Probably the single biggest sporting event that people seek my help with recently is obstacle course racing, or as I like to call it, mud racing. I seem to have developed a reputation as a ‘performance enhancer’, but not the type you’ve been hearing about in the news over the weekend.
So, with regards to mud racing, what are the ‘big guns’, the things that seem to have the biggest impact on peoples performance?
As a PT your process applied to clients should hopefully look something like this:
You could argue all day which is most important, but those are the processes and that is the order in which they need to be performed.
In points (4) and (5), create the plan and then walk the plan, there needs to be a combination of light, medium and heavy types of training. The science of athletic performance and the art of fatloss workouts show us that the best results come from some form of undulating training where intensity (how hard it is), volume (how much of it) and density (how quickly you’re doing it) are varied. There are peaks and troughs in a successful training system.
Unfortunately the media surrounding fitness seems to have created the idea that we have to smash our faces into the wall with every workout we do. This is a modern phenomena. Looking at the historical physical systems we see the idea of yin/yang, soft/hard and relaxation/tension is a foundational tenant. Oldtime strongmen ‘practiced’ and only ever performed extreme feats either rarely (and in private) to test their limit or if they were pursuing a new record. The gladiators of ancient Rome would wake up, train, eat, and then take a nap for several hours, maximising recovery.
The only sensible way to measure success!
Every personal trainer, strength coach, athletic trainer or fitness guru on the planet know that one of the first things you ask a new client is:
‘What is your goal?’
In the world of personal training the answers are invariably something like:
“I want to get fitter.”
“I want to lose some weight.”
“I want to tone up.”
I recently saw a comment on a social media page that got me thinking, the conversation went a bit like this:
X: I’m not able to do heavy squats at my current gym.
Y: I know, it sucks not being able to do your big lifts bro!
Z: Why don’t you guys just modify your workout, it’s not such a big deal!
I’m happy to report that X and Y got to do their big lifts, but it got me thinking about ‘Z’s’ response. When two big strong dudes (and I know both have heavier than 2 x bodyweight high bar back squats and +2.5 x bodyweight deadlifts) like these talk about ‘training’ you tend to listen, especially if your idea of a heavy weight is vinyl and comes in varying shades of pink.
Running for fat loss is a big waist of time (get it?). Let’s clarify that statement a bit. Sprinting is a fantastic tool to be used in the arsenal of the intermediate to advanced practitioner, who want to use it to either ditch some excess bodyfat or to build a V8 engine that can dole out some powerful athleticism. But what happens when someone who doesn’t run regularly decides that they want ‘to lose some weight’? The common practice is to start putting some miles in on the roads around their house or work. But is going from zero miles to pounding the pavement, to lose bodyfat, a good idea? The answer is no. Increased bodyfat percentage, shin splints, sore ankles, knee trauma and low back pain are just a few of the prizes you can win if you decide that you’re going to use running as your initial fat loss strategy. Read more
It’s that time of year. That dreadful period where you are forced to sit next to people you don’t like from work and relatives whose name you can’t remember. You are expected to make small talk. You are socially conditioned to eat and drink to excess. If you deviate from this you run the risk of becoming a social pariah. Not because you’re doing anything wrong, but because your will of steel is making your mother/brother/sister/co-worker feel bad about themselves.
“Why are you trying to make me feel bad for things that are wrong in your life?”
Anyway, it is a time for celebration and enjoyment. I really like this idea from Buddhism:
“Buddha describes the middle way as a path of moderation, between the extremes of sensual indulgence and self-mortification.” Read more