Stronglifts Warmup Calculator

You can access the Stronglifts Warmup Calculator like this...

Open Stronglifts
Tap Start Workout
Tap Warmup

On Apple Watch you can access the Warmup Calculator like this...

Open Stronglifts on your Watch
Tap your next workout to start it
When the workset shows, swipe up to access the warmup calculator

The Stronglifts Warmup Calculator is a Pro feature.

How The Stronglifts Warmup Calculator Works

The warmup calculator shows you how to warm up before doing any exercise with heavy weights.

You start with a light weight. On the Squat that is the empty bar. You then gradually do heavier sets until you reach your work weight. Example: say you have to Squat 225lb for 5x5. The warmup calculator will show you 5x45, 5x45, 5x95, 5x135, 5x185lb and then 5x5 225lb.

The goal of this warmup is to...

Increase your body temperature. Doing several lighter sets increases the temperature of your muscles, lubricates your joints, and increases flexibility. You're less likely to get hurt.
Practice the movement. You can practice doing the exercise with good form with lighter weights. You can improve several aspects of your form before it gets heavy.
Prepare yourself for the heavy weights. The work sets will be easier because you practiced good form before putting the heavy weights on the bar. You don't get surprised.

The biggest mistake to avoid is skipping the warmup sets and starting directly with the heavy sets. Example: instead of starting Squats with the empty bar and working your way up, you immediately do 5x5 225lb. That weight will usually feel heavier and harder than if you warmed up first. You're also more likely to get hurt because your muscles and joints are still cold, and your body stiff.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is there no stretching as part of the warm up?

Stretching alone is not a good warmup before lifting heavy weights.

The typical static stretches people do like toe touches don't warm up your body. You're simply holding the position without any movement. It's like trying to cook a steak by pulling on it. These stretches also don't let you practice proper form for the exercise you're about to do with heavy weights.

If you want to stretch pre-workout, you still need to warm up by doing several lighter sets before lifting heavy. If you're short on time and have to pick one, skip the stretches pre-workout and warmup by doing lighter sets. You can do the stretches post-workout or at home on rest days.

Why is there no cardio as part of the warm up?

Cardio alone is not a good warmup before lifting heavy weights. It's not specific.

Light cardio pre-workout, like cycling for a few minutes, is fine to increase your body temperature, particularly during cold weather. But the goal of the warmup is also to practice proper form on the exercise you're about to do with heavy weights. Cardio doesn't do that because the movement is different. Cycling can warm up your legs for Squats, but the cycling movement is not the same as the Squat movement. So you still need to do a specific Squat warmup with lighter weights.

Intense cardio pre-workout will make your worksets harder. Some people will run hard on the treadmill for 15min or more before lifting weights. This will pre-exhaust your legs for Squats. Your worksets will be harder than if you didn't do cardio first. It will be more difficult to maintain proper form and you could miss reps. Intense cardio should be done post-workout or on rest days, not pre-workout.

If you decide to warm up with cardio, you still need to warm up with the bar after that. If you're limited on time and have to pick one, skip the cardio pre-workout and warmup by doing several lighter sets. You can do cardio post-workout or on rest days.

How long should I rest between warm up sets?

There's no need to rest. Do your warm up set, rack the bar, get your plates for the next set, load the bar, then do your next warm up set. The warmup sets are lighter and easier, and so they can be done without resting in between. You don't need to rush things. But you also don't need to sit on the bench between sets to rest. Just add weight on the bar and do your next warm up set.

Not resting between warmup sets has three benefits:

It keeps your heart rate up which helps to increase your cardiovascular fitness.
It increases your body temperature faster which is one of the goals of the warmup.
It keeps your workout short by reducing the amount of time spent resting between sets.

The only exception to this rule is the last warmup set. This set will be closer in weight to your heaviest workset. It will be harder and more challenging. So you can rest before doing that warm up set. This ensures that you are properly recovered before doing your heaviest sets.

How do you edit the warmup sets or weights?

It's not possible to edit the warmup sets or weights. We occasionally get requests for this but don't see the point. Here's why:

The warmup calculator is meant for people who don't know how to warm up. If you know how to warm up or have your preferred warm up sequence, just do your thing and ignore our warmup.
The warmup is not used for calculating future weights. It doesn't show in your history or graphs. It's not counted for total volume as that would inflate the numbers, make them look larger in terms of effective training, and paint a misleading picture. So even if you could edit the warmup sets or weights, it wouldn't add to your workout data.
The warmup you'd entered can probably not be re-used. The right warmup sequence depends on the weight you're lifting. For example, a warmup for a 225lb squat isn't the same as for a 300lb squat. The latter typically requires more warm up sets. So even if you could edit the warmup, you'd have to edit it again next time. It can't be reused unless you lift the exact same weight all the time (which goes against the principle of progressive overload).
Some people have told us that they want to edit the warmup so they can log what they do and then get a rest timer notification between warmup sets. But you shouldn't be resting between warmup sets as explained above - they are lighter, easier and thus can be done without resting in between. Just add weight on the bar and do your next warm up sets. This saves time.

We think making it possible to edit the warmups would introduce unnecessary distractions during workouts that takes focus away from lifting. We want people to focus on lifting because that is what leads to results. Adding excessive customization options could result in unnecessary fiddling with the app that could break your flow, make your workouts take longer, and simply detract from your overall progress. We want to avoid that.

Doesn't this warmup take too much time?

The main way to save time is not to rest between warm up sets. Add weight on the bar and do your next set. Only rest before your last warm up sets, and between work sets. The point of resting between sets is to give your energy store time to fully recover. But you don't need fully recovered energy stores to lift warm up sets because they are lighter and easier.

It's tempting to want to save time by skipping some or all warmup sets. However this is also one of the easiest ways to get hurt. Example: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27328853/ They asked lifters their top reasons for getting hurt. Some of the most commonly cited ones were insufficient preparation and improper warmup. This can easily be avoided by taking the time to warm up properly.

You can save time by keeping your rest times short between your warm up sets. Add weight then do your next set. Only rest for the last warmup set. If your workout still takes too much time, then you can reduce the amount of work sets or exercises (2x5 instead of 5x5, skipping the assistance work, etc).

Why do some warmups not start with the empty bar?

Some exercises like Deadlifts and Barbell Rows can't be done with an empty bar.

Proper form on these exercises is pulling the weight off the floor. The weight should rest on the floor at the start of each rep and not hang in the air. While the Squat warmup will suggest starting with the empty bar, the weight will be heavier on exercises like Deadlifts and Barbell Rows.

Why do I get shorter warmups on some exercises than others?

Stronglifts will give you a shorter warmup if you've already done an exercise that works the same muscles. Say you do Squat followed by Front Squat. Both movements are similar and work the same muscles. There is therefore less of a need to do a complete warmup on the Front Squat. You will get a longer warm up sequence on Squats but a shorter one on Front Squat. This still helps you practice form on the Front Squat before going heavy, but before wasting a lot of time warming up again.

On iPhone you can toggle between a shorter and longer warm up any time like this:

Open Stronglifts
Tap "Start Workout"
Tap the Warm Up tab at the top
Tap the weight/side of one of the warmup sets
Scroll down and enable "Short warm up"

Why does my wife get less warm up sets than I do as a guy?

The number of warmup sets is not determined by your gender but by the weight you lift. If your wife would be lifting the same weight as you, she would get the same number of warmup sets. If you lift the same weight as her, you would get fewer warm up sets. It's weight, not gender specific.

The Stronglifts Warmup Calculator will give a 315lb Squatter more warmup sets than a 95lb Squatter. This is not a bug but a feature. Imagine if we didn't do that. Imagine if we gave the same number of warmup sets in both cases. Let's say that you get three warm up sets all the time regardless of the weight you lift. Here are the issues this would create...

The 315lb Squatter would take large jumps in weight of 90lb. They would go from the 45lb empty bar to 135lb then 225lb and then immediately 315lb. This warm up wouldn't properly prepare them for their top set because the weight jumps are too big. The Stronglifts Warmup Calculator prevents this issue by not giving jumps in weight larger than 45lb on the warmup sets.
In contrast, the 95lb Squatter would go up in small weight jumps of about 15lb. They would go 45lb > 60lb > 80lb > 95lb. This person is most likely starting out and thus not lifting weights close to their max. Their risk of injury is already low, and doing a ton of warm up sets isn't going to make things a lot safer. It's the opposite: all those sets can create excessive fatigue. This can make it more difficult to control the weight on the worksets, result in failed reps, and hinder your progress.