Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Break From the Norm

    A lot of times we can get so locked in on a style of training that we begin to lose sight of the big picture. While the plan your on might have given you results before, and maybe it still does, it is inevitable that the progress WILL come to a halt if you don't adapt and FORCE your body to change.  There is no such thing as a perfect program, which by definition, is a plan that would give you results forever.  No program, no matter what style you advocate will continue to bring that progress.  So what are you to do? You break from the norm!
    Challenge your body.   If your a strength and power guy who focuses on heavy lifting and sprinting(and not a competitive athlete), throw some distance running into the mix.  Pick a 2-4 week block and replace your sprint work with distance running, progressing in frequency slowly as to avoid injuries such as plantar fasciitis, achilles tendinopathy, and if you are higher in weight, knee injuries. If your an endurance person, do the opposite.  Begin a block of sprint work and slowly increase in frequency as the block goes on.  Begin with 4-6x30-50 yard sprints with complete recovery and go from there.  Not only will this be a kick in the butt, but it will also have a positive influence on your distance running once you return to it.  The sprint work will increase muscular strength, inter and intra muscular coordination, fast twitch metabolic properties, as well as power production resulting in improved distance running performance.
   The moral of the story is to always look for ways to challenge your body.  Never let it get comfortable in a certain training program.  If our goal is to live long, healthy, and active lives(Which it should be), continuing to adapt is the key to get there.

Never Accept Mediocrity,

Kyle Bohannon, CSCS
Owner/Head Trainer
kyle@trainstrive.com
www.trainstrive.com

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