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Well done! I imagine if you're reading this article it's because you've reached a stage in your fitness lifecycle where you’re looking for a new challenge and hopefully I can inspire you to try something a little different in your fitness regime. Are you bored with the gym, wondering how can you use your new found fitness in other ways? Maybe you've had some changes in your personal life and are looking for some new goals or maybe (just as happened to me when I started Triathlon) you have one of those milestone birthdays where you feel the need to prove "I've still got it!"
Some of the most popular sports where a tailored programme can offer some significant benefits and an enhanced performance include running, cycling, golf tennis, swimming and Triathlon/Duathlon.
All of these sports have specific needs dependant upon the muscles used, flexibility, cardio vascular requirement and, most importantly, the skill to perform them efficiently and effectively. The cornerstones of performance-improvement via sport specific exercise are time, skill and physical ability (muscular strength and flexibility). Let’s look at each of these individually:
Time
First of all, decide how much time you can dedicate to your chosen sport each week; ideally this will be at least 3 sessions a week. This doesn’t have to mean gruelling 3 hour sessions each time, rather adopting a programme which fits in with your other home life and work commitments to ensure you maintain a sensible balance in your life.
As such, factor in short, medium and longer sessions based around the specific fitness needs of your chosen sport. If this means you will need a certain amount of long endurance training (90 minutes or more), such as competing in a Marathon, then one of these sessions should be of an appropriate length of time. However, for those of you planning on participating in a multi-discipline sport such as Triathlon, you need to find time to practise each discipline at least twice a week.
Skill
Whilst some sports may appear more obvious than others when it comes to practicing technique (golf and tennis rather than running and cycling), I believe that almost all sports will benefit from specific skill-based training sessions. Try to devote one session per week to practising those skills and techniques required to make you more efficient at your chosen sport. If possible, get coaching advice on technique as it can make a huge difference to your performance.
Did you know that scientific research has shown that it takes two thousand correct repetitions of a particular skill before the body learns to automatically move that way? I can most definitely vouch for that, having at one time spent the best part of a year trying to correct my swim technique, only to find that when under pressure in a race I inadvertently reverted back to my old bad habits!
Muscular Strength/Flexibility
Does your body have the right muscle strength and flexibility to excel at your chosen sport? It is no good having the muscle mass of a weightlifter if your goal is to run a marathon or to be so inflexible in your upper body that you find a golf swing impossible. Whilst this may seem common sense, many of us are guilty of following a regime based around the training elements we most enjoy, but to improve your performance it may be necessary to spend time working on those disciplines you find more challenging.
OK, let’s look at a few of the examples I’ve mentioned and see how you can adapt your training programme to introduce the type of training I’m suggesting:
Running
Time 3 sessions a week split as follows:
Golf
Time 3 sessions a week split as follows:
Duathlon
Time 6 sessions a week split as follows:-
Running
Bike
All of the above require one more very important thing - correct and properly fitting equipment. If you’re in any doubt, most good sports shops will offer free fitting and advice. I hope the above has given you some ideas of how to be more specific about your training or perhaps inspired you to try a new sport.
Good luck and let me know how you get on via my Blog!
Anna
