What does ‘activating your muscles’ really mean?

If you’ve watched any fitness videos or submerged yourself in the health and wellness space, you’ve probably heard the term ‘activating your muscles’. This is a commonly used term, but it can be confusing if you have no idea what it means.

Simply put, activating your muscles means consciously contracting them before or during an exercise to improve the effectiveness of the movement. The process of muscle activation starts with the mind-muscle connection, which is the ability to consciously contract specific muscles during an exercise, which is essential for achieving optimal results.

It's easy to go through the motions of an exercise without engaging the right muscles, but this can lead to poor form and less-than-ideal outcomes. Muscle activation techniques, such as pre-activation, can help to prime your muscles before an exercise so that you get the most out of your workout.