Warmup sets: how to warm up for heavy lifts
Walking up to a heavy bar cold is a good way to have a bad set. Warmup sets are lighter sets of the same lift that build up to your working weight. They get the joints moving, remind your body of the movement, and let you check your form before it counts.
They should leave you ready, not tired. This guide covers how many to do, how heavy to go, and how to keep them short.
Why warmup sets matter
A general warmup, like five minutes on a bike, raises your body temperature. Warmup sets do something more specific: they rehearse the exact lift you are about to do, with weights that climb towards the real thing.
By the last warmup the bar feels familiar, your groove is set, and the first working set feels like the next step rather than a shock. Many lifters find their working sets go better with a proper ramp than without one.
A simple ramp
Start with the empty bar, or a light weight, for 8 to 10 easy reps. Then make three or four jumps up to your working weight, doing fewer reps as the weight climbs.
For a working weight of 100 kg for 5, a typical ramp is: the empty bar × 10, 40 kg × 5, 60 kg × 3, 80 kg × 2, then 100 kg for your working sets. That is roughly 40%, 60% and 80% of the working weight, with reps falling from 5 to 2.
Rest briefly between warmup sets, a minute or less for the light ones and a little more before the last, so you arrive warm but not tired.
The heavier your working weight, the more steps you need. A light accessory might need one warmup set or none. A heavy deadlift might need five.
Which lifts need them
Your first big lift of the day needs the most care. The second big lift often needs fewer warmup sets, because you are already warm. Small isolation lifts like curls usually need one light set at most.
If you use the same muscles in two lifts back to back, such as a bench press followed by an incline press, the second can usually start with a single lighter set.
Warmups don't count as working sets
Warmup sets are there to prepare you, so they shouldn't count towards your weekly sets, your volume or your records. Count only the sets that were meant to be hard. That keeps your training numbers honest and makes it easy to compare one week with the next.
Warmups in Durata
In a workout, the W button builds a ramp for you: give it your first working weight and it lays out the warmup sets as percentages of it, each with reps and a rest. You can change the ramp in Settings, Warmup Profiles. Once done, the warmup sets fold away behind a W chip so the working sets stay in view.
In your own sessions, any set can be a Warmup in the set sheet, with its weight as a fixed number, a percentage of the working weight, or a percentage of your training max. Warmup sets are left out of your records and your volume.
Common questions
How many warmup sets should I do?
Usually three or four for your first heavy lift, fewer for later lifts and one or none for small isolation lifts. Heavier working weights need more steps.
How heavy should warmup sets be?
Build up in steps of roughly 40%, 60% and 80% of your working weight, starting from the empty bar.
How many reps should warmup sets be?
Fewer as the weight climbs: around 8 to 10 with the empty bar, then 5, 3 and 2. They should all feel easy.
Do warmup sets count towards volume?
They shouldn't. Count only your working sets. Durata leaves warmup sets out of your records and volume.
Put it into practice
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