For love of dog: warm up your dog!

Just as we wouldn't hit the gym or the trail without a warm-up, it's crucial to ensure our canine companions are adequately prepared for physical activities.

Whether you're "just" doing 10 minutes of heelwork training, competing at agility nationals, entered in a sledding race, or about to go out and work with your dog, a comprehensive warm-up routine sets the stage for success and minimizes the risk of injury.

Just like us, dogs benefit from a gradual increase in activity to prepare their muscles, joints, and cardiovascular system for exercise. 

It's easier than you think!

Warming up is not an endurance exercise and shouldn't induce fatigue. The purpose is to prepare the body and mind for the work ahead. It only needs to be about 10 minutes. If your dog is fatigued from the warm up you are either overdoing it, they aren't in condition for the event, or there is something else (medical) going on. 

The mental benefits

A little talked about side-benefit of a good warm up is its ability to help you and your dog access a good state of mind for focus and performance - the flow state as Michael Jordan calls it. Its a predictable pattern, you are working together, and its fun!

But what should I do? 

Each activity your dog engages in may require a slightly different warm-up approach, but the general principles are that you should start gently and working your way up from gentle intensity (e.g. a sniffy walk), to the intensity of the activity you are about to complete - so if you are about to compete in agility, that's 100%. For endurance activities like canicross, target 80% of maximum speed. 

The warm up should include movement in all planes of motion (Side to side, up and down, and twists), and it should actions that replicate the activity you are about to undertake.

So, if you're about to do a strength and conditioning set into posture sets, focus on activating stabilising  muscles through the core, back, and shoulders, and getting moving in all directions, then start with an easier version of the exercise you are about to do - JUST LIKE US - any gym rats among you will recognise this principle from weights training where you do a set with the bar before you load up the weights.

The warm up should include dynamic, active range of motion movements that move the joint through its functional range, or Active Range of motion, and NOT include any Passive Range of Motion movements.

Range of motion (ROM) is a term used to describe a joint or muscle can move in various directions.

Active ROM (AROM) describes how far your dog can move the joint on their own.

Passive ROM (PROM) describes how far your dog can move the joint with assistance - typically this is stretching with pressure applied. 

Why shouldn't I use PROM exercises in your warm up? 

A study of human athletes showed that PROM stretching weakens the muscles and athletes who engaged in PROM had a higher rate of injuries. The  structure and physiology of muscles, tendons and joints is sufficiently similar among most mammals, that this holds for dogs. 

How long before do i need to warm up? 

Warming up does have a protective effect for between 10 and 30 minutes, so you have a bit of time before the effects wear off - you don't have to add optimising it to the second to the list of thinks contributing to pre-run anxiety! That being said, the window is different for each individual, and affected by temperature. Part of the role is to prepare the body for movement through increasing body temperature, so if it's cooler, you might want to start later, and remember the protective effect will be at the lower end of the range. You can also use a jacket to help keep that warmth in if your dogs are cold. 

Maintaining some sort of dynamic movement until your turn is the best possible option - on the plus side this can be really fun, and a great way to build focus! 

But I don't have time!

A bit of tough love here - if you don't have time to warm up your dog, then you don't have time to run them. End of story.

Of course you want and need to give back to the sports and people that give you and your dog so much, but there are so many ways around this! You can recruit a friend to come down, get there earlier, run earlier or later so you can help at either end if you have a choice, volunteer to pack up, or pick a day you're not bringing your dog to help in some other way. 

You Are Your Dog's Champion

Ultimately, we owe it to our dogs to ensure they're adequately prepared and warmed up for physical activities. It's your responsibility to make sure they are as prepared as possible, and that includes warming up to set the stage for a great safe performance, an ongoing conditioning program, and knowing your dogs normal. 

So, for love of dog - warm up!