What a warm-up is really all about is that you on goes. Not only physically, but also mentally. The head has to go along. The attention, the sharpness, the curiosity. That is the secret of a good warm-up.
Sure, we often say: “It’s for safety.” And that’s true – partly. You prepare the body for action. You reduce the chance of injury. But safety is not just physical. A head that’s not there can also cause accidents. Or workouts that don’t quite work out. So if you really want to start safely, make sure people on stand. Not only in their muscles, but also in their heads.
Yet many trainings still start with the same ritual:
“Just do a few laps.”
Like starting an old diesel. But people are no longer diesels. We come from a busy day, a full agenda, a sleepy train journey or a phone that is still stuck to your hand. Running around may wake you up physically, but it does little for your attention. You can do it with your head on zero. And that is exactly the problem.
And yes – sometimes want to athletes do that too. Just come in quietly. Start with something familiar. Warm up like they always did. And sometimes that's fine. But as a trainer you can make the difference. By giving a twist to the familiar. Add an assignment: have them count, search, react, remember, work together. Give a direction to something that otherwise happens thoughtlessly. You don't have to break routines, you can review.
How you start sets the tone for the entire workout. So the warm-up isn't just a start, it's decisive.
That means: you wake up the body, yes – but you make the brain curious. You challenge it to make choices, to react, to focus. You let athletes and thinking, without it feeling like thinking. You raise questions: Who is paying attention? Who is playing smart? Who has an overview?
And you as a trainer? You are already watching. You see who is on. Or who is still moving on autopilot. And you know: how the warm-up starts says something about how the training will go.
Good warm-ups do something with:
- Care: athletes have to react, make choices, keep an eye on something.
- Collaboration: to solve something together, without asking out loud.
- Voltage:: just enough pressure to make it serious.
- Body and head: so no thoughtless movement, but purposeful action.
Let them look for something. Avoid something. Estimate something. Let mistakes happen. Let laughter happen. But most of all, let the game on to make.
And if that works, you will notice it yourself. Then athletes are ready before you have to ask 'ready?'. Then they have already prepared themselves, without you having to say anything.
So no, the secret to a good warm-up is not a trick. It is an invitation. To the body and the mind.
