ArticleSports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.)2024
Revisiting the 'Whys' and 'Hows' of the Warm-Up: Are We Asking the Right Questions?
Article in Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effects of neuromuscular warm-up on athletes' change-of-direction performance and knee isokinetic muscle strength: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in physiology · 2026Pooled it
- Optimizing Post-activation Performance Enhancement in Athletic Tasks: A Systematic Review with Meta-analysis for Prescription Variables and Research Methods.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2025Pooled it
- Foam rolling and stretching do not provide superior acute flexibility and stiffness improvements compared to any other warm-up intervention: A systematic review with meta-analysis.Journal of sport and health science · 2024Pooled it
- The Effect of Speed Endurance Versus Core Training on The Repeated Sprint Ability of Youth Male Soccer Players - A Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of sports science & medicine · 2024Trial
- Comparative Analysis of Physical Demands and Physiological Responses of Different Warm-Up Protocols in Highly Trained Female Football Players.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Warming Up Body and Mind: Combined Cognitive and Exercise Priming Improves 1-Mile Time Trial Performance in Recreational Runners.European journal of sport science · 2026Article
- Association of Participation in Warm-Up Exercises with Complications, Subsequent Injury Frequency, and Recovery Duration Among Athletes with a History of Injury: A Physical Activity Epidemiology Study Using Secondary Survey Data.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2026Article
- Wearable-Based Assessment of Cardiac Recovery After a Modified Bruce Test in Women with Breast Cancer: Role of Physical Activity and Treatment Duration.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- The Influence of Menstrual Cycle Phase and Urinary Incontinence on Potential ACL Injury Risk Factors with a Focus on Hip Strength and Postural Control in Elite Female Team Sport Athletes: A Pilot Study.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Effects of a 3-week foam rolling warm-up intervention on ankle dorsiflexion measurements and jumping performance in young rhythmic gymnasts.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2026Article
- The effect of self-selected versus standardised warm-ups on kayak ergometer performance in Hungarian elite kayakers: a randomized controlled crossover trial.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Weekly Heart Rate Variability and Training Zone Analysis in U-15 Soccer Players: The Predictive Value of Combined Warm-up Protocols for Optimizing Cardiovascular Monitoring.Advanced biomedical research · 2026Article
- Not all players warm up the same: position-specific external load during standardized pre-match protocol in women's handball.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Article
- Injury risk analysis of movement restriction and body asymmetry in sports injury prediction.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Acute Effects of Isometric Contraction Distribution on Jump Performance in Volleyball Players.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2025Article
- Does Massage Gun or Foam Roller Use During a Warm-Up Improve Performance in Trained Athletes?Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Active assessment of fitness and performance in a general population.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- International Ski and Snowboard Federation consensus statement on warm-up and cool-down in competitive alpine and freestyle skiers and snowboarders.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2025Article
- Acute responses to a potentiation warm-up protocol on sprint and change of direction in female football players: a randomized controlled study.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2024Article
- Do you even exercise, ref? Exploring habits of Spanish basketball referees during practice and matches.PeerJ · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The warm-up is considered beneficial for increasing body temperature, stimulating the neuromuscular system and overall preparing the athletes for the demands of training sessions and competitions. Even when warm-up-derived benefits are slight and transient, they may still benefit preparedness for subsequent efforts. However, sports training and competition performance are highly affected by contextual factors (e.g., how is the opponent acting?), and it is not always clear what should be the preferred warm-up modalities, structure and load for each athlete and context. Further, we propose that the warm-up can also be used as a pedagogical and training moment. The warm-up may serve several different (albeit complementary) goals (e.g., rising body temperature, neuromuscular activation, attentional focus) and be performed under a plethora of different structures, modalities, and loads. The current commentary highlights the warm-up period as an opportunity to teach or improve certain skills or physical capacities, and not only as a preparation for the subsequent efforts. Moreover, the (justified) call for individualized warm-ups would benefit from educating athletes about exploring different warm-up tasks and loads, providing a broad foundation for future individualization of the warm-up and for more active, engaged, and well-informed participation of the athletes in deciding their own warm-up practices.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.