The Correct Way to Warm Up when Weight Training

An ideal way to warm up is to start out with a light weight on the first set of the first exercise you will be performing. Then progressively increase the weight for that same exercise for the next three sets. These will be your warm-up sets. This will allow your muscles to get accustomed to the increase in weight and have it ready for your heavy working sets. But remember, when warming up, we do not want to waste too much energy or fatigue our muscles – so we will just perform a number of reps that do not induce this.

Let me try and make it a little clearer with an example. Let’s say you are training legs on Monday. The first exercise on your workout program is squats.

First set (warm-up set)

You load the bar with 20 kg (or a weight that is very light for you). You will then perform 10 to 12 reps with this weight. This should be very easy and comfortable for you – and not to the point where you are struggling to complete your last few reps. (If you are, then you are starting out with a weight that is too heavy.) After you have completed this set, rest for roughly 2 minutes.

Second set (warm-up set)

For the next set, increase the weight slightly. Continuing with the above weight as an example, load the bar with 30 kg. This should also be very easy and light for you. (Remember: this weight might be a lot lower or higher for you depending on your strength; this is just an example.) Perform 8–10 reps this time; again, you should not struggle with this weight. After you have completed this set, rest for roughly 2 minutes.

Third set (warm-up set)

Again increase your weight a little more this time. Load the bar with 50 kg and perform 4 to 6 reps. You should be able to complete them still quite comfortably; however, you are now preparing your muscles to become accustomed to the heavier weight. After you have completed this set, rest for roughly 2 minutes again.

Fourth set (warm-up set)

This will be the final warm-up set. Load the bar with 60 kg and do only 1 to 2 reps. The weight you use should be very close to the weight you will start out with for your next working sets. This is the final weight acclimatisation set that will prepare your muscles for your next heavy working sets.

Fifth set onwards (working sets)

From your fifth set onwards, you will be performing your regular working sets. These are the actual sets that will be the stimulus for your muscle building. For our example, we will load the bar with 65 kg – this will be a weight that you can perform at least 4 reps with; however, no more than 6 reps. If you can do more than 6 reps, go up in weight. If you cannot do at least 4 reps, then go down in the weight you select. Remember, the previous sets were all warm-ups and do not contribute to your muscle building. These are the sets that you will need to give your maximum effort.

As mentioned, the above weights that I used are just an example. Depending on your starting weight for your working sets, the weights that you use for warm-ups could differ vastly. If you normally start with 160 kg squats, then obviously your warm-up weights would be a lot higher than a person who can only do 4 to 6 reps with 20 kg.

Once you have finished doing your working sets for squats, move on to the next exercise. A lot of people make the mistake of warming up again on the next exercise. Let’s say, for example, lunges are the next exercise on your program. If you think about it, your leg muscles are certainly warmed up through your previous sets of squats. Why would you need to warm them up on your next leg exercise? In this instance for lunges, there will be no need to warm up again. Simply start out with the maximum weight you can do.

In the case where you are training multiple body parts per day, then you will follow the same protocol for warming up when you move on to a different muscle group.

Let’s say you are now finished training your legs and have scheduled to train your abdominals on the same day. For your first abdominal exercise, you will now follow the same warm-up process you just used for legs. If cable crunches are your first exercise for abs, then you will need to warm them up, starting out with a light weight and gradually working your way up for your first four warm-up sets. Then you may continue with your normal muscle-building sets for each following abdominal exercise without warming up again.