Importance of foam rolling, warming up and cooling down

The effects of aging is real. Our body goes through wear and tear due to progressive damage to our cells over time. This wear and tear is even more prominent if you are actively participating in sports or lift heavy in the gym. Just like any machineries or mechanical system, these wear and tear can be controlled and contained through proper body maintenance. In this article, I will emphasise on 3 key activities that can help your body perform for a long time.

Activity 1: Warming up before working out

You have heard this time and time again in fitness articles and YouTube videos. The importance of warming up should never be downplayed. Warming up helps increase your core and muscle temperature which in turn, increases energy production in your body. This will help increase your mobility and reflexes, and therefore reduces the time taken for your muscles to contract. Warming up not only helps to prevent you from getting injuries, they also help you to perform in your workout or your sport. You can warm up by doing stretching exercises

Dynamic Stretching

When it comes to warming up, dynamic stretching and exercises are the best as they are higher in intensity. Heightened intensity helps to increase your body's core temperature, and at the same time, your range of motion as well.

Good example of dynamic exercises are light jogging, knee tugs, walking lunges or knee-ups. You should always start with lower intensity before progressing to a higher intensity.

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Activity 2: Cooling down after working out

The purpose of cooling down after working out is to provide your body with a gradual transition for high body intensity to a slow steady state of normalcy. Cooling down helps to lower your heart rate and body temperature gradually. As compared to warming up, cooling down consists more of static stretching and gentle movements.

Static Stretching

The goal of static stretching is to reduce your heart-rate and allow it to reach a steady rhythm as it was before your workout.

When it comes to cooling down, it is always good to consider total body stretching, especially to improve the range of motion for the joints that was just worked. Static stretching are lower in intensity and is a form of relaxation for your body

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Activity 3: Foam Rolling

Foam rolling is a form of myofascial release that you can do on own. The purpose of foam rolling is to help you reduce any kind of muscle tightness or inflammation, while at the same time improving your mobility and range of motion.

Foam-rolling can be done for both warming up and cooling down. Past research showed that foam rolling may assist in reducing muscle soreness. For the best result, it is best to do foam rolling together with your stretching exercises.

There are multiple ways you can use the foam roll to improve your range of motion and release tightness in your muscles. There is a slight learning curve when it comes to using the foam roll but once you have mastered it, it can be your best friend! Nonetheless, if foam rolling before and after your workout is too time consuming or too much of a hassle for you, you can always opt for regular sports therapies that we provide!

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