HEALTH AND WELLNESS
D
ecember 6 was a slow day for us in town. It was
cold, the high was 10 degrees Fahrenheit, and
on slow days we often go into the woods to col-
lect fi rewood. It had been a couple of weeks
since we had loaded wood; we had a nice pile
of 12-foot sections, from standing dead that
we had cut up the last time, just waiting to get
loaded. My partner, Chris Lawkmer, was itching to get loaded up
so we could get back to town and end with an early day. When we
load up fi rewood, we fi ll the back of two fl at-beds and one 10-foot
trailer. "You gas up the saws, and I'll hustle to get these 12-foot-
ers loaded up," Lawkmer said.
Though I wanted to turn the lad loose, I thought this would be a
good opportunity to teach him about the importance of warming-up
prior to more intense work.
"Slow down partner, let's ease into it," I recommended.
"Aww, come on Johnny," he said. "I'll have the trailer loaded up
in less than two hours if you just let me jump into it!"
"I'll let you jump right into it after we warm-up for a bit. It's a
good idea to warm-up…"
It's a good idea to warm-up prior to any physical activity. Not
only should the arborist's work day begin with a warm-up, but each
and every exercise session should begin with one as well. Literally,
the warm-up is designed to increase the body's temperature and
reduce the occurrence of injury and post-exercise muscle sore-
ness. The American College of Sports Medicine's statement on the
warm-up suggests the following: a minimum of 5 to 10 minutes of
low to moderate intensity cardiovascular (aerobic) and muscular
endurance activity…that allows the body to adjust to the demands
placed on it during the exercise session (ACSM, pg. 153).
This general suggestion allows for quite a bit of creativity when
considering exactly what to do during your warm-up, so you could
consider different approaches.
Prior to beginning a strength training session, a simple but com-
plete warm-up could include:
• 5 minutes on a stationary bike at a comfortable pace
• 25 free squats
• 1 set of 15 dumbbell lateral raises (light weight)
• 1 set of 15 lat pull down (light weight)
• 1 set of 15 dumbbell shrug (light weight)
22 Arbor Age / April 2014 www.arborage.com
By John Amtmann and Brian Schwarzkoph
Warm-up
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It's a Good Idea to
Shoulder shrugs – 10 forward and 10 backward in
a circular motion.
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Arm Circles – 10 forward and 10 backward at a
controlled pace.
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