8 Reasons why you should warm up - Get Fit

Shape, May, 2002 by Mary Ellen Storte

Doing five to 10 minutes of low-intensity exercise before a strenuous workout may help protect your immune system and prevent colds and flu. In contrast, sudden all-out exercise floods your body with stress hormones that lower immune response and make you more susceptible to illness. According to preventive-care expert Lee Berk, Dr.

P.H., M.P.H., an assistant professor of family medicine at the University of California, Irvine, warm-ups can also improve a workout by lowering blood pressure, increasing blood flow to the heart and allowing you to work out longer and burn more calories with less perceived effort. They may even help some migraine-prone women avoid exercise-induced headaches. Need even more motivation to take the time? Warm-ups may also help muscle cells metabolize blood sugar more efficiently, shorten reaction time and prevent injuries.