Warming Up | The Dancer | Performance Sports Therapy

Warming up should never be seen as an additional questionable part to supplementary training or dance class, but always as an essential. Therefore it should be built into your routine i.e. make it a habit!

Why warm up?

Essentially to dance your best and avoid injury it is imperative that you warm up.

The aims of warming up are as follows;

1. To improve limb alignment

2. Increase joint articulation and,

3. Increase whole body and muscle temperature

Warm ups may consist of active or passive warming of the body in preparation for physical activity. They should be gradual in intensity i.e. slow and simple with a progression to higher tempo with more complex movements. These movements may be mildly aerobic and should work through the whole range of movement allowed by the dancers’ body at that particular joint. So large bodily movements are best.

Gentle aerobic exercise is okay within a warm up, as by doing so we are aiming to gradually raise the heart rate and lubrication of joints allowing greater ease of movement, thus reducing the risk of injury.

How does it work?

Warming up causes a number of internal changes in the body such as dilation. Dilation of the blood vessels (an enlarging of the internal size) increases the speed of oxygen to the working muscles.

When you start a dance class, the sudden increase in demand temporarily puts you into oxygen debt. This is because the heart, lungs and muscles are unable to instantly respond to the high oxygen demand. However, through warming up prior to class, you are one step closer to being ready rather than starting cold as the blood vessels deliver less oxygen. Thus, when a dancer warms up, there is a shortened initial period of oxygen debt allowing for enhanced performance.

Joint movement facilitates lubrication of the joint by secretion of synovial fluid. This lubrication allows greater ease of movement at each joint. Therefore, without sufficient warm-up, the dancer could risk injury through restriction at joints and forceful stretching of cold muscles.

How to warm up?

There are several ways to warm up prior to class.

An active warm up consists of low intensity movement which raises the body’s temperature, thus warming tissue and improving the range of movement. Performing dynamic movements such as kicking the leg forward and back, or moving your arms in circles is one method. Dynamic warm-ups can be made specific to the performance or class, however this should follow a more general warm up.

Secondly, a passive warm up may be used through use of external heat sources to warm tissue e.g. the use of heat pads, ultrasound or a warm bath. It is doubtful however that this type of warm-up has any benefit on performance.

Personally I believe active warm ups produce far greater results than passive (in addition to putting you in a better mind-set for class). An active warm up can and should be tailored to you as an individual based on your activity, age, gender and level of skill. I will also tailor my warm up according to how I am feeling that day, or whether I feel a particular area (such as my hamstrings) need particular attention. Have a play around with your warm up to see what works best for you. You can also make regular changes to it so that you don’t become bored or disinterested.

Warm-ups shouldn’t just be noted for their physical importance, but also their psychological influence.

Voliantis et al. suggested that in order to create a whole body warm up, the routine should be divided into three parts;

1. physiological: getting the body ready

2. psychophysical: getting a feel

3. psychological: getting the mind ready

I like this theory of warming up. Indeed, I like to become aware of my body and its movements through warming up, especially after a day working and travelling in the car. By ‘getting a feel’ of what my body is like, I am able to stay in tune with my body’s changes from day to day – perhaps similar to how and why others use meditation. The expert dancer should have a greater awareness of their body and so be able to adapt training accordingly. For example, if you have tighter glutes this morning than you did yesterday, then you should spend longer warming up that area today.

A warm up routine of 15 to 20 minutes is ideal to ensure the body is correctly warm and joints lubricated. But be wise about your timing! If there are long periods of rest between rehearsals (which there inevitably will be) a second or third warm up must be performed. This is because in this rest period the body will loose the benefits of the previous warm up. And, if you don’t warm up again you risk injury. Indeed, research has found insufficient warm ups as a key predictor of dance injury.

As previously mentioned, the movements of a warm up should progress from simple/slow tempo to complex/fast tempo so as not to stress the body too quickly and cause any harm. If the dance steps in a class/rehearsal/performance require one side of the body to be active and the other to be stabilised, then the warm up should include movements of this nature. For example, using a diagonal action through the body to emphasis the patterns in class/rehearsal/performance. Remember, a warm up is specific preparation for the activity i.e. dance steps, and so should be specific to this.

But remember, preparing for class and training shouldn’t just be kept to the warm up. By going to class mentally prepared to start your day, you are already onto a winner. For some this might be preparing your shoes, clothing and food the night before. For others, the use of imagery on the way to class can increase mental alertness and help your body to work at its optimum. Why not try this while listen to your favourite tunes?

The benefits

The benefits of a good warm up include:

1. Enhanced physical performance,

2. Reduced muscle soreness and,

3. Injury prevention.

To conclude, it is ideal to keep muscle temperature high after warming up in cold studios and between classes. I would recommend investing in some good warm booties, leg warmers, and dance wraps etc. Here are some I currently love… (but don’t forget your second/third warm ups!)