Preparing Your Body for Your Workout
You may not give much thought to the different phases of your workout, but each is important to fitness success. While you need to be consistent with the most basic aspects, such as having the right workout gear, it is equally important to understand how to prepare your body for your workout.
Preparing your body
You want to ensure that you keep injury at bay and also get the most out of your workout in order to reach and/or maintain your fitness goals. Here are some important pre-workout tips to get you ready to burn some calories.
Get Doctor’s Approval
If you are just starting out with a workout routine, the first thing that you need to do is to get your body ready is to consult with your physician.
This is an important first step in which your physician will conduct a physical examination that will determine if you can safely participate in increased physical activity.
Fuel Up
Just like a vehicle needs to have the right fuel to operate efficiently, you need to give your body the right combination of nutrients before you get into your workout.
This will aid in optimizing your performance by giving you the energy and endurance to push through your workout session.
Consider eating a small number of complex carbohydrates, like half of a bagel, 30 to 60 minutes prior to your workout. Pre workout supplementation is also a great way to support increased energy, maximize focus and foster endurance. This could be a supplement that aids in fat burning, muscle gains, or increased performance.
Either way, your body needs the proper fuel to see your workout through to completion.
Hydrate
Drink plenty of water before you begin your workout because dehydration can greatly affect your exercise performance. Your fluid levels need to be topped up prior to your workout session to keep you energized and reduce fatigue and recovery time.
If you work out in the mornings, you should consider that it is typical to be dehydrated when you wake up, having fasted for 6 to 8 hours, so start your day with a glass of water, and drink at least 16 oz. before your workout. Be sure to avoid caffeine.
Warm-up
Warming up is a gentle way of getting your body ready for your exercise routine.
This is vital for increasing your heart rate, loosening the joints and muscles, and increasing blood flow to the muscles as well. A warm-up session of about 10 to 20 minutes is essential for preventing injuries, like hamstring strains, just as much as it is important for preparing the body for physical activity.
Keep your warm-up short and light, and make it an individualized process that is relevant to age, type of workout, and abilities. You can always experiment with your warm-up until you find what’s ideal for you.
Wrap-Up
Before you get ready to burn calories in the gym, it is important to prepare your body for the workout that you have planned.
If your body is prepared to handle the particular workout session you have in mind, you are more likely to hit your fitness goals.
So, take care to warm up, hydrate, fuel with complex carbs, and get cleared for physical activity by your doctor prior to your workout.
