Have you ever jumped right into an intense workout and felt tight, sore, or even injured afterward? Did you wake up the next day with aching muscles, regretting your decision to skip the warm-up? 

While it may be tempting to go straight to the more exciting part of your workout, warming up is a crucial step that can prevent strain, enhance your performance, and reduce your risk of injuries. 

At Elevate Wellness Chiropractic, we often see injuries that could have been prevented with proper preparation. Our mission is to educate our patients about how to take care of their bodies, provide pain relief, and help them live happier, healthier lives. That’s why we wrote this blog post exploring why warming up is crucial, what it does for your body, and giving tips on how to do it properly.

Why Warming Up Matters

Warming up is essential before any physical activity, whether you’re a runner, dancer, soccer player, or wrestler. It prepares your body for movement by increasing blood flow to your muscles, gradually raising your heart rate and body temperature, and activating the nervous system for better coordination. 

Think of your body like a car — you can’t go instantly from idling to racing down the freeway, right? You need to slowly increase your pressure on the gas pedal, gradually achieving higher speeds. Your body is the same way; you need to ease into intense physical activity to prevent injury.

Warming up loosens your muscles and joints, improving your flexibility and range of motion. This, in turn, helps to prevent muscle strains, sprains, and other injuries that can occur when you force your body to go too far.

In addition to injury prevention, warming up is also known to improve athletic performance. By preparing your muscles for exertion, it boosts your strength and endurance. Warming up also improves your mental focus, getting you into the right headspace for exercise.

Common Risks of Skipping a Warm-Up

There are many reasons why you might be tempted to skip the warm-up — you’re in a hurry, too tired, or just excited to get to the fun part. However, without warming up, you’re putting yourself at risk of:

• Muscle strains and tears: Without a proper warm-up, you may pull a hamstring during a sprint or tear your ACL during a soccer match.
• Joint and ligament injuries: Placing sudden stress on “cold” joints can lead to inflammation or tears.
• Poor exercise performance: Stiff muscles limit your strength, endurance, and mobility, preventing you from achieving your goals. 
• Long-term issues: Consistently skipping the warm-up can lead to chronic injuries and misalignments that may require chiropractic care.

How to Warm Up Effectively

Now that you know why warming up is so important, let’s talk about how to warm up effectively. While you should tailor your warm-up to your specific needs, here are some basic guidelines to help you build an effective routine:

Start with Light Cardio

Start by getting your blood pumping. For example, you can walk, jog, or cycle for 5–10 minutes. This shouldn’t be anything too strenuous; you just need to get your heart rate up. 

Incorporate Dynamic Stretches

Next, focus on movement-based stretching to activate your muscles and joints. Good exercises to try are arm circles, torso twists, leg swings, and lunges. You could also try a basic yoga routine like the Sun Salutation, as long as you keep moving throughout.

Specific Warm-Up for Your Activity

The next step is to perform exercises that are specific to your physical activity. For example, if you’re a martial artist, do some shadowboxing before getting into the ring. If you’re a ballet dancer, don’t skip those pliés and tendus before moving out to the center.

Avoid Static Stretching Before Exercise

Once you’re done with your workout, you can do some static stretches that involve holding a specific position. These are better to do once your muscles are already warm as a way to relax and cool down. 

Chiropractic Care and Injury Prevention

While chiropractic care can help you recover from injuries caused by inadequate preparation, it’s also a powerful tool for preventing injuries in the first place. Chiropractors support active lifestyles by ensuring your musculoskeletal system is in alignment. Your chiropractor can also give you advice on proper form and share injury prevention tips based on your unique needs and anatomy.

Chiropractic Support for Athletes at Elevate Wellness

Our team at Elevate Wellness Chiropractic encourages you to properly warm up before exercising. If you experience any discomfort or injury, don’t hesitate to contact us to schedule an appointment with one of our expert chiropractors. Our goal is to help you stay active and injury-free so you can achieve peak athletic performance.

When you’re dealing with an injury, there are many steps you can take to begin treating your discomfort. While over-the-counter pain medications are a good option for some individuals, they aren’t always the best solution for everyone. Ice packs and warm compresses are great options for those who prefer other therapies to address their discomfort.

However, these two therapies aren’t created equal, and you must understand when an ice pack or warm compress is best. In this blog, we’ll discuss how these therapies aid in injury recovery, which is best for you, and how best to pair them with chiropractic treatment to speed up recovery. 

The Importance of Cold Therapies When Treating Injuries

Cold therapies like ice packs are a great way to reduce inflammation and irritation caused by an injury. In most cases, individuals will use ice packs to address inflammation immediately following an injury. Once ice is applied, the blood vessels are constricted, reducing blood flow to the area. As the blood vessels constrict, you’ll notice a reduced swelling that occurs after an injury, also known as edema. While ice packs are the most common cold therapy, some individuals may also take ice baths or use cooling sprays to remedy their injury. 

When an Ice Pack is Best for Your Injury

Cold therapies like ice packs are most beneficial for treating new injuries that lead to immediate swelling. If you are dealing with the following injuries, an ice pack may be your best treatment:

• Sprained Wrists or Ankles: These sprains are often characterized by immediate swelling, making ice packs best for immediate comfort. 
• Muscle or Joint Sprains: If you’re experiencing muscle and joint sprains from physical activity, ice packs can help reduce pain and inflammation. 
• Swollen Limbs: As mentioned above, ice packs are best for treating swelling. Ice is your best treatment if the swollen area is hot to the touch or red. 
• Headaches: Although headaches aren’t external injuries, utilizing ice packs can reduce the discomfort you’re experiencing. 

The Importance of Heat Therapies When Treating Injuries

Although heat therapies may not always be the most popular choice for treating an injury, they are great for aiding recovery. Heat therapies like warm compresses are essential for stimulating blood flow, which can boost nutrient presence near the injury site. Additionally, if you are tense due to your injury, heat therapies can help your muscles loosen up. Tension may otherwise limit blood flow to the area, increasing your recovery time. In addition to warm compresses, hot baths, showers, or warm towels are great, easy-to-use heat therapies. 

When a Warm Compress is Best for Your Injury

Warm compresses are a great way to address any muscle tension you may be experiencing, especially after physical impacts like car accidents or sports injuries. If you’re dealing with the following injuries, you should consider using a warm compress: 

• Muscle Spasms: If used when your muscles are actively spasming, a warm compress can help it relax. 
• Whiplash: While ice packs are great for addressing whiplash in the immediate aftermath of an accident, heat is a great way to treat any remaining discomfort. 
• Back Pain: Stiff muscles often cause this discomfort, which heat therapies like warm compresses can quickly remedy. 

How to Use Cold and Heat Therapies Safely

While ice packs and warm compresses are great at reducing discomfort following an injury, they can also do more harm if you don’t use them appropriately. Neither of these therapies should be used for any longer than 20 minutes at a time. Additionally, you should provide a buffer between these therapies and your bare skin. 

When using heat therapies, don’t use anything warmer than 113°F, as this may result in burns. When using cold therapies, immediately remove the pack if your skin becomes numb or increasingly pale. By using these therapies safely, you should be able to recover from your injury quickly. 

Ice Packs, Warm Compresses, and Chiropractic Care

Cold and heat therapies are a great first step towards recovery. However, when used with chiropractic care, you may experience an even faster recovery time. When you schedule an appointment with a trusted chiropractic team, they will perform a comprehensive exam to determine the root cause of your injury and begin crafting a personalized treatment plan. With their spinal decompression therapies, advanced laser technologies, and adjustments, you can trust that you’re on the road to recovery. 

Comprehensive Care for Every Injury at Elevate Wellness Chiropractic

The first step to recovering from an injury is finding a reliable chiropractic team. At Elevate Wellness Chiropractic, our team has provided comprehensive care to patients across the Wasatch Front for years. Whether you’ve recently been in a car accident, experienced a workplace injury, or want to prevent injuries before they occur, we’re here to help you every step of the way. 

If you would like to schedule an appointment with our team to help with your at-home treatments, don’t hesitate to contact us today.