Rather than providing you a kickboxing warm up routine to follow, the aim of this post is to give you the most important elements of an effective warmup that you can use for kickboxing, muay thai or really any martial art training to get you ready to go.
I will provide the exercises, stretches and methods I like to use but you can mix and match.
And as long as you include aspects of the 4 elements discussed below you can make up your own effective warm up.
And you can incorporate exercises and stretches specific for you and your fitness level and specific areas of tightness or soreness.
Warming Up for Kickboxing
Kickboxing is a full body workout involving movement of all the major muscle groups and joints such as hips, ankles, shoulders, neck, back, legs, arms and the core.
And being a full body exercise there is an important need to make sure you are fully warmed up before beginning to perform kickboxing routines.
Whether cardio kickboxing without any equipment, hitting the pads, partner drill sor working the heavy bag you need to make sure to incorporate an effective warm up for kickboxing before you begin getting into the more heavy and strenuous stuff.
After reading this post you will be in the best position to design your own kickboxing warmup routine by incorporating the 4 most important aspects of an effective warm up.
Also you will have the most efficient methods of completing a kickboxing warm up so that you can get into the fun stuff in less time but safely through a time efficient and effective warmup.
What makes up an effective kickboxing warm up routine?
There are certain elements of a good kickboxing warmup routine that should be included every time you warm up for a kickboxing class or session.
The specific kickboxing warm up drills or exercises can differ for each person depending on where they feel most ‘tight’, if they are carrying some sort of minor injury and also their current level of fitness.
Just as an example, in professional fight gyms in Thailand mandatory warmups include a 3-5km jog before anything else.
For someone who is overweight or not at a decent level of fitness the warmup of running 3-5km alone may be way too strenuous for them.
So let’s look at the elements that make up an effective kickboxing routine that anyone can follow regardless of level.
These are discussed in more detail below with specific example exercises and stretches I like to use and are:
- Raising the core body temperature
- Myofascial Release
- Mobility
- Dynamic stretching
As long as these elements are covered you can mix and match different exercises and stretches that suit your current level and address your particular areas where you are more sore or stiff.
So lets get into it!
#1 Raising the Body Temperature
There are several ways to do this.
You should work up a light sweat before getting into your full kickboxing session and the first step toward this is to raise your body temperature.
This is especially so in colder climates where you really need to make sure you are nice and warm before beginning your full kickboxing training.
Layering Clothing
One very simple and effective way is to wear more layers of clothes.
I like to being with compression gear which can be full leg covering as well as long sleeve compression tops.
You can put shorts over the compression gear i.e muay thai shorts or any other comfortable shorts that allow for kicking.
Then again over your shorts you could wear track pants. The track pants or sweats can be removed before you begin your full kickboxing session.
Over your compression top you could have a vest/tank top or t shirt and again over this a hoodie or zip up track suit top. This can also be removed once the full kickboxing session begins and you are fully warmed up.
Light Exercise
As mentioned in pro fight gyms in Thailand 3-5km light runs are normal before training starts which is followed by skipping for several rounds and shadow boxing.
You could use a similar routine as pro fighters but modify the intensity and level.
For example a 10 min walk with your layered clothing on is a great way to work up a little sweat.
Basically any type of movement that is light in nature in addition to the layers of clothing you have on would be great to raise your body temperature effectively.
Other examples that are great for kickboxing include light skipping, light shadow boxing, bodyweight squats, jumping jacks and really anything that gets your heart rate and body temperature up a little is great.
#2 Myofascial Release
Myofascial release work is great to loosen up tight areas and relieve sore parts of the body.
Depending on what areas of your body are tight you can focus on different areas.
Foam Rolling
I generally find foam rolling is great as part of a kickboxing warm up.
It would take too much time to really effectively foam roll your entire body but you can address specific area you know need to be mobilized.
For me the areas I focus most on for kickboxing warm ups (this changes depending on how my training is going and where I feel more tight but works well in general for most people I feel) are:
- Low back
- Upper back
- Glutes
- Calves
- Quads/Hip flexors
2-3 minutes of rolling on the 5 areas above would take 10-15 minutes.
Oil Massage/Heat
Thai oil on tight areas that are ‘cold’ and ‘stiff’ works wonders before kickboxing training.
I also like deep heat lotion, deep heat spray, tiger balm and other balms and oils that you can apply yourself directly to the area where you are most tight.
#3 Mobility Exercises
There are a tonne of mobility exercises you can find online to incorporate into your kickboxing warm up.
I like to focus on areas more specific to kickboxing and especially for kicking such as the hip flexors, groin, lower back and hamstrings.
There are way too many mobility exercises to list here and you can find the ones you like best, make you feel the best and ready for kickboxing training and that address your particular areas that need mobility work.
Banded Stretches
Stretching using bands is effective for your joints.
These can be used for you hips and ankles as well as shoulders.
I like to use bands especially for the hips to increase mobility in and around the hip capsule as well as hip external and internal rotation.
Mobility Exercises Without Equipment
There are many to choose from. But each of them help to get your major muscle groups more mobile before training.
They all are bodyweight exercises and do not include equipment like bands or rollers.
I like to include the following in virtually all of my warmups whether for weight training or muay thai/kickboxing:
- Bird Dogs
- Dead Bug
- One legged Stiff Legged Deadlifts
- Hip glute bridges
- Lunge stretch
- Wrist rolling
Other more commonly used mobility exercises I like to use include:
- Ankle rotations
- Knee rotations
- Hip rotations
- Shoulder circles
- Neck stretches (side to side, up and down)
- Wrist rolls
- Hip turning
#4 Dynamic stretches
Dynamic stretches further help increase core body temperature as well lubricating the joints and improving mobility and helping the major muscle groups to fire before more strenuous training.
In comparison to conventional long hold stretching, dynamic stretching is better suited for before training and involves movement in and out of range of motion.
Again there are many variations and types of dynamic stretches you could use for your kickboxing warm up but I generally use the following:
- Leg swings to the front
- Lateral leg swings
- Walking knee hugs
- Backward open leg hip rotations
- Walking lunge with reach
There are definitely many options when it comes to dynamic stretches and you can pick and choose what you like based on what feels most effective for getting you ready for kickboxing.
The Best Kickboxing Warm Up – Wrap Up
This post has aimed to give you an overall guideline for you to develop your own tailored and effective kickboxing warm up.
This post can be used to develop your warm up routine for any martial art training or really any physical training such as weight training crossfit etc.
By incorporating the elements of:
- Raising body temperature
- Myofascial release
- Mobility
- Dynamic stretches
You will be warmed up and firing, ready to go for your training while increasing your flexibility and mobility and effectively preventing injury.
