Over the past month or so, while I’m between official “training seasons” and just trying to maintain a base level of fitness and stamina, one of the habits I have been working on is warming up and cooling down before and after each workout. I will admit that adding the cool down came pretty naturally to me. I can immediately feel the difference between when I bring my heart rate down gradually vs. coming to a dead stop. I also happen to really enjoy stretching and giving myself the excuse to do a post-run or post-strength stretch feels marvelous. It is also a time when my brain is riding high on endorphins and I can decompress and think about the work I just did. The warm up though? That is a totally different story… Continue reading →