This 5-Minute Warmup Can Help Prevent Injuries and Muscle Soreness

Get your blood pumping no matter where you are with this quick and effective warmup. Presented by Allegra, this five-minute warmup ensures you’re maximizing the time and energy you put into your workout routine. Health and fitness influencer Yovana Mendoza leads you through some dynamic stretches you can take with you anywhere, helping to prevent injuries, reduce muscle soreness, and ensure you’re getting the most out of your workout. The warmup also works great for rest days, stretching out the body and building some subtle heat.

“I always used to skip my warmups before my workouts, and then I [would] feel so sore,” Mendoza says. “Then I realized it’s because I wasn’t warming up.” To make sure you don’t make the same mistake, she starts the warmup with gentle arm circles, activating the arms, neck, and shoulders. From here, you’ll move on to the legs, focusing on balance with single-leg ankle circles, and connecting to your breath. Wake up the lower body even further with wide-stance side sways and bodyweight good morning exercises to warm up the hips, back, and posterior chain (aka the muscles that run along the backside of your body).

After this, you’ll come to the floor for knee circles, stretching the glutes and hamstrings while keeping your back straight. “This is one of my favorite stretches, one of my favorite warmups,” Mendoza admits mid-circle. From here, you’ll move into cat and cow pose, rounding and arching the back to warm up the spine. Finish the class strong with down dog pose, getting the blood flowing to the calves and hamstrings, then come to a deep squat to improve the mobility in your hips and ankles. Before you know it, the five minutes are already up and you’re ready for a safer workout. Follow along and check out new workouts every week on the POPSUGAR Fitness YouTube channel.