Five Movement Complex
Warming up is important. In fact, it might be the most important part of your session.
I know, I know. Some of you are already rolling your eyes and thinking something like “Does a lion warm up when he's hungry?”
First off, bonus points if you recognize this Jack LaLanne quote. And yes, it’s a rad quote. There’s even some merit to it, especially if you’re workouts are literally hunting for dinner. However, I think you’re going to be seriously disappointed if you surge off the coach from an extended Netflix session and jump straight on your V15 project.
I realized a long time ago, that I’m not nearly as strong, flexible, or resilient as a jungle cat, and I’m certainly far less majestic.
The point is, I need to warm up, and I think you do too. Beyond raising body temperature, activating muscle fibers, and getting your head in the game, your warm up is also perhaps the perfect excuse (read: opportunity) to fine tune major movement patterns and ensure that you are retaining some baseline strength across the board.
I actually think that Jack LaLanne was mostly poking fun at extended stretching and extremely low output “easy” warm ups more than anything else. Of course, I never met Jack, but I imagine he might resonate with a different, but relatable and perhaps more helpful, quote from strength coach Dan John.
“The warm up is the workout.”
I’m going to give you a second to let this one rattle around for a bit. Its a bit of a mind bender.
Again, I can’t say I’ve met Dan, but I have read a few of his books. I think he’s trying to get a few things across in this quote:
Your warm up should be sort of hard. Maybe even actually hard (in the right sort of way) sometimes.
You should bring all of your enthusiasm into the warm up. Take it seriously.
The warm up is the best time to practice form and perfect movement.
The warm up should engage the entire body.
(Dan, if you’re reading this blog post, and I’ve totally missed the mark, please reach out and let me know.)
In his essay, Three Basic Concepts from the book Never Let Go, Dan suggests doing a major movement complex to warm up. I should note that he also mentions that he stole the idea from Steve Javorek and Alwyn Cosgrove. It’s a really good idea and I’m now stealing the idea from him. In fact, in writing this post, I’m actually hoping you will choose to steal the idea from me. Pass it on.
There’s a number of ways to skin this cat, and the general concept is far more important than the exercises or rep scheme.
Depending on who you talk to major movement patterns will be organized in slightly different ways, but I’ve found that for my purposes this works best using the following major movements:
Squat
Hinge
Compress
Push
Pull
There’s numerous options to choose from. Here’s a few to get you started:
Squat: air squat, back squat, front squat, lunge, step up, etc.
Hinge: deadlift, good mornings, bridges, hip thruster, kettle ball swings etc
Compress: plank, knee raise, crunch, v-up, ab roller, etc
Push: push up, dip, bench press, shoulder press, hand stand etc
Pull: pull up, ring row, dumbbell rows, barbell row etc
The beauty of this idea is that it checks just about every box you could ever want in a warm up or strength maintenance routine, and it does so in about 10 minutes.
If integrated into your routine and habituated, a routine like The Five Movement Complex also provides an essential opportunity to solidify quality movement at the most basic levels. If you can’t do a push up with good form, how do you expect to do the Midnight Lighting mantle with any amount of confidence? Climbing is complex, and it's essential that we all continue to check in with the basics.
In his widely acclaimed book Becoming a Supple Leopard, Kelley Starrett provides extensive rationale for why and how one should perfect the basic movement patterns. Starrett seems to agree that there’s incredible value in regularly returning to the basics.
“To ingrain practical, universal movement patterns, you need to incorporate strength and conditioning exercises that translate to all forms of movement. In addition, you need a model for identifying and resolving dysfunctional movement patterns, unstable positions. and range of motion restrictions that hinder athletic performance and increase the potential for injury. Put simply, you have to treat strength and conditioning movements as tools for improving life and sport performance and turn the gym into a movement assessment laboratory.”
Use a circuit like the Five Movement Complex to check in with your basic human movements. Perfect your form and slowly build range of motion and strength. Repetition is the path to mastery. Your goal should be to master the basics.
You may not catch any antelope, but you’ll probably climb better and feel a bit more resilient in the years to come.
The Five Movement Complex
Do 8-10 reps of each of the major movements in circuit format for a total of three to five sets. For isometric exercises (like a plank) shoot for 30 seconds of time under tension. Unilateral movements (like a lunge) are great additions, just make sure you cover each side.
Choose exercises and loads that allow you complete the reps/time without coming anywhere near failure. This should be engaging, but certainly feel like a warm up. For those accustomed to Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE), target RPE 4 or 5.
Take this opportunity to execute each exercise using perfect form. When in doubt, underestimate your loads.
In Summary:
3 -5 sets of the following:
A1) 8-10 reps Squat
A2) 8-10 reps Hinge
A3) 8-10 reps Compress
A4).8-10 reps Push
A5) 8-10 reps Pull.
My suggestion is to complete a Five Movement Complex followed by any other rehab or stretching in your program. Then put on your shoes and begin to work into your climbing session.