The Two Percent Warmup

The best warmup for any workout.

I’ve been having fun and productive conversations with Members of Two Percent over the last month. One question I get often: “What’s a good warmup I can do before every workout?”

Or there’s this recent chat I had with my friend and Two Percent reader, Chris, who is a retired Green Beret.

Chris: I need more mobility in my life.
Me: OK, what problem are you trying to solve?
Chris: My broken body.

War will do that to you.

But so will life in general, to a lesser degree.

Being sedentary leads to aches and pains and poor movement.

But here’s a fun and unfair fact: So does being active! Everything costs something.

Whether you use your body often or not, you’ll eventually face aches and pains.

But those aches and pains are far more likely to occur if you aren’t doing some basic drills that improve your ability to move.

The case for a good warmup isn’t just about avoiding pain. It’s also finding new performance. The more efficiently you move, the better you’ll perform.

Yet most people skip warmups. I get it. Warmups are no fun, and they take too long.

This is why I recommend the warmup below, which I call the Two Percent Warmup. It takes fewer than 10 minutes and I even look forward to it. It’s a calm, quiet moment every day.

Most importantly, it’s helped prevent serious pain and injury.

Instructions

• Do each exercise once before every workout.

• To feel and move even better, also do the warmup on rest days.

Time commitment

• You can expect to be done in about 5 to 10 minutes.

Execution

• Below, I’ve listed and described each of the each of the six stretches, drills, and movement.

• I’ve also included video of each exercise.

1. Couch Stretch

Kelly and Juliett Starrett consider being able to do this stretch a “vital sign that may have the biggest impact on your everyday functionality.”

The couch stretch helps you extend your hips and stretches your quad. It’ll help you maintain a safe, efficient stride when you ruck and run, prevent knee and back pain, lift things overhead more safely, etc.

Time

Hold the stretch for 30 to 60 seconds on each leg.

Tips

• Squeeze your butt as you perform the stretch (this prevents you from finding range of motion from your low back).

• If you haven’t done this stretch, you’ll be tight. You’ll likely be unable get into the position. Stabilize yourself by holding onto something, like a foam roller.

2. Plank Walk Up

Many of us have relatively immobile ankles and upper backs. Thanks, desk work!

That can throw off our ability to squat, lunge, pickup items from the ground, lift overhead, and more. The result is that we’re more likely to injure our shoulders, neck, low back, and hips.

This exercise mobilizes your ankles and upper back while improving your breathing.

Reps

• Walk up into the position and “peddle” your heels toward the ground 50 times each. It should take you about 30 to 40 seconds.

Tips

• Breathe deeply into your belly and fully exhale throughout. Your abs may hate this—in a good way.

• Keep your legs straight throughout.

3. Modified Hip Pigeon

People generally favor their right side when they stand, shifting their weight into their right hip. That causes your left hip to become tight because it rarely moves through a full range of motion. (Fun fact: Even left-handed people tend to shift to their right hip when they stand.)

If you don’t exercise often, your tight left hip may never cause you any real issues.

But once you add intense training to an imbalanced lower body, you set yourself up for problems. This stretch unwinds your hip, helping you ruck and run better and safer.

Time

• Do 30-60 seconds on your left side only to start.

Tip

• As your left hip becomes more mobile, begin performing the stretch on your right side as well.

4. Kneeling Overhead Kettlebell Windmill

This exercise is like a combo meal—a lot of good in one package.

It builds your overhead strength and range of motion while forcing you to control your shoulder in a vulnerable position. It also strengthens your core and improves your ability to rotate and move your hips (people today rarely “twist”).

The result: you’ll be better at everything; have a stronger core; more resilient shoulders; less back, hip, knee pain; etc; etc; etc.

Reps

• 2 to 8 on each side.

Tips

• Use a kettlebell if possible because it “pulls” your shoulder into a better position.

• Start light! It’s OK to begin with a 5-pound weight and work your way up.

• You probably won’t be able to go all the way down at first. Just go as low as you can while feeling in control.

5. Bar Hang

If you sit at a desk you likely have a tight upper back. You probably can’t lift your arms over your head without relying on your lower back to help you. That impeded movement sets you up for low back pain.

The exercise can also help fix rucking shoulder pain.

Reps

• Hang and take 10 deep breaths, filling your belly with air and fully exhaling. You should feel the stretch in your lats.

Tips

• If you can’t hang on your own, place your feet on a bench for support.

6. Side Lunge Stretch

This stretch opens up your hip adductor muscles. These muscles stabilize your pelvis when you run or ruck. When they’re tight, it can lead to knee, hip, or low pack pain and generally inefficient rucking and running.

Reps

• Lunge side to side 10 times (10 times on each side). Sit into the stretch so you feel it in your inner thigh.

Tips

• Drop as low as you can to feel the stretch.

Have fun, don’t die, move well. And please consider signing up for Two Percent. We publish the most impactful and practical health and wellness information on the internet.

-Michael