The Science (and Purpose) Behind a Great Warm-Up

If you’ve been in one of our small-group sessions this week, you may have noticed a slight change: we’re starting every workout with a dynamic warm-up.

It’s a quick, purposeful sequence of movement drills designed to raise your body temperature, prime your nervous system, and prepare your mind for what’s ahead. Over time, doing the same warm-up each session helps everyone fall into rhythm and makes the transition into barbell work smoother and more effective.

But even if you’re not training with us, a proper warm-up is one of the most important (and most overlooked) parts of any workout. In this post, we’ll break down why warming up matters, what the science says about dynamic warm-ups, and how you can use this approach to make your own training safer and more effective.

Why Warming Up Matters

A warm-up is more than just something you “get through” before the real work starts. It’s the bridge between your normal state and your performance state, both physically and mentally.

Here’s what happens when you take the time to warm up correctly:

1. You raise your body temperature and increase blood flow. Warm muscles contract faster, move more freely, and are less likely to strain or tear.¹

2. You activate your nervous system. Movement-based warm-ups help your brain and body communicate more efficiently, improving coordination and muscle recruitment.¹

3. You improve mobility and control. Dynamic motion through different ranges of motion reduces stiffness and prepares your joints for heavier loading.²

4. You sharpen your focus. A structured warm-up helps you shift out of “work mode” and into “training mode.”¹

5. You may reduce your risk of injury over time. Consistent warm-ups that include full-body movement patterns are associated with fewer soft-tissue injuries.³

Static vs. Dynamic Warm-Ups

A static warm-up usually involves holding stretches for a period of time. It can help flexibility in the long term, but when done right before lifting or sprinting, long static stretches can temporarily reduce strength and power output.⁶

A dynamic warm-up, on the other hand, uses movements like walking lunges, leg swings, inchworms, or band walks to raise heart rate, loosen muscles, and activate stabilizers.

Dynamic warm-ups are proven to better prepare the body for strength, speed, and coordination work.⁴⁵ They improve range of motion, reduce stiffness, and activate the neuromuscular system without dampening power.²⁶

What the Research Shows

A growing body of research supports dynamic warm-ups as the smarter, more efficient approach:

• Dynamic stretching and warm-up activities improve performance and flexibility while maintaining power output.⁴

• A 2024 review found that dynamic warm-ups enhance readiness across musculoskeletal, neurological, cardiovascular, and psychological systems.⁵

• Dynamic movement increases joint range of motion and decreases stiffness in the muscle-tendon unit.²

• Static stretching right before exercise can temporarily reduce maximal strength and jump height.⁶

• Long-term warm-up programs that include dynamic movement patterns are linked with lower injury rates.³⁷

How We’re Applying It at Straight Shot

We’ve always valued warm-ups, but we’re constantly refining how to make them better. This new dynamic sequence lets us warm our members up more effectively in less time so we can focus on what really matters: teaching quality movement and progressing strength safely.

The Straight Shot Dynamic Warm-Up

This is the full-body warm-up we’ll be using at the start of most small-group sessions. It’s designed to raise your heart rate, open up your joints, and activate your muscles through movement patterns that match what you’ll be doing in your workout.

Dynamic Flow:

• Arms Across

• Arms Up and Down

• Arm Circles

• Scarecrows

• Torso Rotations

• High to Low Rotations (Left and Right)

• Walking High Kicks (Left and Right)

• Alternating Single-Leg Touchdowns

• Heels to Glutes

• High Knee Marches

Optional Finishers:

• World’s Greatest Stretch

• Inchworms

• Walking Lunge with Twist

• Squat to Side Shuffle (Left and Right)

• Bear Crawl

  
  

This series takes only a 5-7 minutes but delivers a lot of benefits: increased blood flow, improved coordination, better mobility, and a sharper mental focus going into your lifts.

The more often you perform this sequence, the smoother it’ll feel, and the better your body will respond to the training that follows. If you train at home or somewhere else, you can still use this same flow before your workouts to prepare your body for movement and reduce your risk of injury.

Watch demos of ALL the movements right here!

The Takeaway

Whether you train here at Straight Shot or on your own, the lesson is the same: don’t skip your warm-up.

A few minutes of intentional movement can improve how you feel, how you perform, and how you recover. It’s not wasted time, it’s what prepares you to get the most out of your training.

References

¹ Behm, D.G., & Chaouachi, A. (2011). A review of the acute effects of static and dynamic stretching on performance. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 111(11), 2633–2651. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21373870

² Takeuchi, K., et al. (2019). Effects of dynamic stretching on joint stiffness and muscle-tendon unit stiffness. Frontiers in Physiology, 10, 888. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6370952

³ Fradkin, A.J., Zazryn, T.R., & Smoliga, J.M. (2010). Effects of warming-up on physical performance: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 24(1), 140–148. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19996770

⁴ Behm, D.G., et al. (2021). Acute effects of muscle stretching on physical performance, range of motion, and injury incidence in healthy active individuals: a systematic review. Applied Sciences, 14(9), 3872. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/9/3872

⁵ Ismail, M., et al. (2024). Dynamic warm-ups play a pivotal role in preparing athletes for performance. Sports Health, 16(3), 227–239. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40297071

⁶ Kay, A.D., & Blazevich, A.J. (2012). Effect of acute static stretch on maximal muscle performance: a systematic review. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 44(1), 154–164. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21659901

⁷ Thorborg, K., et al. (2017). Effect of specific exercise-based warm-up programs on the prevention of sports injuries: a systematic review. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 51(5), 347–354. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27551005