When it comes to warming up, most people fall into one of two groups: the group that spends 45 minutes rolling and stretching everything, or the group that does a couple arm circles and says “let’s go!” Neither group is making the best use of their time.
I used to belong to the first group, but I’ll never have the luxury of belonging to the second group. Warming up is key for preparing the body to handle heavy weights and ingraining proper movement patterns. I like to handle heavy weight, and I’ve got plenty of crappy movement patterns that need correcting. I know I’m not alone.
During my first three weeks at Cressey Sports Performance, I’ve learned tons about how to design an effective warmup. One of the most useful methods is to pair heavy strength exercises with a complimentary mobility drill. This allows you to strip some of the fat from your main warmup and gives you something to do besides Snapchat your friends during your rest periods.
My latest article on Stack shows you three mobility drills to pair with the squat, bench press and deadlift, respectively. Use these exercises to help make your initial warmup shorter and be more efficient with your workouts.