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ABSTRACT
Most professional and recreational athletes perform pre-conditioning exercises, often collectively termed a ‘warm-up’ to prepare for a competitive task. The main objective of warming-up is to induce both temperature and non-temperature related responses to optimize performance. These responses include increasing muscle temperature, initiating metabolic and circulatory adjustments, and preparing psychologically for the upcoming task. However, warming-up in hot and/or humid ambient conditions increases thermal and circulatory strain. As a result, this may precipitate neuromuscular and cardiovascular impairments limiting endurance capacity. Preparations for competing in the heat should include an acclimatization regimen. Athletes should also consider cooling interventions to curtail heat gain during the warm-up and minimize dehydration. Indeed, although it forms an important part of the pre-competition preparation in all environmental conditions, the rise in whole-body temperature should be limited in hot environments. This review provides recommendations on how to build an effective warm-up following a 3 stage RAMP model (Raise, Activate and Mobilize, Potentiate), including general and context specific exercises, along with dynamic flexibility work. In addition, this review provides suggestion to manipulate the warm-up to suit the demands of competition in hot environments, along with other strategies to avoid heating-up.
Abbreviations
| CHO | = | carbohydrate |
| EHI | = | exertional heat illness |
| MVCs | = | maximum isometric voluntary contractions |
| PAP | = | post-activation potentiation |
| RAMP model | = | Raise, Activate and Mobilize, Potentiate |
| Tcore | = | core temperature |
| Tm | = | muscle temperature |
| Tskin | = | skin temperature |
| VO2 kinetics | = | oxygen uptake kinetics |
| VO2max | = | maximal oxygen uptake |
Disclosures of potential conflicts of interest
No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.
About the authors
Dr Sébastien Racinais is the head of the Athlete Health and Performance Research Centre at Aspetar. His research focus on the adaptations of the human body to hot ambient conditions and their repercussions on sport performance. He runs the Special Interest Group (SIG) in environmental physiology and has been consulting for, or collaborating with, various international sports federations to protect athlete health and performance in extreme environmental conditions.
Scott Cocking is a PhD candidate at the Athlete Health and Performance Research Centre at Aspetar, in conjunction with Liverpool John Moores University. His current research investigations assess the effect of ischaemic preconditioning, both on exercise performance and vascular function. His research interests extend to pre-competition performance strategies, and nutritional ergogenic aids.
Associate Professor Julien Périard is a Research Professor at the University of Canberra Research Institute for Sport and Exercise. His research examines the integrative physiological mechanisms that mediate health and performance in adverse environmental conditions (i.e., heat and altitude). He has worked with both amateur and professional athletes from various disciplines, along with National and International Federations.
