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Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one
Malcolm Forbes
Long Slow Warm-ups are a Bore
Warm-up SLOWLY and the Team Plays SLOWLY
If the warm-up is slow and drawn-out, how can one expect the way the players play the game to be any different?
It is well known that many coaches and managers spend too much time in the warm-up. This tires the players, reduces the mental alertness and prepares them to start slowly and probably finish the game even more slowly.
I have seen some warm-up lasting as long as one-half of a game and wonder on what planet the management team were born!
A short fast warm-up that builds in intensity over 10 to 12 minutes is the ideal warm-up for team sports. Warm-ups for individual sports can be a little longer because the rest between warm-up activities can be extended to suit the individual needs of the athlete-player.
Ending the warm-up on the pitch with 5 minutes before the start has been shown to be most beneficial to the players (Alikhajeh et al, 2012).