The 5-Minute Warm-Up You Need To Prevent Running Injuries

Hit the pavement with confidence knowing that your muscles and joints are ready for your run. This 5-minute warm up is designed to target the muscle groups you rely on when you pump out kilometers. A blend of strength and mobility drills this running warm is your secret weapon and done in just 5 minutes.

Woman in blue shorts and tank top running outside with text above the image.

Running is a repetitive impact sport. This means that unless you prime your muscles and joints, you can end up wearing them out before their time.

As a Certified Strength Coach, this warm is my go-to for all of my runs. It’s quick, simple, and effective. But more importantly, it really targets the hips, back of the legs, and ankles and primes them for exercise.

Use this running warm up before each of your runs and notice your pace feel better, the typical aches decrease, and you enjoy your time more.

If you’re brand new to running, read these running tips for beginners before you head out.

The Warm Up

This running warm up uses a mini band to get the job done. Perform the 6 exercises below back to back for the listed repetitions. Repeat the sequence twice through and then head out for your run!

Figure 4 Rotations	15
Straight Leg Abductions	10 per leg
Kneeling Leg Extensions	8
Sumo Walks	30 seconds
Reverse Squats	30 seconds
Tibialis Raise	10

If you want to get stronger for your runs, add in this 10-minute glute workout or a glute HIIT workout a couple times per week and make sure you're fueling up with the best high-protein snacks (that taste like dessert!).

Which Band Is Best?

Mini bands come in different tensions. This banded glute workout is best done with a latex mini band.

These mini bands are great (and actually one of my top pieces of home gym equipment and what I use with my clients in the SMASH workout program). Resistance bands are easy to use and come with a variety of tensions.

Fabric loops are great too but much harder for beginners.

Figure 4 Rotations

Sit on the ground with one leg out in front with a 90 degree knee bend and the other behind/beside you with the same bend.
Place your hands behind you.
Rotate through the hips only, keeping your bum on the floor as you switch your legs so that the back leg is now in front of your hips.
Continue rotating back and forth.

Straight Leg Abductions

Come into a tabletop position.
Engage the core and bring one leg straight out to the side.
Keep it straight as you raise the foot up. Pause.
Return it to the ground and continue.

Woman in maroon shirt and black pants on her hands and knees performing a glute exercise.

Kneeling Leg Extensions

Come into a kneeling position.
Squeeze the glutes and start to lean back closing the gap in your knees.
Pause and reverse the movement.

woman in pink shirt and blue pants on her knees holding a dumbbell at chest height and leaning back with arrows and text about performing the exercise

Sumo Walks

Wrap a mini band below your knees.
Hinge from the hips with a flat back.
Press out against the band as your step one leg to the side.
Keep walking laterally, keeping a bentover position.
Reverse and walk the other way.

Woman in orange pants and green shirt perming a lateral band walk with arrows and text about how to perform it

Reverse Squats

Wrap a mini band around your ankles.
Lay on the ground with your heels elevated on a bench or chair.
One by one pull the feet in toward your bum while stabilizing with the other leg.
Repeat.