The thematic website of "Health@work.hk Project" has been discontinued since September 2016.
Some of the information may be linked to pages that no longer exist. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Warm-Up and Cool-Down Exercises

We are going to share with our readers the knowledge on warm-up and cool-down exercises in this issue of health information. A good warm-up exercise can promote vascular dilatation, hence ensuring sufficient supply of oxygen to muscles and improving sports performance. Besides, both body temperature and heart beat rate will gradually increase while a warm-up exercise is performed. These would not only improve body elasticity and efficiency, but also reduce heart pressure and risk for injury.

Cool-down exercises are equally important as warm-up exercises. A sudden halt from vigorous exercise can make both heart beat rate and blood pressure drop drastically, thereby possibly causing dizziness. Cool-down exercises allow our body to gradually transform from vigorous exercise mode to static mode, so body discomfort can be minimized.

Tips for Warm-Up Exercises

  • Prior to exercise, warm up for five to ten minutes. The more intense the exercise you are going to do, the longer the warm up you should do
  • Do some light aerobic exercises, e.g. jogging, taking a stroll and slow cycling
  • Do some stretching to expand the extent of body movements and reduce joint and tendon pressures
  • Warm up the whole body



Running shoes

Tips for Cool-Down Exercises

  • Slowly walk for five minutes to decrease heart beat rate gradually
  • Since both body muscles and joints are still warm, it would be a good choice to do some stretching for cooling down
  • Stretching exercises can not only reduce lactate production and the chance of cramping, but also relax tense muscles

As a white collar worker, you may not have enough time to do exercise. However, warming up before exercise and cooling down after it are of pivotal importance. Doing appropriate warm-up and cool-down exercises can improve sports performances and prevent injuries. Therefore, we should never omit the preparation and cool-down activities prior to and subsequent to exercises while enjoying sporting fun.

topTop