreys allows for activities
to be easily classified and constructed in the following warm-up sequence:
Raise
Activate and Mobilise
Potentiate/Performance
It should be the aim of the exercise professional to have the athletes fully prepared
both mentally and physically following the end of the third phase (i.e. potentiation
phase) of the RAMP protocol and ready for competition or activity. Each of the three
phases of this warm-up model plays an important role in the athlete’s preparation.

Phase 1
Raise
The principles/aim of the ‘raise’ section is too:

Examples
↑ Body temperature Click the video to watch
↑ Heart rate
↑ Respiration rate
↑ Blood flow
↑ Joint viscosity
Although this is often a common practice in the form

of a ‘jog around the field’, this is often viewed as a
large waste of valuable training time. Whilst the
primary aims of this section should match those
listed above, it can, and perhaps should be
performed using exercises or simplified sports-
specific movements which will be abundant during
the session. For example, if the athletes are preparing
for a technical rugby session, then this section of the
warm-up may include low-intensity, multi-directional
movements or dynamic range of motion exercises
which will be abundant during the session. Some
examples of raise exercises may include:
Basic line drills (sport-specific session)

Cycling, jogging or skipping (gym-based session)
Barbell complex (gym-based session
Get creative, but don't go overboard
Now you know the principles behind the raise, you

can do whatever ticks those boxes.
Phase duration = approximately 5-minutes

Phase 2
Activate & Mobilise
The principles/aims of this phase of the warm-up is

two-fold:
Examples
Click the video to watch
Activate key muscle groups
Mobilise key joints and ranges of motion used in the
sport or activity
During this phase of the warm-up, typical activation

and mobilisation movements include:
Dynamic stretching
Balance work
Superman’s and inchworm’s
Squats and lunges
Sumo shuffles
Spinal mobility exercises (flexion, extension, lateral
flexion, and rotation)
When designing the activation and mobilisation

phase, it is essential the strength and conditioning
coach carefully considers the fundamental
movements and demands imposed by that particular
sport or activity. For example, what fundamental
movements will occur during a rugby match, or
during an Olympic Weightlifting session in the gym?
This will allow the coach to be very specific with the
movements/exercises selected for the warm-up and
therefore have the best possible chance to
effectively prepare the athletes for training or
competition and preventing them from injury.

Phase 3
Performance/Potentiation
The principle/aim of this phase is to ‘prime’ the athletes for their

session or competition. Examples
This phase of the warm-up is fixated on exercises which will directly
lead to performance improvements in following activities. This
phase of the warm-up will now begin to unidentifiably transit into
the workout/sport itself, meaning it will begin to incorporate sports-
specific activities using rising intensities. This phase serves two
primary objectives:
↑ Intensity to a comparable level the athletes’ are about to compete

in.
↑ Improve subsequent performance utilising the effects of post-
activation potentiation.
Therefore, the content of the potentiation/performance phase will

see high-intensity drills which are highly specific to the sport. For
example, the potentiation phase of a sprint session may include
sprint-specific drills such 5-10m accelerations, rolling 30-40m
sprints, plyometrics and so on. In team-based sports such as football
(soccer), this may include the use of plyometrics, reactive agility
drills in a chaotic environment, and sprints using various intensities
and distances.
An example of potentiation/performance exercises for a technical

rugby session may include:
Plyometric exercises (unilateral and bilateral jumps and bounds)

Short-moderate distance accelerations and sprints and (0-20m)
Involvement of tackling pads
Reactive agility drills (e.g. evasion games in chaotic environments)
In the gym, this would now be the incremental loading phase, where
the weight is slowly increased to match the load you wish to use in
the session. In other words, "loading the bar".

Putting it all together
Now you understand each phase and the

principles/aims behind each of them, now you
can watch these good warm-up examples and
understand the "structure" of the warm-up the
coach has designed.
Examples
And there you have it, a "performance-

based", strategically designed warm-
up for both sport-specific sessions and
gym-based sessions.

Struggling to keep up with
all the latest information?
Well then, worry no more! We've created the Performance Digest with industry professionals like
you in mind. If you're a current or aspiring strength & conditioning coach, performance coach, or
physiotherapist, you will find its contents invaluable in keeping your knowledge up-to-date.
The Performance Digest is a monthly research review specifically for sports performance
professionals. Each month we cover the following topics:
Strength & Conditioning

Youth Development
Fatigue & Recovery
Technology & Monitoring
Injury Prevention & Rehabilitation
Nutrition
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What are the main objectives of a warm-up?

What are the main objectives of a warm-up?

What are the different phases of a proper warm-up according to the article?

What are the different phases of a proper warm-up according to the article?

Warm-Ups

Copyright © Science for Sport

Science for Sport is the worlds #1 online learning

Our #1 aim is to make the complex topics easy

We provide educational content from articles,

Copyright © Science for Sport

Planning the warm-up should be given as much attention as

For example, a training session that is primarily focussed upon

As well-designed warm-ups have been continuously proven to

Copyright © Science for Sport

A 15-minute warm-up performed 4 x per week for 12-weeks = 12 hours of training

In an attempt to advance current performance preparation practices, two primary

Copyright © Science for Sport

The principles/aim of the ‘raise’ section is too:

Although this is often a common practice in the form

Basic line drills (sport-specific session)

Get creative, but don't go overboard

Now you know the principles behind the raise, you

Phase duration = approximately 5-minutes

Copyright © Science for Sport

The principles/aims of this phase of the warm-up is

During this phase of the warm-up, typical activation

When designing the activation and mobilisation

Phase duration = approximately 5-minutes

Copyright © Science for Sport

The principle/aim of this phase is to ‘prime’ the athletes for their

↑ Intensity to a comparable level the athletes’ are about to compete

Therefore, the content of the potentiation/performance phase will

An example of potentiation/performance exercises for a technical

Plyometric exercises (unilateral and bilateral jumps and bounds)

Phase duration = approximately 10-minutes

Copyright © Science for Sport

Now you understand each phase and the

And there you have it, a "performance-

Copyright © Science for Sport

Strength & Conditioning

Want to know the best bit about all of this?

Grab my FREE COPY!

Copyright © Science for Sport

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