The exercises described below are applicable to the majority of sports and

speed skills. You should perform them after you have raised your body
temperature with a minimum of five minutes jogging.
A specific warm-up for football is described on page 24, and you should use
this, with the information provided below, to create specific warm-ups for you
and your sport. When doing this, make sure you incorporate exercises that
replicate specific elements of your sport, eg 'ghost' shots if you are a racket
sports player and simulated kicks without a ball if you play rugby or football.
Lunge walk
Great for: loosening up the hips and hamstrings and strengthening the butt
and hamstring muscles.
4 THESPORT/SPEEDSPECIFICWARM-UP
25
Take a large step forward into a lunge, then step forward into another lunge.
Keep your chest up and look straight ahead, coordinating your arm and leg
movements – ie opposite arm to leg. Do 4 x 20m.
High knee lift
Great for: hip flexor (muscles on the top front of your thighs) and ankle strength.
In an alternate stepping action, extend up onto the toes of one leg, while
lifting the thigh of your other leg to a position parallel with the floor. Next,
lower this leg and place the foot flat on the ground, before lifting the other
thigh and extending from the ankle as before. Co-ordinate your arms with
your legs and keep your chest elevated as you move forwards. The speed of
this drill can be increased as the warm-up progresses. Do 4 x 15m.
Elbow to inside of ankle lunge
Great for: hip flexibility and hamstring strength.