Stretching has long been promoted as the most effective muscle injury prevention technique available, and thus is used by bodybuilders around the world prior to weight lifting workouts to reduce the risk of muscle tears and strains. Much time is spent performing various specific stretches depending upon which muscle group is to be trained, and there is no doubt that increasing flexibility can allow for superior range of motion during weight training exercises, and also can reduce the incidence of numerous muscle injuries. Yet, despite the advantages of stretching, for the bodybuilder who is lifting heavy poundage during weight training sessions, there is a far more effective injury prevention method that can be performed in concert with, or even in lieu of stretching, and is neglected by far too many weight lifters. Warm up sets are, by far, the most powerful weight lifting workout injury avoidance method, as they prepare a muscle for upcoming stress, and when implemented properly within a weight lifting workout plan, they can prevent the pain and discomfort that often plagues joints and muscles. We all know that fully depressing the gas pedal on a car shortly after starting the engine can cause severe damage, as the oil has yet to circulate properly through the various sections of the engine, and operating a vehicle at full power when engine temperature has yet to rise will increase the chances for wear, tear and potential engine failure, and although we all apply this concept to our automobile by way of a prerequisite engine warm up period, many weight lifters neglect to use the same logic on their own body, which responds nearly identical to a car in such a situation, except instead of waiting for oil to circulate through the engine compartments and forcing engine temperature to systematically rise, we are attempting to enhance blood flow into the muscles so that they are ready to handle heavy weights during an intense weight lifting workout session. By doing so, the muscles, like a car engine, are in essence lubricated, preparing them for intense stress, but when warm up sets are avoided, the muscles are forced to perform at maximum capacity from a cold state, and can quickly experience injuries ranging in severity from minor muscle strains to major tears. Many bodybuilders may fear that performing warm ups will negatively impact the amount of weight used during a workout set, but this is not only false, but surprisingly to many, the opposite is true, meaning that by performing warms ups properly, the muscle are capable of lifting greater amounts of weight during a workout set than if they were attempting to perform the weight training exercise absent any warm ups, which makes this method much more attractive to those who wish to achieve maximum muscle building results. But even if warm ups were not to offer this substantial benefit, the injury prevention component itself is extremely important to any weight lifter who has a long term vision, as other than improper weight lifting workout and bodybuilding diet techniques creating disappointing progress, the next likely reason why most weight lifters never achieve desired muscle building results is due to a string of injuries derailing consistency, and one reason why this occurs is that far too many weight lifters dedicate themselves to proper warm up sets for every weight lifting exercise. A friend of mine decided to perform some weight training exercises in my basement, and he expressed interest in testing his strength on the squat, so I recommended that he warm up prior to doing so, but he rejected my advice, and shortly thereafter, he suffered a painful lower back injury. As he and so many have proven, warm ups are one of the most effective yet often neglected keys to maximum muscle building, but make sure not to use warm up weights that are excessive, otherwise you will adversely impact your actual weight lifting workout sets, but you should also avoid selecting weights that are too light, as this will not properly prepare a muscle for the workout stress that is to follow. The proper balance has you using a weight for warm ups that does not cause any fatigue whatsoever, but which properly stimulates blood flow to the muscles you wish to train, and also ensure you always implement warm ups for each weight training exercise, as there is no available total body warm up technique that can replace performing each specific workout exercise with lighter weight. Warm ups should not extend your weight lifting session length significantly since such sets do not require you to rest for longer than is necessary to change weight on the barbell.
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