High Performance Warm-Ups for Competitive Swimmers
Why Most Swimmers Warm Up Wrong — And How to Fix It
Walk onto any pool deck before a race, and you’ll see it everywhere. Random arm swings. A few stretches. Maybe some light jogging. It looks like a warm-up, but in reality, it’s just movement without intent.
At the recent Singapore National Age Group (SNAG) Swimming Championships, one pattern stood out clearly: most swimmers were warming up… but very few were actually preparing to perform. And that’s the difference that matters.
A Good Warm-Up Should Tell a Story
A proper warm-up isn’t just about getting warm. It should feel like you’re building towards something—step by step—until your body and mind are fully ready to perform. Instead of random movements, there should be progression Instead of guessing, there should be intent. Because the best athletes don’t just “loosen up” they prepare with purpose.
The Swimmer’s 7-Step Race Warm-Up Sequence
A great warm-up isn’t random. It should feel like you’re building towards race readiness layer by layer—until everything clicks.
Here’s how that story should unfold:
1. Raise Body Temperature — Wake the System
Before you even think about technique or power, you need to switch the body on.
Light movement. Quick feet. A gradual rise in intensity.
You should feel your breathing pick up, your body loosening, and your system coming alive.
This is where preparation begins—not rushed, not forced, but intentional.
2. Build Your Streamline — Find Your Shape
Swimming is a sport of positions before it is a sport of power. As you move through your spine and trunk, you’re not just mobilizing. you’re finding your streamline. That long, controlled shape that carries you through the water with minimal resistance. If you don’t own this position here, you won’t find it in the pool.
3. Open the Stroke Drivers — Shoulders & Hips
Now we shift into the areas that truly drive performance.
The shoulders: where every stroke begins and ends. The hips: where rhythm, kick, and body rotation are controlled. You should start to feel space. Freedom. Not just more range, but better access to the movements you rely on every lap.
4. Expand Stroke Range — Reach with Intent
This is where your movements start to look like swimming. Arms reaching with purpose. Legs moving with control. Every joint going through the ranges you’ll actually use when the race begins. It’s no longer just a warm-up. it’s rehearsal.
5. Activate the Catch — Switch On Control
The difference between moving your arms and pulling water effectively comes down to control. Here, you switch on the smaller muscles that stabilise your shoulder and guide your catch. You should feel sharper. More connected. More precise. This is where technique starts to “click”.
6. Prime Starts & Turns — Build Speed
Now we turn up the intensity.
Explosive movements—jumps, slams, quick bursts—prepare your body for the most powerful moments of your race. The dive. The push-off. The turn. Your body should feel fast, reactive, and ready to produce force.
7. Sharpen Race Focus — Lock In
Finally, everything comes together.
Your body is ready—but your mind needs to be too. Reaction drills, quick focus work, even just intentional breathing—this is where you lock in. Where distractions fade, and execution takes over. From Warm-Up to Readiness
By the end of this sequence, you shouldn’t just feel “warm.”
You should feel:
Aligned
Activated
Explosive
Focused
Ready.
Because performance doesn’t start when you dive in—it starts in how you prepare.
Don’t Just Warm Up. Build Readiness.
If your warm-up feels random, your performance often will too.
If you’re serious about taking your swimming to the next level, reach out to us and the team at ATHLETIC INC to build a warm-up that actually translates to performance.
MEET THE AUTHOR
DEXTER KIN
Founder & Clinical Director
Lead Physiotherapist & Performance Coach
Team Singapore National Swimming Physiotherapist
Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games
World Aquatics Championships Doha 2024
SPECIALISATIONS
Strength & Conditioning
Sports massage, Manual Therapy and Dry Needling
Rehabilitation to Performance
Swim-Specific Screening & Performance Optimisation