A Beginner's Guide to Warming Up Before a Run

One of the most common things beginner runners do is lace up their shoes and start running immediately. It feels logical. You want to run, so you run. But skipping your warm up is one of the fastest ways to feel awful in the first mile, pick up a niggle, and wonder why running feels harder than it should.

The good news is that a proper warm up does not need to be complicated or time-consuming. Ten minutes is all it takes to transform how a run feels, and once you make it a habit, you will genuinely notice the difference. If you are just getting started, Runna's new to running plan builds warm up time into every session so you never have to guess.

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Why warming up matters (Especially if you're new to running)

When you are sitting at your desk, watching TV or sleeping, your muscles are cool, stiff and relatively low on blood flow. Your heart rate is slow, your joints have minimal lubrication and your nervous system is in a fairly idle state. Asking your body to go from that to running hard in a matter of seconds is a shock to the system.

A warm up gradually bridges the gap between rest and exercise. Here is what it actually does:

It raises your core body temperature, which makes your muscles more pliable and responsive. It increases blood flow to the muscles that do the work during running, particularly your quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves. It lubricates your joints, reducing stiffness and friction. It wakes up your nervous system so your muscles fire faster and more efficiently. And it mentally prepares you for the effort ahead, which matters more than most people realise.

Research consistently shows that including a proper warm up improves running economy (how efficiently you use energy), reduces the perception of effort and, most importantly for beginners, lowers the risk of injury. For a deeper look at preventing running injuries, a solid warm up is always the first line of defence.

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What happens to Your Body without a warm up?

If you skip the warm up and head straight into running, a few things happen. Your muscles are less responsive, so your form tends to be worse right from the start. Your joints are stiffer, which increases stress on your knees, hips and ankles. Your heart and lungs have not had time to ramp up, so the first few minutes feel disproportionately hard.

For new runners especially, the first mile often feels the toughest. Part of that is fitness, but a significant part is simply a cold, unprepared body being asked to work hard too quickly. A proper warm up shortens that uncomfortable settling-in period considerably, and makes the whole run feel more enjoyable from the very first step.

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How long should a beginner's warm up be?

For most beginner runners, eight to ten minutes is the sweet spot. That is long enough to properly prepare your body without eating into your energy reserves before the run has even started.

You do not need to be doing an elaborate routine for half an hour. A short brisk walk, a handful of dynamic stretches and a gentle ease into your running pace is genuinely all you need. As you get fitter and start tackling faster sessions or longer runs, your warm up can evolve, but for now keep it simple and consistent.

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The simple beginner running warm up routine (Step by step)

Step 1: Start With a Brisk Walk (3 to 5 minutes)

This is the simplest and most underrated part of any warm up. A brisk five-minute walk gradually raises your heart rate, gets blood flowing to your legs and starts loosening up your joints without any stress on cold muscles.

Walk at a pace that feels purposeful rather than leisurely. Swing your arms, stand tall and let your body gradually come to life. This alone makes a noticeable difference to how the first few minutes of running feels.

If you are following a structured running training plan, this walking phase doubles up as a natural transition into your session.

Step 2: Dynamic Stretches (5 minutes)

Once your body is slightly warm from the walk, it is time for dynamic stretches. These are active, movement-based exercises that take your joints through their full range of motion, loosening muscles and waking up the neuromuscular system. They are completely different from static stretching (holding a position), and far more effective before a run. More on that distinction below.

Do each stretch for about 20 to 30 metres or 10 to 12 reps per side. You do not need to rush through them.

Step 3: Easy Jogging to Ease In

After your dynamic stretches, do not jump straight to your target running pace. Start at a very comfortable jog for the first two to three minutes of your run, letting your breathing settle and your body find its rhythm. Think of this as the final phase of your warm up rather than the start of the run itself.

Understanding conversational pace is really useful here. If you can hold a conversation while jogging in those opening minutes, you are at exactly the right intensity to ease your body in properly.

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The best dynamic stretches for beginner runners

These five dynamic stretches target all the key muscles used in running and take about five minutes to complete. They look a bit silly, but they work.

Leg Swings

Stand next to a wall or fence for balance. Swing one leg forward and back in a smooth, controlled pendulum motion, gradually increasing the range with each swing. Do 10 to 12 swings per leg. This loosens up your hip flexors and hamstrings, two of the most important muscle groups in running.

Walking Lunges

Step forward into a lunge, lowering your back knee towards the ground, then step through and repeat on the other side as you walk forward. Do 10 to 12 reps per leg. Walking lunges warm up your quads, glutes and hip flexors all at once, which is why they are a staple in any runner's pre-run routine. You can find the full technique in Runna's walking lunge tutorial.

Hip Circles

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, place your hands on your hips and draw large circles with your hips, first clockwise then anticlockwise. Do 10 circles in each direction. This drill mobilises your hip joints and activates the glute muscles that stabilise your pelvis when you run.

Glute Kicks (Heel Flicks)

Jog gently on the spot or forwards while flicking your heels up towards your glutes as quickly as possible. Keep your knees pointing down and stay on the balls of your feet. Do 20 to 30 reps. This wakes up your hamstrings and trains the quick leg recovery that makes running feel lighter. Check out the full technique in Runna's heel kick drill tutorial.

Ankle Rolls

Stand on one foot and slowly roll your raised ankle in large circles, 10 times clockwise and 10 times anticlockwise, then switch feet. Simple but genuinely effective. Your ankles absorb an enormous amount of impact during running, and mobilising them before you head out reduces stiffness and lowers the risk of strains.

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What about static stretching? (The common beginner mistake)

This is where a lot of new runners go wrong. Static stretching, which is the kind where you hold a stretch for 20 to 30 seconds, is what most people picture when they think of stretching before a run. It is what PE teachers told us to do before sport, so it feels instinctively right.

The problem is that static stretching before a run on cold muscles can temporarily reduce muscle power and force output. Research has shown it can actually make performance worse in the short term rather than better. Static stretching has its place, but that place is after your run, not before it.

Save your static stretches for your cool-down and post-run routine, when your muscles are warm and the goal is to restore length and promote recovery. Before your run, stick exclusively to the dynamic movements above.

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Should your warm up change as you progress?

As a beginner, the warm up above is all you need before every run. As your fitness builds and you start tackling different types of sessions, it is worth adapting slightly.

Before easy runs, a five to eight minute brisk walk and a few dynamic stretches is plenty. These sessions are low intensity and your body does not need a lot of preparation.

Before harder sessions like intervals or tempo runs, spend a little longer on your warm up, closer to ten to twelve minutes, and consider adding a couple of easy running drills like high knees or A-skips after your dynamic stretches. These prime your nervous system specifically for faster running. If you are curious about how interval sessions work and when you will encounter them in your training, it is worth reading up on them early.

Before a race, give yourself a full ten to fifteen minutes of warm up time, including a gentle jog, dynamic stretches and two or three strides to get your legs turning over at pace. The warmer and more prepared you are at the start line, the more comfortable those opening kilometres will feel.

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Do not forget the cool down

If the warm up is the thing most beginners skip before a run, the cool down is the thing most beginners skip after one. And they are equally important.

A proper cool down, which means five to ten minutes of easy walking followed by some gentle static stretching, helps your heart rate return to normal gradually, reduces muscle soreness and starts the recovery process. It is also a great time to do those static stretches you wisely avoided before the run.

Runna's coach warm-up and cool-down routines are a brilliant starting point if you want a structured routine to follow rather than making it up as you go. And if you want to take your recovery even further, Runna's stretching and Pilates routines for runners are designed specifically to keep your body moving well between sessions.

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The bottom line

Warming up is not optional. It is a ten-minute investment that makes every run feel better, reduces your injury risk and sets you up for consistent progress. As a beginner runner, building the habit early means you will never have to relearn it later.

Start with a brisk walk, do your five dynamic stretches, ease into your first few minutes of running and your body will reward you for it every single time.

If you want a running plan that takes all of this into account and tells you exactly what to do, how to warm up and how to progress week by week, Runna's personalised running plans are built for runners of every level, from complete beginners to those chasing their next PB.

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