It is that time of year where the days are shorter and the nights are colder.  This means athletes should be focusing on one thing in regards to outdoor sports: warm up!  Cold and stiff muscles do not do a very good job of running, jumping, cutting, landing, throwing, turning, etc.  Athletes should really take the time to make sure the body is warm up and ready to play.  This includes the following

·         Jogging lightly for 5-10 minutes to get the blood flowing

·         Stretching out for 10-15 minutes to make sure the body is ready to go (easy concept – heat makes things stretch easier, cold makes it harder)

·         Breakdown the movements of the sport and do them (i.e. for football, do some sprints from a stand still progressively from 50% to 100%.  Whatever extreme movements are required they should be done in progression prior to play

·         Following the game – get in a good stretch and light cool down (10 minutes can make a big difference for the next day.  Hot muscles that stop in the cold can get really stiff and sore, more so the next day)