Leg Day Warm-Up! (Squat Focus)

By Coach Elise Perez

Warming up may be the most overlooked aspect of training. The common warm-up tends to look like a random mix of cardio, arm circles and flopping around on a foam roller. 

When you don’t warm up properly, you’re leaving optimal performance on the table and putting yourself at a higher risk for injury, aches and pains. 

Stop wasting your precious time in the gym on unproductive warm-ups! There’s a right way to prepare to train that will create results while keeping your body safe. 

Next time you step into the gym for a lower body day, start with this highly effective and efficient warm-up. 

Step 1: Soft Tissue Work

Not all soft tissue work is productive; if you plan to use it, be sure that it’s targeted towards your specific needs and leaves you feeling better in some way. 

We use foam rolling to help with mobility, blood flow and focus on areas of the body that may not feel so great (tightness, pain). No need to roll through the whole body, rather focus on a muscle group you’ll be training that day or one that is noticeably cranky.

With the Glute Foam Roll we’re focusing on finding any tender spots (trigger points) and rolling back and forward on those spots until they release. Roll for 30-60 seconds on each side and move to step 2. 

Step 2: Dynamic Stretch

We all know what stretching is and you may have heard that it’s actually bad to stretch before lifting weights, but there’s actually very little evidence that supports this. 

So what makes stretching dynamic? With dynamic stretching, we take the passivity out of the traditional static stretches and add some movement. You’ll be putting your body into a movement that generates tension while simultaneously stretching and opening. 

For a squat specific warm-up, the Deep Squat + T-Spine Rotation is great because it hits the ankles, hips and thoracic spine all at the same time, while getting you into an actual squat. Perform for 30 seconds, alternating sides. Sit low into your hips and work to actively push your knees out with your elbows, while keeping your chest up and back flat. 

Step 3: Activation

The purpose of activation is to be able to stabilize all of that new range of motion we attained in steps 1 and 2. An important part of activation exercises is the muscle to mind connection; we need to perform movements that allow us to actually feel the muscle contract and then be able to carry that feeling into your lifts.

Focus on squeezing the muscles as hard as you can, connecting the muscle moving and stabilizing into a new range. The Glute Bridge is a simple movement that targets the glutes, hamstrings, knees and core; it really allows you to feel the contraction in your glutes at the top of the movement. Perform 2-3 rounds of 10 reps. Add a band above the knees to increase the resistance and create even more of a muscle to mind connection. 

Step 4: Grooving The Foundational Movement Pattern

All of the movements in your warm-up are leading up to the big movement pattern you’ll be performing during your training. So of course, we must prime that pattern itself. 

This allows us to feel the movement and focus on technique before we add anything else. 

The Cyclist Squat gets you bodyweight squatting while also placing an emphasis on your quads, which in turn is great for your knees, and having your heels on the plate also allows greater range of motion at the ankle. Perform 2-3 rounds of 10 controlled reps. 

Step 5: Core 

Going into your heavy lifts without first warming up and activating your core is like placing a barbell on a piece of jello. Everything, all movement stems from our center; we need to be prepped and engaged here in order to lift heavy.

The Dead Bug is a favorite because the act of pressing your lower back into the floor, forcing you to keep your ribs down, mimics the bracing that we do when we lift and combats overextension. Any time our limbs move away from us, our core has to work hard to maintain stability, which is what makes this movement so deceptively challenging. It’s also a perfect movement before squats, because it takes you in and out of hip flexion. Perform 2-3 rounds 5-8 reps per side. 

Step 6: Power 

It’s time to focus on being explosive! In this step we are working to generate power, engage explosive muscle fibers and prep the nervous system to optimize overall power and strength.

For this step, we want it to match the big lift of the day and stick to lower reps, so we don’t fatigue ourselves and our nervous systems before it’s time to really do the work. The Vertical Jump mimics being powerful out of the most vulnerable position in the squat (the bottom). Perform 2-3 rounds of a maximum of 5 reps. 

Now go squat and see how much stronger you feel!