The Warm-Up

A warm-up period is the first part of every training session or preparation for competition. The warm-up starts slowly and systematically and gradually involves all muscles and body parts that prepare the athlete for training and competition. In addition to preparing the athlete mentally, warming up also has several physiological benefits.

Raises body temperature
Increases metabolic rate
Increases heart and respiratory rate
Prepares the muscles and nervous system for exercise

The warm-up is tailored for the activity to follow. Warm-ups consist of active motion leading up to more vigorous motion to elevate heart, respiratory and metabolic rates. The total warm-up period takes at least 25 minutes and immediately precedes the training or competition. A warm-up period will include the following basic sequence and components.

Activity	Purpose	Time (minimum)
Slow aerobic movement	Heat muscles	5 minutes
Stretching	Increase range of movement	5-10 minutes
Event-Specific Drills	Coordination preparation for training/competition	10 minutes

Slow Aerobic Movement
Jogging, non-specific movements (such as "shaking all over") or other slow aerobic movements may be used that are specific to the ability levels of the swimmers. It is the first exercise of an athlete's routine. Athletes begin warming the muscles by moving around for three to five minutes. This circulates the blood through all the muscles, thus providing them greater flexibility for stretching. The movement should start out slowly and then gradually increase in speed to its completion; however, the athlete should never reach even 50 percent of his maximum effort by the end of the activity. Remember, the primary objective of this phase of the warm-up is circulating the blood. The example programs for each group — beginner, stroke correction and squad-identify specific activities that may be suitable for this section of the warm-up.

Stretching
Stretching is one of the most critical parts of the warm-up and an athlete's performance. A more flexible muscle is a stronger and healthier muscle. A stronger and healthier muscle responds better to exercise and activities and helps prevent athlete injury. Please refer to Stretching within this section for more in-depth information.

Flexibility is a major element to an athlete's optimal performance in both training and competing. Flexibility is achieved through stretching, a critical component in warming up. Stretching follows an easy aerobic job at the start of a training session or competition.

Begin with an easy stretch to the point of tension, and hold this position for 15-30 seconds until the pull lessens. When the tension eases, slowly move further into the stretch (developmental stretching), until tension is again felt. Hold this new position for an additional 15 seconds. Each stretch should be repeated four to five times on each side of the body.

It is also important to continue to breathe while stretching. As you lean into the stretch, exhale. Once the stretching point is reached, keep inhaling and exhaling while holding the stretch. Stretching should be a part of everyone's daily life. Regular, consistent, daily stretching has been demonstrated to have the following effects.

Increases the length of the muscle-tendon unit
Increases joint range of motion
Reduces muscle tension
Develops body awareness
Promotes increased circulation
Makes you feel good

Some athletes, like those with Down syndrome, may have low muscle tone that makes them appear more flexible. Be careful to not allow these athletes to stretch beyond a normal, safe range. Several stretches are dangerous to perform for all athletes and should never be part of a safe stretching program. These unsafe stretches include the following:

Neck Backward Bending
Trunk Backward Bending
Spinal Roll

Stretching is effective only if the stretch is performed accurately. Athletes need to focus on correct body positioning and alignment. Take the calf stretch for example. Many athletes do not keep the feet forward in the direction that they are running.

Incorrect		Correct

Another common fault in stretching that athletes make is bending the back in an attempt to get a better stretch from the hips. An example is a simple sitting forward leg stretch.

Incorrect		Correct

As you can imagine there are a host of stretches and variations to them to achieve your goals. However, we will focus on some basic stretches, highlighting major muscle groups. Along the way, we will also point out some common faults, illustrate corrections and identify stretches that are more event specific. In addition, we will also have some reminders to keep breathing while stretching. We will start at the top of the body and work our way down to the legs and feet.

Event-Specific Drills
Drills are progressions of learning that start at a low ability level, advance to an intermediate level and, finally, reach a high ability level. Encourage each athlete to advance to his/her highest possible level.

Kinesthetic movements are reinforced through repetitions of a small segment of the skill to be performed. Many times, the actions are exaggerated in order to strengthen the muscles that perform the skill. Each coaching session takes the athlete through the entire progression so that the athlete is exposed to the total of all of the skills that make up an event.