Warm Up Gel Review

Alan Armstrong · Black Belt

Warm up gel, perhaps not for everyone but for me they work wonders, enabling me to reach my optimal performance level quickly.

Maybe because I am susceptible to the cold but on the flip side, have a high tolerance to the heat, more than average.

Having to have a long warm up is fine but there are times, such as in winter months, that getting fully warmed up is becoming time consuming.

So what I am suggesting is, that maybe warm up gels are for you also, if your warm ups are taking you too long, due to living in a cold atmosphere or the cold makes you more prone to stiffness.

Also perhaps you have a tournament to fight in, then having warm up gel with you is a very effective way towards getting muscles limbered quickly without expending unnecessary energy.

Hope you give the warm up gel idea a try, if you are like me that loves the heat over cold, then practicing with a little added heat might make the difference, in giving you an extra edge over your opponent.

Do you use warm up gels and how is it working out for you?

JR 137 · Black Belt

Do you want me to tell you how these gels (known as counter irritants) actually work? I don’t want to ruin it for you if you don’t want me to let you know.

Alan Armstrong · Black Belt

@ JR 137 Sure let me know, it is a review after all!

JR 137 · Black Belt

All of these gels and creams, including stuff like Tiger Balm, Ben-Gay, Flexall 454; are what is pharmaceutically classified as counter irritants. They irritate the free nerve endings on the skin to give a sensation of hot or cold. Some are stronger than others, feel deeper, and so on.

They don’t go down much further than the skin’s surface. Maybe 1mm or so. Certainly not far enough down to actually get into muscle tissue.

The sensation you’re feeling is a mind trick. Kind of like if your hand hurts, I stomp on your toe, and suddenly your hand doesn’t hurt anymore but your toe does. Your brain isn’t perceiving the tightness in your muscles because it’s bombarded with the stimulus from the chemical you put on your skin. You’re not actually getting any heating of anything, let alone the muscles. You may get a negligible amount of vasodilation (arteries opening up) at the skin’s surface, but definitely not in the muscles themselves.

Ever notice that rubbing alcohol feels cold on your skin? Same phenomenon. The alcohol isn’t cold, it’s room temperature unless you pulled it out of the refrigerator. It feels cold because it irritates the nerves a bit and more so it naturally opens up the pores on your skin. And thing with the sprays doctors and sports medics use before an injection or when a soccer player is rolling around on the ground and they spray him with that stuff. That stuff is typically ethyl chloride, which is a counter irritant. Ethyl chloride feels ridiculously cold, yet it’s actually the same temperature as wherever the can is.

If this stuff helps you feel warmer and gets you moving around better, then by all means use it. But it’s not actually warming anything up. It’s all in your head. And nerves.

Alan Armstrong · Black Belt

Thank you JR 137

As it is my head, no new news there LOL as have many issues probably one more on the list to iron out.

Have been seeing an "Internalist" Dr, due to having issues with being too hot or cold, which has lead to the discovery of having thyroid problems, which he suspected to be the cause, which now am taking pills for.

He the Dr talked to me about having sensation of hot and cold that was not neccessarily having much to do about the ambient temperature, but in my head.

Living once in a place that had winter time temperatures of minus 40% was too much for me, now living in a warmer climate, I can take the heat in the plus 100% as long as drinking plenty of fluids.

Also having skin issues with allergies, my skin reacts towards warm up gels as heat, which helps fool me and my skin very well LOL

sensei8 · KF Sensei

I've used a various aides like Tiger Balm, and the like, for many years; more years than I care to remember. But what I've truly depended on is a solid warm-up routine starting with stretching from head to toe. Nothing to introduce the body to cardio then stretching.

I more or less use ice/rest/RICE afterwards, if necessary.

_________________
**Proof is on the floor!!!

Nidan Melbourne · KF Sempai

Personally I don't use Gels to help warm me up prior to exercise as I haven't really seen much research to show that there is any evidence for them working.

As JR said that they really don't go that deep, which can be an issue as most muscles are quite thick. If you are actively moving the whole muscle can warm up and lengthen.

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