Warming UP
In attending any GAA fixture throughout the country nowadays at club or county level the time, planning and energy invested in a team’s warm up routine has massively increased. Indoor warm up areas now exist in many GAA grounds so the process often starts now before players even get on to the pitch.
This change in approach has meant that in most cases the days of putting some burning magic lotion on your legs that came from the shed of some local “doctor” while hoping at the same time that it won’t reach any delicate parts may be over!! Funny how these potions turn up in dressing rooms every so often. At this point there is generally someone running for the shower/toilet area to cool down – even before they warm up!
The modern warm up has evolved based on great improvement in coaching standards and research indicating that many previous methods may have ill prepared players for competition and exposed them to a higher risk of injury. In my opinion that must be the number one goal of any training program/schedule or warm up period – Reduce Risk of Injury . Think about that, if we can reduce any player’s risk of injury by preparing them better to train and compete then that is a win win situation. My current warm up routine with the teams & athletes I work with changes nearly every day depending on the environment i.e. indoor, track, pitch, gym based etc but is underpinned by the same core principles and progressions for each training session.
1 – Reduce Risk of Injury
2 – Must begin simple and progress to complex
3 – Must allow the body time to adapt to increasing intensity
4 – Must include skill work
5 – Must include high intensity effort at climax to prepare body for upcoming demands.
6 – Must include a fun activity to put smiles on faces!!!
The above warm up protocols can be applied to any sport or activity. Mark Verstegen, founder of Athletes’ Performance refers to the warm up period as “Movement Preparation”. This is a term I like as it does exactly what it says on the tin. Warm Up periods simply prepare the body to move. However the better prepared your warm up is, the better prepared you will be after completing it. Recent advances in research and in practical evidence from coa
ches who work with athletes’ everyday have highlighted different areas which when included in a warm up may or may not benefit participants.
Stretching – how to stretch? What type of stretching to do? How long to do it for? This seems to be a never ending topic in the fitness and performance field. One coach advocates one method while another disagrees with it. This in many ways is the beauty of trying to educate yourself as a coach or athlete and make a decision in relation to what you feel benefits you best. Current practice from elite coaches seems to focus more on dynamic type stretching routines. This progression came about as research suggested that static stretching may decrease an individual’s ability to produce force and therefore hinder performance. However, currently many coaches are using static stretching as a precursor to more dynamic movements believing that gaining the flexibility benefits associated with static type stretching and completing a more dynamic warm up after this period will result in gains in flexibility without the accompanying potential decreases in ability to pro
duce force. This seems like a logical well thought out approach.
On the basis of current research and practicality I include 4 main areas in every warm up period.
1- Pre-habilitation: This section is designed to target specific areas of the body prone to injury and will consist of self massage, static stretching, activation and corrective exercise aimed at decreasing potential for injury and increasing proper movement patterns.
2 – Dynamic Flexibility: This section will encompass whole body movements progressing from simple to complex aimed at increasing mobility, stability, flexibility and body temperature preparing athletes for the upcoming demands of their activity.
3 – Nervous System Activation: This section will encompass high i
ntensity exercise such as rapid response drills, jumping, bounding and sprinting preparing athletes for the upcoming high intensity demands of activity such as agility, reaction, acceleration and deceleration.
4 – Game Skill: This section will encompass all the skills necessary for success in the upcoming event. There will be periods of high intensity contact situations interspersed with lighter recovery periods. Design of skills and drills will encompass match type situations focusing on attacking, defending, passing, scoring etc.
Missing component: FUN: At any stage a fun activity may be included. The purpose of this maybe to calm down an atmosphere if you sense as a coach that the situation may be a little too tense or also to get the energy up if you feel the situation needs an injection of something more upbeat.
In this next section we will go through the process of arranging a warm
up period as looking at the above information would identify that order and sequence is important if optimal results are to be obtained.
1 – Prehabilitation
Self Massage: 1st up is a period of self massage. This can be done using a foam roller, massage stick, tennis ball, sliothar, med ball, pvc pipe or a football. This self massage is designed to target and decrease densities in muscle tissue, release trigger points or tightness and promote blood flow. Not every team can afford a number of physiotherapists or masseurs so this option comes in as a much cheaper alternative. (add foam roll video). It is believed that performing these self massage techniques decreases muscle density resulting in obvious benefits to performance and recovery. I advise every athlete I work with to get a foam roller. The responses are always the same; they wish they got it sooner. I also advise them to do it every day. Start
doing some type of self massage work on any of the equipment mentioned above. Your body will thank you. (No foam roll, no problem video)
Static Stretching: In my own individual experience I have seen far too many benefits to discount static stretching as the root of all evil. It may not be good for everyone but many athletes I have worked with have benefitted greatly from it. I will add at this point that I always include a dynamic stretching sequence after static stretching before progressi
ng to anything more strenuous or high intensity in effort. The thought process of completing the above steps is that while self massage decrease muscles density, static stretching now allows this muscle tissue to stretch in a less restricted fashion resulting in greater improvements in movement capability. While observing the movement patterns and progression of today’s general posture, I think everyone could benefit from some static stretching in the hip flexors, hips, quads, mid section and chest as we seem to be getting far too close to our prehistoric friends
Activation & Corrective Exercise – This part of the warm up is designed to “wake up” muscles and movement patterns necessary for performance. Many of the muscles targeted in this period are prone to shutting down and allowing other muscles to compensate resulting in these muscles becoming over worked and prone to injury. An example in this case would be the glutes (butt muscles) shutting down resulting in areas above and below (low back & hamstrings) becoming overworked, fatigued and injured. This activation process will be targeted at areas around the hips, core and scapula as these areas are often prone to developing compensation and imbalances. Exercises in this section will begin on the floor and progress to more dynamic integrated movement patterns. (Add Video)
2 Dynamic Flexibility
Throughout this area of the warm up we will be aiming to increase body temperature and the ability to move in a more dynamic fashion. As movements are completed we will be further aiding the activation process and also making the muscular and nervous system more pliable for the following high intensity activity. An example of this would be a reverse lunge stretch with a reach over head. On the left leg we will be cueing the athlete to squeeze his glute as tight as possible on the back of his leg while his hip flexors are stretching on the front side. This combined with the reach overhead will help to dynamically elongate muscles on the front of the body while we activate those on the back of the body. Also there is considerable stability challenge involved with the right leg and core section of the body providing a stable base throughout this movement and further preparing the body for training or competition.
Movements are then further developed to include more game like high intensity drills where more ground is covered and heart rate is elevated. Examples of this would include, High knees, skips, carioca’s straight leg kicks & skips, drop steps and some striding type 75 – 80 % effort running.
Dynamic type whole body movements as illustrated in the pictures and video are an excellent way to improve mobility, stability and flexibility preparing any athlete or team throughout the warm up period
3 Nervous system activation
This section of the warm up is completed to further prepare athletes for the high intensity speed and agility demands of the game. Included in this section will be exercises such as rapid response drills, jumps, sprints, changes of direction etc to increase the nervous systems response to produce force in a short space of time. Video
4 Game Specific Skill
This section will encompass all the skills necessary for success and will be completed as close to match intensity as possible.
It is important to note that once the athletes are on their feet low effort skill work can be included at any stage throughout the warm up period to maximise athletes contact and interaction with the ball/sliothar and also to make the best use of the time spent training. An example of this would be to complete some low intensity passing skills while dynamically stretching. It must also be noted that all the science in the world does often not include practical realities. As a coach if you feel a certain situation may be lacking something and that you need to inject some energy to the environment then that is fine. On field decisions are not in any coaching manual and can change the dynamic of a group very quickly. If you feel your situation warrants this do not be afraid to inject some high knees or fast feet drills here and there. Stick to the recipe in the general sense but it is ok to switch things up a little and don’t be afraid to have a little fun!!
In a gym situation this warm up period will generally take about 20 mins.
In a field practice situation or prior to a game this process will take 15 – 30 mins depending on what you like to do with your team. Any self massage, static stretching or floor based exercise will be completed in the dressing room before going to begin a pitch warm up. All pitch exercise will be completed standing with a high emphasis on skill work all throughout the warm up period. Each player will also be given time to prepare individually during the warm up on the field and these junctures will be included in the overall plan.
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