5 Warm-Up Mistakes That Are Slowing Down Your Reactions

You ever feel like you’re half asleep for the first ten minutes of a match? Or maybe you’ve been flying in training, but on game day your reactions just aren’t there. Most of the time, it’s not nerves or bad luck, it might be your warm up.

Even top keepers fall into these common traps. Today, we’ll break down the 5 biggest warm-up mistakes and I’ll show you exactly how to fix them, with real drills and routines you can start using this week.

1. Static Stretching Before Explosive Drills

Mistake: Spending five, ten, sometimes even fifteen minutes holding stretches on the sideline.

What Happens: Your muscles relax too much, and your reaction speed drops.

Why: Static stretching tells your muscles to chill out. exactly the opposite of what you want before you face a rocket shot.

What to Do Instead: Dynamic Stretch Routine

High Knees (30s)

Butt Kicks (30s)

Side Shuffles (2 x 10m)

Open/Close the Gate (hip circles, 10 each side)

Arm Swings & Rotations (30s)

Do this for 5 minutes, break a sweat, and THEN move on to ball work.

2. Skipping Hand-Eye Coordination Drills

Mistake: Going straight to shot-stopping without firing up your brain.

What Happens: Your hands feel slow, and you drop easy balls early on.

Why: Hand-eye drills wake up your neural pathways and reaction speed.

Simple Hand-Eye Warm-Up Drills

Tennis Ball Wall Bounces in the locker room: Stand 2m from a wall, throw and catch with one hand, alternate hands, 30 seconds each.

Quick reaction drills :Grab a ball, the coach grabs the other. When he tosses the ball up, you toss it down, and vice-versa.

3. Going Full Power Too Soon

Mistake: First touch of the ball, your coach smashes a volley at you.

What Happens: You’re stiff, slow to react, maybe even tweak a muscle.

Why: Muscles need progressive loading to reach top speed safely.

Progression Plan

Light Footwork & Handling , Low-Intensity Shots ,Mid-Range Reactions, Game Speed

4. Forgetting Decision-Making Scenarios

Mistake: Only working on technique, not game-like chaos.

What Happens: You react well in drills, but freeze up when you need to make a quick choice in a match.

Why: Games are unpredictable; your brain needs to switch on, too.

Drills to Activate Decision-Making

Color Cone Reaction: Set three cones, red, blue, yellow. Coach calls a color as you move; you must touch it, then react to a shot.

Decision making activities: Goalkeeper makes a decision with pressure.

5. Overlooking Breathing and Focus

Mistake: Warm-up ends, and you’re still joking or distracted.

What Happens: You’re physically ready, but your mind is wandering.

Why: Last 1-2 minutes are for locking in, set your mindset.

Mental Lock-In Routine

Box Breathing: Inhale 4 seconds, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4—repeat 3 times.

Visualization: Close your eyes, picture yourself making your first save of the game, controlling the box, communicating strong.

Power Phrase: Pick a word or phrase to repeat quietly before kickoff.

Conclusion

A world-class warm-up isn’t about fancy gear or complicated routines. It’s about intentional prep: dynamic movement, sharp hands, game-like decisions, and the right mindset. Start making these changes this week and watch your reaction speed, and confidence, go through the roof.