[Isaac Jordan]

I've been lifting consistently for the past several years, and until about three months ago I would start my workout with a short, brisk walk on the treadmill followed by about ten minutes of static stretching (i.e. holding a stretch/position for 10-30 seconds).

I recently switched to dynamic stretching, and it's made a huge difference in my performance. Not only have my numbers gone up on all my big lifts (particularly squats and deadlifts), but my form has improved as well. It's hard to describe, but after dynamic stretching my motions feel smoother, less jerky. It's like someone took an oil can to all my joints.

Here's what one study from the National Strength and Conditioning Association found:

Quote:

The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of a dynamic warm up (DWU) with a static-stretching warm up (SWU) on selected measures of power and agility. Thirty cadets at the United States Military Academy completed the study (14 women and 16 men, ages 18–24 years). On 3 consecutive days, subjects performed 1 of the 2 warm up routines (DWU or SWU) or performed no warm up (NWU). The 3 warm up protocols lasted 10 minutes each and were counterbalanced to avoid carryover effects. After 1–2 minutes of recovery, subjects performed 3 tests of power or agility. The order of the performance tests (T-shuttle run, underhand medicine ball throw for distance, and 5-step jump) also was counterbalanced. Repeated measures analysis of variance revealed better performance scores after the DWU for all 3 performance tests (p<0.01), relative to the SWU and NWU. There were no significant differences between the SWU and NWU for the medicine ball throw and the T-shuttle run, but the SWU was associated with better scores on the 5-step jump (p<0.01). Because the results of this study indicate a relative performance enhancement with the DWU, the utility of warm up routines that use static stretching as a stand-alone activity should be reassessed.

...

These results are consistent with Bishop’s review of the literature, indicating that an active warm up of moderate intensity is likely to significantly improve short-term performance on a range of tasks as long as fatigue is not induced (4).

...

In a review of the warm up literature, Bishop cites several reasons why an active warm up such as the DWU used in this study might improve short-term performance (4). Most factors are related to temperature and include decreased stiffness of the muscles and joints; increased transmission rate of nerve impulses; changes in the force-velocity relationship; and increased glycogenolysis, glycolysis, and high-energy phosphate degradation.

...

Although none of the physiological factors mentioned above were measured directly, we believe that the demands of the DWU used in this study are generally consistent with the recommendations of Bishop (4). For enhancement of short-term performance (10 seconds or less), evidence suggests a warm up of 5–10 minutes, performed at 40–60% of VO2 max, followed by 5 minutes of recovery (4).

Here's my current dynamic stretching routine. I complete two circuits of these exercises before taking a short rest and starting my first lift:

10 reps body squats
10 reps lunges (5 with each leg)
10 reps side lunges
10 straight leg kicks
10 knee-to-chest
10 toe touches
10 arm swings (5 forward, 5 backward)
5 body weight dips
5 pushups
2 chinups

Here's a video detailing some of the movements: