Rugby Warm Ups

A good warm-up gets players ready for training and match play and helps reduce the risk of the injuries most common in rugby, such as to the head, shoulder, knee, hamstring and ankle. The IRFU ENGAGE programme does this in three short phases: Readiness (3–5 minutes of dynamic movement to get warm and take joints through their range), Robustness (5–8 minutes of muscle activation to build control, stability and strength) and Performance (2–3 minutes of primers for the demands of the session, such as contact and sprinting). Managing training load, meaning how often, how hard and how long players train, is also an important part of keeping players robust and ready to perform.