Youth Health and Wellness

Warm-Up, Cooldown & Stretching

Why Warm-Ups Matter

A proper warm-up increases heart rate and blood flow, improves joint mobility and muscle elasticity, and helps the nervous system activate for movement. For kids, it means better balance, faster reaction time, and fewer injuries. A warm-up should last 5–8 minutes and include:

Light jogging or skipping
Dynamic movements such as high knees, butt kicks, or arm circles
Mobility drills like hip openers and shoulder rolls
Sport-specific motions (e.g., dribbling for soccer)

Scientific Insight: The FIFA 11+ Kids program, designed for youth athletes, was shown to reduce injury risk by over 50% in a study by Rössler et al. (2018)

Dynamic vs. Static Stretching

Dynamic stretching involves active movements that take muscles and joints through their full range of motion. It is ideal before physical activity because it warms up muscles, enhances mobility, and prepares the body for movement. Examples include:

Walking lunges
Leg swings
Arm circles
Hip mobility drills

Static stretching, in contrast, involves holding a stretch in a fixed position for 20 to 30 seconds. It’s most effective after exercise, when the body is warm and more receptive to improving flexibility. Common post-exercise stretches include:

Hamstring stretch
Calf stretch
Quad stretch
Triceps or shoulder stretch

Why Not Static Stretching Before Practice?

Static stretching involves holding a muscle in a fixed, lengthened position—such as touching your toes and staying there for 30 seconds. While this is great after a workout, doing it before exercise can actually decrease your performance and increase the chance of injury.

When muscles are held in a stretched position for too long before physical activity, they temporarily lose power and responsiveness. This makes them slower to contract and less stable, which is especially risky for sports that require speed, strength, or coordination—like soccer, basketball, or running.

Key reasons to avoid static stretching before activity:

Reduces strength and power output for up to 15–30 minutes afterward
Slows reaction time, which affects coordination and speed
Alters joint stability, increasing the risk of ankle sprains and other injuries
Does not raise body temperature or prepare the nervous system as well as dynamic warm-ups

Supporting research: A study by Kay & Blazevich (2012) found that athletes who performed static stretching before strength or sprint tasks showed up to 5% decrease in performance.

Cooldown: Recover & Reset

The cooldown helps bring the body back to a resting state, gradually lowering the heart rate and promoting circulation to reduce soreness. It also aids mental relaxation and improves long-term flexibility when combined with static stretching. A simple 5–10 minute cool-down can include:

Light walking or slow jogging
Deep breathing exercises
Static stretches for major muscle groups

Scientific Support: Balsalobre-Fernández et al. (2016) found that a proper cool-down with static stretching significantly reduces delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) in young athletes.

Scientific References:

Rössler, R. et al. (2018). Injury prevention in youth soccer using the FIFA 11+ Kids program. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine.
Kay, A.D., & Blazevich, A.J. (2012). The effect of static stretching on strength and power performance. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.
Balsalobre-Fernández, C. et al. (2016). Post-exercise recovery methods in youth athletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.