physical conditioning for athletes

The physical demands in every sport vary depending on the control of the play, the athlete’s position, environmental conditions and other unforeseen variables. Taking a methodical and scientific approach, therefore, is vital to an athlete’s success.

Physical conditioning can be defined as a process involving the improvement of motor skills and functional (energetic) abilities, morphological characteristics, an athlete’s health status and the continuous improvement of the skills responsible for all of these aspects. This moveorganic™ training program is based on the concept of periodization, which manipulates frequency, duration, intensity, volume and specificity.

 

The definitions of key terms are as follows:

• Frequency: The number of training sessions per week.
• Duration: The length of each individual training session.
• Intensity: This relates to amount of weight lifted as compared to a single repetition max (i.e. 90%, 80%, etc.) and the rest interval between repetitions (i.e. 30 seconds of rest between sprints).
• Volume: The number of repetitions performed during a specific time period.
• Specificity: There are two components to specificity: the biomechanical performing exercises involve movements similar to those used in sport (speed movement, joint angle, forces incurred); bio-energetic harnesses the training of the same energy systems (aerobic/anaerobic) specific to an athlete’s objective.

 

Training can be divided into three sections:

Weight training

The benefits of weight training have been documented repeatedly. Some of these benefits include an increased joint stability/ injury prevention, coordination, power and improved self-confidence.

Plyometrics

These exercises are characterized by powerful muscular contractions in response to rapid, dynamic loading and/or stretching of the involved muscles. Examples of plyometric movements are jumping for a rebound in basketball or a tumbling pass in gymnastics. Sprinting at maximal speeds can also be defined as a plyometric exercise.

Conditioning

In general, the conditioning segment of the training is threefold:

• Sprint training, specifically targets the conditions of the aerobic pathway (sprint/speed endurance)
• Specific training for sport (simulates a specific sport)
• Long and slow distance training (this conditioning focuses on building aerobic endurance)

There are many skills to be learned by an athlete who wants to achieve peak performance. Sometimes even the simplest skills, such as learning to breathe properly, can be a key factor in the reduction of negative stress and the boosting of Eustress (the good stress), which helps during competitive situations. In this program, we take special care to facilitate the proper mental preparation, as we are always aware of its importance. These techniques are applied using natural principles.

Mental conditioning builds the essential mind skills that are needed to boost performance and create a winner’s mentality for enduring success. Successful players must learn how to focus and define their individual goals in order to successfully achieve them. Power visualization allows an athlete to mentally rehearse winning performances and to make course corrections when peak performance is not achieved. These methods control physical and emotional energy in order to maintain stamina throughout the athletic performance.