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What does it mean to prepare for an exercise?

Most people consider a “warm up” the preparation but a warm-up may only consist of a gradual increase in exercise intensity, stretching for muscle mobility, or a gradual increase in heart rate and adrenaline. These are all great things but with our GiG program, we specifically target the individual’s needs for strength, mobility, timing, and facilitation! These four factors can vastly vary from person to person and Body Gears physical therapists tailor each program to the individual.

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A warm-up is performed before exercise and includes tasks that are typically specific to the activity you are about to do. The intention is to increase blood flow and increase body temperature. i.e. If someone is about to play golf, they might do a warm-up of 25% golf swings with rotation. Preparing to exercise is even before the “warm up” and is much more specific to the individual’s needs as well as requirements for exercises. For a young girl with increased mobility, this may be turning on abdominals before initiating a higher level activity. For a more stiff individual, this may be specific mobility type exercises to improve hip flexion/spinal rotation, which would be required for the task you are about to perform. This is paying more attention to the fundamentals required by the specific type of physical activity rather than simply beginning the physical activity on a smaller scale. Request Free Consult or Contact Us Today at Chicago, Oak Brook,  & Winnetka, IL Centers.