You may have noticed that all the classes at CrossFit Saskatoon start with a warm-up and more specifically a DROM warm-up.  DROM (pronounced “dee rawm") is short for the schmantzy pants term “dynamic range of movement”.

This is in stark contrast to static stretching often seen in the big "Globo-Gyms" or the good old knee-wrecker, the Hurdler’s Stretch.  So, why do we do DROM instead of traditional static stretching before training?  Well, the old static stretch before exercise decreases the ability of those muscles stretched to generate strength and power PLUS static stretching appears to increase rates of injury.

Strength coaches worth their salt have known this for some 20 years, but it takes significantly longer for the exercise scientists to “prove” what is already in common practice.  While this is nothing mind-blowing, it is nice to see science corroborating what we know intuitively.

Click here for article recently posted by the NY Times that presents an updated view of warm-up stretching.