By Sean Nalewanyj

I see this all the time—lifters don’t realize how important a proper warm-up really is.

Don’t ignore this essential piece of weightlifting advice!

There are those who do worthless warm-ups like 1 set of 20 reps simply using the weight of the bar and others who don’t do anything at all.

A proper warm-up will help you in both the short and long term because of these two reasons…

1) Your muscle stimulation and growth is maximized with a proper warm-up because you can increase the amount of that weight you can lift during your workout.

2) When you perform a proper warm-up, you successfully lower your odds of getting injured.

Now correct me if I’m wrong, but to me that seems like two really good reasons to invest 15–20 minutes prior to each workout doing a warm-up.

Does this weightlifting advice sound good to you?

Alright, let’s talk about what makes up a proper warm-up…

5 minutes of light cardiovascular activity is a nice start to your warm-up.

Use any simple piece of cardio equipment such as a recumbent bike, rowing machine, or treadmill to start out.

The cardio warm-up not only raises your body’s core temperature but also stimulates your heart and lungs and lubricates your joints by promoting the secretion of synovial fluid.

While you do this basic 5-minute cardio warm-up, think about the workout that you will be performing.

It’s important to use this time to mentally focus, so that your body is ready to exert maximum effort in the battle ahead.

Your mental attitude will help determine if your workout is a success or a failure, so it makes sense to prepare both your body and mind.

After you’ve done your 5 minutes of cardio, move onto the next and final segment of the warm-up process.

You will focus on doing 5 warm-up sets with the first major compound exercise in your workout routine.

For example, if today is the day you train your lower body and squats are the main exercise that you use to do that, you will be performing 5 warm-up sets of squats.

Begin with high repetitions and very light weights, and slowly progress to low repetitions with heavier weights.

For these 5 warm-up sets, keep in mind:.

YOU MUST NOT TIRE YOUR MUSCLES DURING THESE SETS!

This warm-up is only a means to increase the blood flow to the muscles and surrounding connective tissue.

It is also a method of increasing the amount of weight that you will be able to lift during your actual workout by preparing your body and mind beforehand.

Don’t fatigue your muscles during these sets; it completely destroys the purpose behind a warm-up.

Check out this simple formula to help you determine what weight to use and how many reps to perform for warming up.

Base your percentage on the weight used in your actual muscle-building set.

For example, if you were going to squat 200 pounds, the first set should be performed with 100 pounds for 10 reps.

Set 1: 50% x 10 reps
Set 2: 60% x 6 reps
Set 3: 70% x 4 reps
Set 4: 80% x 3 reps
Set 5: 90% x 1 rep

Complete these basic sets before moving into your workout.

This is essential weightlifting advice; please do not underestimate the importance of the warm-up process!

Apply this weightlifting advice to stay injury-free and prep for hard workouts.

Using these 15–20 minutes wisely will give you major rewards.

If you’re looking for more weightlifting advice and insight into the proper methods for structuring an effective muscle-building workout, visit my website at www.MuscleGainTruth.com. You can gain instant access to a full step-by-step 26-week workout plan that has been used successfully by thousands of people from all over the world, as well as more of my great weightlifting advice.

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About the author:

Sean Nalewanyj is the best-selling fitness author of the Muscle Gain Truth No-Fail System.

He specializes in sharing the honest truth about how you can burn fat, build muscle, gain strength, improve your health and live your best life. You can read my review of his product in my post here.