Name: Playbook - Branden Hayward - Strength All Days Warm-Up
Uploaded: 2024-04-08T01:55:33.439Z
Duration: 10 min
Description: Strength All Days Warm-Up

I hope you will love this warm up that I have cultivated specifically for this strength phase. One of the unique elements to this warm-up program is that it has a focus on single leg hip hinging to best prepare you for the hip hinge motions including deadlifts motions that you may try during the actual weightlifting workout. 

As I will say multiple times throughout the program, you should only be attempting deadlifts if you feel zero lower back tension when performing them. If you feel any lower back tension, then you need to stop and reach out to me so we can regroup and assess what is best for you. 

Having the glutes and core properly engaged before attempting any heavy lifting is of paramount importance.

We are also improving your posture with the thoracic spinal mobility drill that this warm-up begins with. 

Please Send me a direct message with any questions.

- Grab a foam roller. 
- Lay on your back on top of the roller, so that you’re perpendicular to the roller. 
- The roller should start out just below your shoulders. It should NOT be on the lower half of the back. 
- Hands/fingers clasped behind head. 
- Push hips up into air to allow hands and head to drop down to floor. 
- Hands MUST stay touching floor until you decide to move positions. 
- Gently allow gravity to pull your hips down as far as they can go towards floor. 
- There should be a general discomfort feeling in the back. This is a sign your back is becoming more mobile. 
- You are in control of this. DO NOT push yourself into too much pain, but challenge yourself to let your body be vulnerable to the effects of the drill. Try not to tense your back and definitely continue to breathe. 
- There should not be any sharp pain, ever. If there is, stop immediately, and message me. 
- Stay in your first spot for 20-60 seconds. If time allows, repeat 1-3 more times, each time moving only one inch down the spine. 
- The roller should NEVER get so far down on your body as to be beneath your lower back.

Thoracic spine mobility w/ foam roller — functional

Be sure to listen with the sound on because I will explain how to do this and what you can use if you don’t have the lacrosse- or soft- or baseball demonstrated here.

The benefit of this exercise is that you will release tension in your calf muscles. Thereby mobilizing your ankles. 

This will have a positive impact not only on your squat patterns but on everything in your body that is above your ankles and calves which is of course almost all of your body. 

It will have a positive “trickle up” effect helping you be more mobile less likely for injury thereby allowing yourself to push yourself harder faster and further in the gym to activate more growth hormone and testosterone and get better results in a shorter period of time.

Calf release. Softball or light dumbbell. Functional.

One knee down. One knee up. Squeeze buttock on down-knee side for 30 seconds. Switch sides.

Glute activation #1 - Hip flexor stretch CC

- Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent and raise one leg off the floor
- Hinge at your hips sitting back and down 
- Tap the floor and lift back up engaging your glutes
- Complete desired reps then repeat on the opposite side. Rep count recommendation is listed *per side*. 
- dumbbells are optional

Bodyweight or DB Single Leg Deadlift

Use a physio ball. 
Hands on ball, knees bent at 90 degree angle. 
Feet positioned as demo’d here. 
Elevate knees one inch off floor. 
Carefully push ball forward slightly, then return using core muscles. 
Start w small movements and always move slowly … this one is harder than it looks!
Only expand range of motion once you’ve mastered the exercise.

Physio ball quadruped extensions — core

- Start in a side plank hold, bent at elbow
- Switch sides halfway through time assignment 
- to progress: Raise and hold your upper leg up, as demo’d here
- to regress: drop hips down to floor if necessary

Strength All Days Warm-Up

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