The Dynamic Warm Up

What is a Dynamic Warm Up?

The pre-game or pre-practice warm up is designed to prepare the athletes bodies for play.  To best accomplish this, your routine should start with slower, low intensity activities using smaller or fewer muscles progressing to higher intensity activities using more of the body.  Attempt to warm up the major joints (specific to your sport) in the main planes of motion (front/back, side/side, diagonal and rotational).

Here is a sample dynamic warm up.  It has 14 paired steps.  Distance can be the depth of goal box. This is not designed to be fitness work. **Emphasize bent knees, staying on the balls of feet:

• Jog forward
• Jog backward
• Slide side (facing right- moving left) NO clicking of heels
• Slide side (facing right – moving right)
• Slide forward, alternating right and left diagonal (“wizard of oz”)
• Drop step (backward “wizard of oz”)
• Knee up and out (do as 3-count: step-step-knee up and out, results in alternating legs)
• Step kick to opposite hand (do as 3 count as above) (keep body upright: foot lifted to touch suspended hand)
• Skip, using arms
• Butt kicks
• Carioca left with emphasis high step across (1 – 2-3-4 and repeat)
• Carioca right (1 – 2-3-4)
• Sprint to quick stop
• Sprint to quick stop 

Then move on to warm ups with the ball.