Why do elites warm up/cool down so slow?

It's the principle of conservation of speed. Have you ever seen how slow sprinters walk?

These guys are flexed. Remember that.

Though they're not clicking away a 3-mile warm up at 4:15 pace imagine what the can accomplish running slowly. They could by dynamically stretching, communicating with and relying on underutilized muscles or simply getting loosened up. Hay is in the barn.

They are being cautious in case the EPO has turned their blood to sludge and they have a stroke if they war-up too fast.

A slow jog lets them set the molasses in motion and check for any pesky clots that could prove problematic.

To begin a warmup I can understand trotting along around 9-10 minute mile pace, but I would only do this for the first few seconds and over the course of a few minutes work my way up to 7:30-8:00 pace for the remainder of the warm up run.

It would be detrimental to their performance if they would

go lactic during the warmup. Slow folks like the rest of us

could learn from this.

Why are their post race workouts so good? Don't they "go lactic" in the race before?

What about the first rep of a workout, don't they go lactic in that without ruining the rest of the workout?

Why is everyone treating the OP's claim as if it's true? What's the evidence that elites warm up any differently than anyone else?

Because that's what champions do.

ive never understood why folk warm up so fast! i was far from elite, but my teammates would leave me in the dust during pre race warm ups. i always felt that the point of a warm up was to waste as little energy as possible while warming the body just enough before i did some stretches, then followed by putting on my spikes and doing some sprints on the starting line. post race was usually the same effort just to keep from getting sore before getting on the bus. early season the post race warm up was sometimes about getting in some more mileage for the week and maybe pushing the pace under the idea that some extra fitness could be achieved.

He cited the resource he used when he questioned their slow warm ups.

Most people do go lactic when they do the first portion of their workout. The idea is to delay that for as long as possible in a race. I want my legs to work for me early in the race, not have to fight them the entire time.

This is actually a good question. I have noticed the same with other elites. Very slow jogs. Most Americans in HS and college put in a few miles at 7 minute pace and call that a warm up. I've never heard coaches specifically say what pace to warm up at which begs the question "What pace is ideal for a warm-up?" Any studies been done on it?

I remember Marius Bakken finishing his WU jog with 3 minutes of running at around 3 min/km.

What pace do you think they are actually running? What looks slow for an elite is often surprisingly quick. Anyway, all they are trying to do is warm up their core and muscles a degree (C) so the muscles will contract more forcefully. If you run too fast in the warmup the VO2 slow component will get all jacked up and you won't be as economical during the race.

It's like boiling a frog without it ever knowing; easy does it.

i believe most should warmup faster and shorter. Of course they aren't going to go anaerobic if they go a little faster. Furthermore, a little anaerobic alacticc won't hurt them.

You gotta stopwatch? wrote:

Anyway, all they are trying to do is warm up their core and muscles a degree (C) so the muscles will contract more forcefully.

No they're not. The main purpose of a warmup is not to literally warm the muscles. It's to prime dormant energy systems so they're ready to contribute. You want to "go lactic" as a previous poster put it.

It depends on the particular race, the conditions, and the preferences of the athlete, but three or four minutes at HM pace at the end of a very slow jog is normally enough for most people. I like to start at a shuffle and allow myself to very slowly accelerate through the warmup until I hit threshold pace towards the end. The sensation I'm going for is that I'm holding myself back the entire time. A warmup like this should be completed at least 20 minutes before competition.

In hot weather, at distances longer than 5k, literally warming up is problematic. Lots of athletes in hot conditions will take a very short warmup for a 10k, and they'll do it in an air conditioned area if possible. The tradeoff of not having one's energy systems totally ready to go at the gun is worth it in a hot 10k because the accumulated body temperature over the course of the race is a bigger factor.

I usually feel my best after gradually increasing the pace of my warm-up. First 5mins at 9-10 min pace, next 5 mins at 8min pace, then the last 10 mins around 7min pace. Some dynamic stretching and a few 20 second strides a bit faster than race pace and I'm good to go.

As you said, it depends on the particular race. If you're an "800 dude" or below you need your muscles and core warmed to an optimal temperature, around 39C, to get maximum power. For the longer sub-maximal races, it depends on a variety of factors.

There is no known "corrrect" way to warm up, and the only research on the subject that I'm aware of suggests that endurance athletes do not benefit from warm-up at all. In my own running, I've found that doing 6-8 100m strides, starting at a jog and working up to race pace is enough. In my opinion, the warm-up should be very light, and the concept of cool-down is altogether fallacious.

because there is absolutely no need to warm up any faster? its not a f*ckin distance run theyr not doing it for long term benefits its just to increase circulation to the legs and gradually increase heart rate, WHY waste energy? to show off?