What Science Says About Warming Up

(Excerpted from the USCF Level 2 Coaches Manual)

This article might just give you the edge you need next time out!!

What science says about designing a warm up protocol
One of the qualities that science brings to coaching is the control science seeks when studying events and interventions to see what works. In order to determine what intervention or technique works, the science does everything the same each time and changes only one factor. This allows for the scientist to determine what one change (or potentially combination of changes) impacts performance and by how much.
One consideration in putting together a warm up protocol for different athletes is their physical capabilities. Two athletes of different abilities can use the same warm up protocol with varying effects. For the less trained athlete, the warm up itself might create a state of fatigue before the competition even begins. Well-trained athletes also tend to have better developed thermoregulatory systems such that a longer or higher intensity warm up might be needed to increase muscle temperature.
Passive warm up techniques such as warming blankets may be necessary to maintain the elevated temperature in cases where a long delay might be necessary between the warm up and competition, especially if the ambient temperature is cool or cold.

Intensity
A warm up at an intensity of 60% VO₂max has been shown to deplete high-energy phosphate concentrations; if there is not an adequate recovery period (5 minutes), the concentrations cannot be sufficiently restored. If the warm up intensity is too intense and the recovery period too short, the performance may be impaired as a result of depleted high-energy phosphate and/or increased hydrogen ion concentration. For trained athletes a warm up intensity of 70% VO₂max, may be optimal. When considering the warm up for an aerobic event (lasting
>30 minutes) where core temperature may be a limiting factor the optimal warm up intensity might need to be lower such that core temperature is not elevated too much above resting levels.

Duration
For short-term performance, the duration of the warm up needs to be sufficient to raise Tm. With the onset of exercise, Tm increases quickly in the first three to five minutes and levels off after ten to twenty minutes of exercise. Since, as noted above, a warm up at an intensity of <60%>VO₂max does not deplete high energy phosphates, but that intensity can increase Tm if exercise is performed for 10 to 20 minutes.
For moderate to long duration events, the warm up needs to be long enough to elevate V0₂ while being short enough not to cause a great deal of fatigue. If the intensity is moderate to heavy, VO₂ will reach a steady state in 5 to 10 minutes. Studies show that a warm up of ≥ 10 minutes at 60 to 80% VO₂max can lead to improved performance. Bishop mentions that one study using a warm up of 25 minutes improved performance for a long duration event; however, the potential loss of muscle glycogen or decrease in heat storage capacity (depending on the ambient conditions) might make the longer warm up less than ideal.

Recovery Duration
How long should the athlete wait between the end of the warm up and the start of the competition? In some cases, this might be beyond your control. At some events, the start time will be the time the introductions or other pre-race activities occur that could the athlete to standing around for a period of time. As much as possible, the warm up should take these factors into consideration.
For short-term performance, a moderate to high intensity warm up followed by no recovery period seems to lead to a sharp decline in performance.. This decline is likely due to a
shortened period of time to restore high-energy phosphates. If for some reason, the recovery time between the end of the warm up and the start of the competition is short, the warm up should be as brief as possible.

Bishop proposes that the recovery duration (the period between the end of the warm up and the start of competition) may play a role in performance. Since resynthesis of
phosphocreatine (PCr) takes about 5 minutes, it would make sense that the warm up end 5 minutes before the start of a short duration event where the high energy phosphates are critical to performance. It should be noted that complete resynthesis of PCr is not complete after 5 minutes, but waiting for complete resynthesis, which can take up to 20 minutes, could compromise Tm.
For short duration competitions, the recovery period that seems to work best is 5 to 15 minutes. This period allows for PCr resynthesis and for Tm to remain elevated.
For longer duration competition, the key factors are Tm and V0_2. V0₂ will return to baseline within about 5 minutes of the cessation of moderate to high intensity exercise. Studies show that when the recovery period is ≥ 5 minutes performance is not improved. The recommendation from the literature is that for moderate and long duration competition that the recovery period be ~5 minutes or less.

Specificity
Coaches are fond of saying that the three most important things in training are “specificity, specificity, specificity”. When it comes to warm up, the principle can be applied. First, the warm up should focus on the sport to be performed rather than a general warm up like calisthenics.
The addition of some intensity specific to the task to be performed seems to improve performance. Kayak athletes who included short duration, high intensity efforts during the warm performed better than those who merely warmed up at a lower intensity. In the kayak example, the athletes warmed up at ~65% VO₂max with 5 sprints of 10 seconds duration at 200% separated by 50 seconds at ~55% VO₂max. The mechanism for improvement using the sprints might lie in increased neuromuscular activation. Caution needs to be taken that the intensity is not too high that it leads to fatigue or that the recovery period is too short for high phosphate resynthesis.

What The Research Says...

An optimal warm up depends on many factors such as the weather, the course, tactics, is critical to keep good records to see what works and what does not work for each athlete. Two athletes of similar ability may warm up very differently.
The research suggests that for short term performance, a warm up of 40 to 60% VO₂max for 5 to
10 minutes with a 5 minute recovery before competition will improve performance. The
addition of higher intensity efforts may be beneficial as noted above. The 5 minute break allows
resynthesis of a majority of phosphate energy stores.
For longer term efforts (intermediate and long term performance), research suggests that a specific warm up of 5 to 10 minutes at 60 to 70% VO₂maxax with a 5 minute or less recovery. Adding short, high intensity bursts should be beneficial. The research suggests that warming up for longer than 20 minutes does not have physiological benefits associated with warming up (increase muscle temperature). In addition, an extensive warm up can increase core temperature; if the conditions are hot, this reduction in heat storage capacity could be detrimental to performance.

Psychological Considerations
The warm up routine can and should include a psychological component. Many athletes performance some sort of mental preparation during the warm up: the athlete should monitor what he she does for mental preparation to adjust it just as one would do for the physical preparation. Some of the psychological components can be done prior to the physical warm up. Below are some tips for a pre-competition sport psychology protocol:
• Visualize the course or demands of the event. If the athlete could ride the course and know it, the athlete can picture him/herself successfully negotiating tricky sections of the course, for instance. The athlete can also visualize being successful.
• The athlete can focus on past successful races. If the athlete has competed successfully over the course before, he/she can draw on that success.
• Reduce the negative talk. If the athlete has competed on the course but has not been successful, the athlete’s task will be to cease negative thoughts from entering the mind.
• The athlete needs to manage his/her energy properly. Does the event require the athlete to get “pumped up” or to be calm? During the warm up, the athlete will need to begin that preparation accordingly.
• Build confidence. One method for building confidence is to review the training log. Just flipping through a training log (thus another important reason to keep a training log) and looking at all the excellent workouts done in the preceding weeks can be a confidence booster.
For more information, review the chapters on sport psychology in the Level 3 and Level 2 manuals.

Real Life Considerations
Many factors, some of which do not relate to physiology, will determine the necessary warm up. While this section has focused on the physiology of warming up, real life considerations and personal preferences need to be considered and integrated. To some extent the guidelines and examples in this section should be used as a starting point and adapted from experience. It is critical that good records of warm up protocols and ensuing performance be collected so that changes can be assessed.
It is not unusual for cyclists to warm up far longer than athletes in other sports. Some of this protocol could be because of tradition (a very strong influence in cycling); cycling is not a high impact sport so warming up on a bike will not induce muscle damage like running will, for instance. Some cyclists will also feel the need to ride a lot even if the event is going to be short. In the Grand Tours, athletes will often ride the morning of a time trial and have an extended warm up since they have become accustomed to being on the bike for a long period and do not want to “stiffen up” or lose an edge.
Psychologically, some riders will want to warm up for an extended period of time to allow themselves the chance to prepare mentally for the competition. The intensity at the start might be very low; it could be argued that exercise of such a low intensity might not even perform a physiological function. Barney King, USA Cycling Level 1 Level Coach and Level 2 Coaching Clinic Instructor has riders warm up with about 20 minutes of easy riding and then a 25 minute structured warm up on a trainer with a few high intensity efforts included before a time trial. Depending on the intensity of the 20 minute “easy spin”, there may not be a physiological benefit to this part of the protocol. However, it may serve as mental preparation for the competition.

The use of a trainer as a tool might peak during a warm up protocol. The trainer allows for the rider to control the intensity and duration of the warm up far better than riding on roads. It allows the rider to avoid dangers that exist on the road from cars and debris (who wants to flat in the time leading up to a time trial?); warming up on the trainer also allows the rider to avoid having to slow or stop for traffic just when the athlete is to do a higher intensity effort. On the trainer, the rider can control with reasonable precision the duration of the warm up and the intensity. Riders have wrecked while out on the roads warming up. Incidents of wrecking on a trainer are far less common!

The athlete will also need to consider real life situations. For instance, in domestic mountain bike racing. start positions are determined by a first come, first serve at the start line. For this reason the “free range” warm up on the road is not practical, but the use of a trainer set at the start line is a wise tactic.

Cooling Down
The cool down is not as widely practiced as the warm up, but it is no less important. A cool down involves a period of time where light exercise helps your circulatory, respiratory and metabolic functions return to normal. An active cool down can also help prepare you for the next
session.

Slowly taper the intensity of the exercise. Mild exercise (4O% V O₂max) enhances the clearing of lactic acid and lactate by maintaining high respiratory and heart rates that increases the removal of lactate from the blood. Mild exercise also maintains the blood flow from the muscles so that the contracting and relaxing of muscles improve blood circulation. Stopping exercise suddenly can also cause blood to pool in the legs.
At the end of a training session, the cyclist should add some stretching to increase flexibility and reduce the risk of muscle soreness. During the cool down, the athlete should also be focusing on beginning the replacement of fluids lost during training along with carbohydrate and perhaps protein.