What is the suggested order of an exercise session?

Placing stretching before the warm-up means muscles are still cold and less elastic, which increases the risk of strains during static or dynamic flexibility work.

Beginning with a warm-up gradually elevates heart rate and prepares the musculoskeletal system for exertion, followed by the endurance phase where the primary conditioning stimulus is applied, then a cool-down to safely lower heart rate and blood pressure, and finally stretching when muscles are most pliable. This sequence follows ACSM exercise prescription guidelines and systematically reduces injury risk at each physiological transition.

This order omits the warm-up entirely before the endurance phase and misplaces stretching between the conditioning and cool-down phases, disrupting the safe physiological progression of the session.

Inserting stretching before the cool-down interrupts the gradual cardiovascular recovery process; the cool-down should immediately follow the endurance phase to safely reduce heart rate before static stretching begins.