Warming up is a crucial part of any training session, this is especially true though for beginners. In this article I will discuss why warming up is so important for beginners, provide the rational behind designing an effective warm up for beginners and finally give 6 full body warm up exercises beginners can use in their training.

Defining Beginner

In the context of this article, a beginner is someone who is able to move through basic movement patterns with low levels of strength and technique. They are able to move relatively freely and control their own bodyweight through basic positions. Some beginners, especially elderly beginners, will find the exercises in this list too challenging. If this is the case, feel free to look through our warm up library and you will be able to find exercises that match your ability.

Why Warm Ups Are Important for Beginners

Sedentary Lifestyle

Beginners, in most cases, are relatively sedentary. This means that they do not have the habit of moving their bodies on a regular basis, which is a key reason why warming up will be so important for beginners who do not move on a regular basis.

Require Skill Acquisition

Beginners need a great deal of technique work to become accustomed to the movements within resistance training. This is because they simple have not performed many repetitions on each of the movement patterns within resistance training. The warm up is a great opportunity to get technique dialled in prior to lifting weights through the movement patterns.

What Are “Full Body” Exercises and Warm Ups

Full body is a common term used in the fitness industry and just for the sake of clarity I thought I would define it for the context of this article. When I provide a full body warm up exercise I am attempting to provide an exercise that does not warm up a specific muscle group or movement pattern. When warming up the full body, typically we perform an exercise that either engages the core musculature or a movement that engages multiple movement patterns.

Animal Crawls as Full Body Warm Ups

Animal crawls are very effective full body warm up exercises, they often engage many different muscle groups and require core activation. For beginners who are able to take their own bodyweight they are an excellent addition to warm ups.

How Beginners Should Design Warm Ups

A beginners warm up should consist of three exercises, an exercise that strives to warm up the initial primary exercises (the first working set of the session), an exercise that warms up the second primary or secondary exercises and finally a third exercise to warm up the core or the full body. This list provides examples of the third warm up exercise. Below I have provided a warm up for a lower body resistance training session that includes a full body exercise.

Try These 6 Full Body Warm Ups for Beginners