This subject can actually get quite complex, because we are delving into the inner workings of the developing brain, with billions of neurons. However, as much as we have to learn, we do know some things. I will try to break down this subject of how pretend can be beneficial for development.
Everyone knows that kids pretend. It’s often considered a frivolous, useless activity. I find this a curious conclusion. Why would kids all over the world, no matter the culture, engage in pretend play if it was so useless? Why are our brains wired to do this if it is so devoid of value?
Have you ever considered the reasons why children engage in pretend play, or “pretense”? Well, cognitive researchers have, and the findings are interesting:
1) Children pretend in order to learn the ability to represent a “strategy map” (if you will excuse my liberal use of that term). Instead of being truly “in” the situation, they can learn to think many steps ahead. It is basically like practice for the problem solving machinery in the brain.
2) Pretense can develop these problem-solving skills in the absence of performance based stress. Think about having consequences to your own safety and the expectations of adults always “weighing” on your decisions. You are most likely going to always pick the “safest”, most familiar solution. You are likely to not be very creative in this situation. But in pretend play, you can be anyone and you can be anywhere!
3) Pretense can even help kids develop empathy, by being able to picture themselves in someone else’s shoes.
4) Pretending can deepen kinetic understanding (a term I will coin here). Pretending, literally, to move with someone else’s patterns and rhythms can promote a much deeper feel for a movement, or what we might call “second nature”.
Now, obviously, children need to learn how to function in the real world. Hopefully, the reasons above give us some pause in wanting to hurry this process. We may want to let the “weapons” of thought processing and creativity develop a little bit more before we send them off to “war”. See, I was just pretending there to understand the process of development in a different way. I pretended that the kids were “life” soldiers in a war to improve the way we think!
How the heck does this relate to athletic pursuits? C’mon, you already know the answer to this. How many of you pretended you were Michael Jordan on the court growing up? How many of you are pretty sure that Michael Jordan at least some of the time, pretended to be Dr. J growing up?
You see, pretending gives us the ability to explore things without the pressure of being “us”.
Try it in a practice. Have the kids on your team pick a name of a sports star out of a hat. They are then charged with moving like that player, and doing what they think that player would do in a game.
Take it one step further, and have them make up their own characters in the next practice. Then talk about what they learned. How successful were their character plays?
Decelerate To Go Faster?
Why is it that some kids who are really fairly slow in sprinting but can move so quick on the court? The reason is they have the ability to control their bodies when changing direction better than the rest.
When I teach deceleration I break down the components of it so the athlete is safe and can understand what I am explaining. I show them foot and ankles positions and how the knees, hips and back should be positioned so they can make corrections if need. The single most important part of deceleration is the re-acceleration. If two athletes are changing direction at the same location and get to the location at the exact same time, the athlete that can go from an eccentric load to and concentric load quicker will always be quicker on the court.
Coaches need to be aware of the goal of deceleration. It certainly should be taught to protect the athlete against injury. The most important aspect regarding quickness is to teach the deceleration move so they can get to where they really want to be. In other words, when I decelerate at the first 5 yard mark in a 5-10-5 test my goal isn’t to stop at the first 5 yard mark. It is to get to the next 10 yard mark as fast as possible.
In order to accomplish this mind set we need to educate our athletes on how to decelerate with a purpose and change direction better. Here are some random pointers:
1. When an athlete knows where he or she is going to decelerate to change direction, like a 5-10-5 test, they should begin the deceleration process early before they get to the line. This is accomplished by beginning to lean as they turn and be ready to push off immediately.
2. If the athletes doesn’t know when or when they are going to change direction, like most random based reactionary sports, they have to understand a couple concepts:
a. Play in the tunnel- this means to stay low, control the up and down wasted motion of the hips, control the swaying of the shoulders, and learn to quickly reposition the feet from under the hips to create a great deceleration and re-acceleration angle.
3. Make the athlete practice changing direction on each leg. You might find an asymmetry when they use their left leg compared to their right leg. If this is the case make sure you address the issue and clean up the left foot deceleration move.
4. Be certain that they have adequate ankle dorsi-flexion and can load the ankle properly. This action is the engine that drives the big muscles of the body.
The next time you are teaching shuttle drills or random cutting or change of direction drills make sure your athletes have efficient mechanics, but change the mental approach from being good at decelerate to being great at getting out of the deceleration move. Remember, you don’t receive a blue ribbon for stopping better than everyone else if that is only half the race. Finish the race by getting out of the deceleration move.
When I teach deceleration I break down the components of it so the athlete is safe and can understand what I am explaining. I show them foot and ankles positions and how the knees, hips and back should be positioned so they can make corrections if need. The single most important part of deceleration is the re-acceleration. If two athletes are changing direction at the same location and get to the location at the exact same time, the athlete that can go from an eccentric load to and concentric load quicker will always be quicker on the court.
Coaches need to be aware of the goal of deceleration. It certainly should be taught to protect the athlete against injury. The most important aspect regarding quickness is to teach the deceleration move so they can get to where they really want to be. In other words, when I decelerate at the first 5 yard mark in a 5-10-5 test my goal isn’t to stop at the first 5 yard mark. It is to get to the next 10 yard mark as fast as possible.
In order to accomplish this mind set we need to educate our athletes on how to decelerate with a purpose and change direction better. Here are some random pointers:
1. When an athlete knows where he or she is going to decelerate to change direction, like a 5-10-5 test, they should begin the deceleration process early before they get to the line. This is accomplished by beginning to lean as they turn and be ready to push off immediately.
2. If the athletes doesn’t know when or when they are going to change direction, like most random based reactionary sports, they have to understand a couple concepts:
a. Play in the tunnel- this means to stay low, control the up and down wasted motion of the hips, control the swaying of the shoulders, and learn to quickly reposition the feet from under the hips to create a great deceleration and re-acceleration angle.
3. Make the athlete practice changing direction on each leg. You might find an asymmetry when they use their left leg compared to their right leg. If this is the case make sure you address the issue and clean up the left foot deceleration move.
4. Be certain that they have adequate ankle dorsi-flexion and can load the ankle properly. This action is the engine that drives the big muscles of the body.
The next time you are teaching shuttle drills or random cutting or change of direction drills make sure your athletes have efficient mechanics, but change the mental approach from being good at decelerate to being great at getting out of the deceleration move. Remember, you don’t receive a blue ribbon for stopping better than everyone else if that is only half the race. Finish the race by getting out of the deceleration move.
10 Success Strategies
If you’re serious about creating lasting and significant change in your world – as opposed to merely thinking and talking about it for another year – there are a few things you might want to do in order to help make those intentions a reality…
1. Know what success is. If you don’t know what success is (for you), how can you possibly create it? Success is different things for different people and one person’s success (a pregnancy for example) might be another person’s catastrophe. That’s because success (or failure) is not so much about the situation, circumstance, event or outcome as it is about what that “thing” means to the person in the middle of it. In order to create success, you must first define it – and far too many people haven’t. Be very clear about what you want and don’t want for your life. Clarity produces excitement. Excitement produces momentum. Momentum produces behavioural change. Behavioural change produces different results and eventually, the internal vision becomes an external reality. Giddy-up.
2. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. Some people will live a life of second-best, of compromise and of under-achievement simply because they are (1) controlled by fear (2) always looking for the magic pill or shortcut and (3) not prepared to do the tough stuff. People who always take the easy option are destined for mediocrity. At best. Constantly avoiding the discomfort means constantly avoiding the lessons and the personal growth. Pain is a great teacher. Not always what we want, but sometimes what we need.
3. Seek to be righteous, not right. The need to be “right” speaks of arrogance, insecurity, ego and stupidity. It’s also synonymous with failure. The person who constantly needs to be right will miss out on much of what life has to teach him and alienate himself from others. Arrogance repels, humility attracts.
4. Seek respect, not popularity. It’s been said that our nature is “who we are” and our reputation is who people think we are. When the two are synonymous, we’re usually on the right path.
5. Embrace mess. To embrace mess is to embrace life because life is messy, unpredictable, unfair, uncertain, lumpy and bumpy. So get used to a little chaos. Embrace it even. While others succumb to the messiness and unpredictability of the human experience, make a conscious choice to be the calm in the chaos.
6. Don’t become your parents. Or your boss. Or anyone but you. The enormity of conformity is a problem for the wanna-be success story. Sure, your parents are great and by all means respect them, love them and learn from them, but please don’t become them; that’s just plain ugly and a little bit tragic. Listen to, and learn from other people, but think, act and decide for yourself. And no, you don’t need anyone’s approval or permission; you’re big now. It’s okay.
7. Use more of what you already have. Imagine what you could achieve if you took all the knowledge, intelligence, opportunities, time, skill and talent that you currently have and absolutely milked it. What if you already have more than enough talent to become wildly successful? Well, you do. There go the excuses. And that voice that’s telling (some of) you right now that you don’t have what it takes to become successful, that’s called fear. Not logic, fear. Not reality, fear. Unless of course, you allow that to become your reality. Be mindful that the voice in your head (the very loud, annoying and persistent one) is rarely a reflection of your potential and mostly a manifestation of your insecurity. And no, you’re not alone in your self-doubt; it’s a universal condition. Many people fail, not because they don’t have what it takes, but because they don’t use what they already have. Successful people typically don’t have more innate potential, luck, time or opportunity than the next person, but they consistently find a way to use much more of what they have at their disposal. While the majority are rationalising their lack of decision making and action taking, these guys are finding a way to get the job done. The question is not “how much ability do you have, but how much will you use?”.
8. Be an innovator, not an imitator. Not too many sheep succeed. Baaah. Sometimes it’s a good idea to build your own team rather than join someone else’s. Don’t let your fear stand in the way of your potential to create, innovate or lead.
9. Do what most won’t. If you want to achieve what most people won’t (happiness, joy, calm, wealth, optimal health, balance) then don’t do what they do. If you want to be like the majority, then do what they do. Producing different results comes from doing different things. Simple really. And effective. Most people won’t persevere, won’t finish what they start, won’t find the good, won’t do what it takes, won’t question their long-held beliefs, won’t be solution-focused, won’t do what scares them and won’t “be the change” they want to see in their world. Choose to be different.
10. Be like water. Powerful. Gentle. Adaptable. Ever-changing. Being static in a dynamic world – like the one you and I inhabit – is a recipe for disaster. If you can’t adapt, you can’t succeed. Our practical, three dimensional reality, and everything in it, is in a constant state of transition, while some of us are in a constant state of “same”. Statues don’t succeed, they just get crapped on.
Watch out for the pigeons.
1. Know what success is. If you don’t know what success is (for you), how can you possibly create it? Success is different things for different people and one person’s success (a pregnancy for example) might be another person’s catastrophe. That’s because success (or failure) is not so much about the situation, circumstance, event or outcome as it is about what that “thing” means to the person in the middle of it. In order to create success, you must first define it – and far too many people haven’t. Be very clear about what you want and don’t want for your life. Clarity produces excitement. Excitement produces momentum. Momentum produces behavioural change. Behavioural change produces different results and eventually, the internal vision becomes an external reality. Giddy-up.
2. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. Some people will live a life of second-best, of compromise and of under-achievement simply because they are (1) controlled by fear (2) always looking for the magic pill or shortcut and (3) not prepared to do the tough stuff. People who always take the easy option are destined for mediocrity. At best. Constantly avoiding the discomfort means constantly avoiding the lessons and the personal growth. Pain is a great teacher. Not always what we want, but sometimes what we need.
3. Seek to be righteous, not right. The need to be “right” speaks of arrogance, insecurity, ego and stupidity. It’s also synonymous with failure. The person who constantly needs to be right will miss out on much of what life has to teach him and alienate himself from others. Arrogance repels, humility attracts.
4. Seek respect, not popularity. It’s been said that our nature is “who we are” and our reputation is who people think we are. When the two are synonymous, we’re usually on the right path.
5. Embrace mess. To embrace mess is to embrace life because life is messy, unpredictable, unfair, uncertain, lumpy and bumpy. So get used to a little chaos. Embrace it even. While others succumb to the messiness and unpredictability of the human experience, make a conscious choice to be the calm in the chaos.
6. Don’t become your parents. Or your boss. Or anyone but you. The enormity of conformity is a problem for the wanna-be success story. Sure, your parents are great and by all means respect them, love them and learn from them, but please don’t become them; that’s just plain ugly and a little bit tragic. Listen to, and learn from other people, but think, act and decide for yourself. And no, you don’t need anyone’s approval or permission; you’re big now. It’s okay.
7. Use more of what you already have. Imagine what you could achieve if you took all the knowledge, intelligence, opportunities, time, skill and talent that you currently have and absolutely milked it. What if you already have more than enough talent to become wildly successful? Well, you do. There go the excuses. And that voice that’s telling (some of) you right now that you don’t have what it takes to become successful, that’s called fear. Not logic, fear. Not reality, fear. Unless of course, you allow that to become your reality. Be mindful that the voice in your head (the very loud, annoying and persistent one) is rarely a reflection of your potential and mostly a manifestation of your insecurity. And no, you’re not alone in your self-doubt; it’s a universal condition. Many people fail, not because they don’t have what it takes, but because they don’t use what they already have. Successful people typically don’t have more innate potential, luck, time or opportunity than the next person, but they consistently find a way to use much more of what they have at their disposal. While the majority are rationalising their lack of decision making and action taking, these guys are finding a way to get the job done. The question is not “how much ability do you have, but how much will you use?”.
8. Be an innovator, not an imitator. Not too many sheep succeed. Baaah. Sometimes it’s a good idea to build your own team rather than join someone else’s. Don’t let your fear stand in the way of your potential to create, innovate or lead.
9. Do what most won’t. If you want to achieve what most people won’t (happiness, joy, calm, wealth, optimal health, balance) then don’t do what they do. If you want to be like the majority, then do what they do. Producing different results comes from doing different things. Simple really. And effective. Most people won’t persevere, won’t finish what they start, won’t find the good, won’t do what it takes, won’t question their long-held beliefs, won’t be solution-focused, won’t do what scares them and won’t “be the change” they want to see in their world. Choose to be different.
10. Be like water. Powerful. Gentle. Adaptable. Ever-changing. Being static in a dynamic world – like the one you and I inhabit – is a recipe for disaster. If you can’t adapt, you can’t succeed. Our practical, three dimensional reality, and everything in it, is in a constant state of transition, while some of us are in a constant state of “same”. Statues don’t succeed, they just get crapped on.
Watch out for the pigeons.
Youth Training Facts
>> From a study published in the Swimming Science Bulletin. Authored by Brent S. Rushall & John Marsden.
"The question of whether (young athletes) should specialize in particular sports at an early age have been asked for many years. The evidence now seems to support programming activities that develop overall capacities rather than specialized functions while the young athlete is growing."
The BEST and MOST EFFICIENT means of developing a future champion is through slow progression and multilateral means.
"If resistance training is to be done with children and young adolescents, exercises should involve sub-maximal loads, such as one’s own bodyweight, light dumbbells, weighted bags and/or medicine balls. Sophisticated and restrictive weight exercises, particularly on machines, are not ideal for children".
Trainers or coaches who advocate machine-based training for young athletes are simply not thinking straight.
"All sports require high degree of skill for superior performance. The major emphasis of a (youth athletic) training program should be skill excellence. For skills to be developed, learning should occur in non-fatigued states… It is advisable to schedule auxiliary training sessions either after a (sport) session or at some time that allows complete recovery from its execution so that no residual fatigue is carried over."
Learning how to create appropriate training sessions is crucial to working with young athletes. If you are forced to have the technical practice AND the training session within the same day (as is typical), make sure that the training session comes AFTER practice. This keeps the body and CNS rested and for skill acquisition and demonstration during practice.
>>Neurological stats on learning and neuropsychological explanation as to why multilateral development is crucial.
Look at it from the easiest possible angle… Do you know anyone from another country? What happens to family’s who move to a foreign land, but can’t speak the language? Let’s use an Italian family moving to Canada. Eventually, everyone learns to speak English, but, the young kids will learn to speak it accent-free while the parents, no matter what they try, will ALWAYS have a slight or even pronounced accent. Why?
The answer can be summed up in one word… Plasticity. Plasticity in this context is defined as the ability to be flexible or adapt. The human brain is a structure LOADED with plasticity during its developmental stages, but loses the ability to adapt as we age. Every skill imaginable (athletic, cognitive, language acquisition), is governed by plasticity… There is literally a cap or critical time frame in which skills must be learnt in order to ever be performed optimally. Due to the laws of plasticity, a 45 year old Italian immigrant will never pick up English the way his or her 5 year old son will.
Application to sport and athletics? If you don’t expose kids to it early, they will NEVER be able to develop it optimally.
"The question of whether (young athletes) should specialize in particular sports at an early age have been asked for many years. The evidence now seems to support programming activities that develop overall capacities rather than specialized functions while the young athlete is growing."
The BEST and MOST EFFICIENT means of developing a future champion is through slow progression and multilateral means.
"If resistance training is to be done with children and young adolescents, exercises should involve sub-maximal loads, such as one’s own bodyweight, light dumbbells, weighted bags and/or medicine balls. Sophisticated and restrictive weight exercises, particularly on machines, are not ideal for children".
Trainers or coaches who advocate machine-based training for young athletes are simply not thinking straight.
"All sports require high degree of skill for superior performance. The major emphasis of a (youth athletic) training program should be skill excellence. For skills to be developed, learning should occur in non-fatigued states… It is advisable to schedule auxiliary training sessions either after a (sport) session or at some time that allows complete recovery from its execution so that no residual fatigue is carried over."
Learning how to create appropriate training sessions is crucial to working with young athletes. If you are forced to have the technical practice AND the training session within the same day (as is typical), make sure that the training session comes AFTER practice. This keeps the body and CNS rested and for skill acquisition and demonstration during practice.
>>Neurological stats on learning and neuropsychological explanation as to why multilateral development is crucial.
Look at it from the easiest possible angle… Do you know anyone from another country? What happens to family’s who move to a foreign land, but can’t speak the language? Let’s use an Italian family moving to Canada. Eventually, everyone learns to speak English, but, the young kids will learn to speak it accent-free while the parents, no matter what they try, will ALWAYS have a slight or even pronounced accent. Why?
The answer can be summed up in one word… Plasticity. Plasticity in this context is defined as the ability to be flexible or adapt. The human brain is a structure LOADED with plasticity during its developmental stages, but loses the ability to adapt as we age. Every skill imaginable (athletic, cognitive, language acquisition), is governed by plasticity… There is literally a cap or critical time frame in which skills must be learnt in order to ever be performed optimally. Due to the laws of plasticity, a 45 year old Italian immigrant will never pick up English the way his or her 5 year old son will.
Application to sport and athletics? If you don’t expose kids to it early, they will NEVER be able to develop it optimally.
Flexibility and Mobility
What is the difference between Flexibility and Mobility?
Flexibility can have two definitions:
1.) The ability of muscle to lengthen during passive movements.
2.) Range of motion about a joint and surrounding musculature during passive movements.
Mobility can also have two ways of being defined. The main definition is the state of being in motion. But this state of motion can be looked at within certain joints (subtalar mobility) or as a physical whole (moving from one position into the next during a run).
Are both important to young athletes or is one more important than the other?
This is a great question. Both are important for the older athlete (ages 14-18+) as athletes within this age group tend to show more restrictions with both flexibility and mobility, often times once you take care of the flexibility then you improve mobility. But with the younger athlete (ages 13 and under) I wouldn’t place much importance on either one unless there has been a certain injury that limits each.
Are there different kinds of Flexibility, or is ‘bending over to touch my toes and stretch my hammy’ what all young athletes should be doing?
There are seven different ways of going about flexibility:
• Ballistic stretching
• Dynamic stretching
• Active stretching
• Passive (or relaxed) stretching
• Static stretching
• Isometric stretching
• PNF stretching
I use dynamic stretching (more like an active movement series of stretches) with most of my youth athletes from as young as 6 years old.
When should young athletes train Flexibility?
As I stated, I use dynamic stretching with most of my young athletes. But my goal is not to improve flexibility with the younger athletes because I feel that this is not appropriate. If anything, most children are too flexible until their bones lengthen. I would have athletes start to work with flexibility around 14 years of age for males, 12-13 for females. But again I feel that at that point in time dynamic movements and warm-up periods are ideal for flexibility.
When should they train Mobility?
Global Mobility should be an ongoing part of your everyday programming along with movement preparation.
What is the single greatest mistake or myth people make when it comes to Flexibility training?
There are actually two mistakes or myths that come to mind. One is that everyone needs to do static stretches to avoid sustaining a muscle injury. To date there has not been any substantial evidence through research or scientific literature that suggests stretching prevents injuries.
The second part that is more of a mistake than anything is having children perform static stretches before athletic contests or games. The contractile properties of a child’s musculoskeletal system does not work well with static stretching. But knowing this and then seeing groups of young athletes stretching the way that their coaches did “back in the day” just does not make any sense. And yet this is still taking place in every youth athletic league throughout this country. Clearly we still have some work to do to make changes.
Flexibility can have two definitions:
1.) The ability of muscle to lengthen during passive movements.
2.) Range of motion about a joint and surrounding musculature during passive movements.
Mobility can also have two ways of being defined. The main definition is the state of being in motion. But this state of motion can be looked at within certain joints (subtalar mobility) or as a physical whole (moving from one position into the next during a run).
Are both important to young athletes or is one more important than the other?
This is a great question. Both are important for the older athlete (ages 14-18+) as athletes within this age group tend to show more restrictions with both flexibility and mobility, often times once you take care of the flexibility then you improve mobility. But with the younger athlete (ages 13 and under) I wouldn’t place much importance on either one unless there has been a certain injury that limits each.
Are there different kinds of Flexibility, or is ‘bending over to touch my toes and stretch my hammy’ what all young athletes should be doing?
There are seven different ways of going about flexibility:
• Ballistic stretching
• Dynamic stretching
• Active stretching
• Passive (or relaxed) stretching
• Static stretching
• Isometric stretching
• PNF stretching
I use dynamic stretching (more like an active movement series of stretches) with most of my youth athletes from as young as 6 years old.
When should young athletes train Flexibility?
As I stated, I use dynamic stretching with most of my young athletes. But my goal is not to improve flexibility with the younger athletes because I feel that this is not appropriate. If anything, most children are too flexible until their bones lengthen. I would have athletes start to work with flexibility around 14 years of age for males, 12-13 for females. But again I feel that at that point in time dynamic movements and warm-up periods are ideal for flexibility.
When should they train Mobility?
Global Mobility should be an ongoing part of your everyday programming along with movement preparation.
What is the single greatest mistake or myth people make when it comes to Flexibility training?
There are actually two mistakes or myths that come to mind. One is that everyone needs to do static stretches to avoid sustaining a muscle injury. To date there has not been any substantial evidence through research or scientific literature that suggests stretching prevents injuries.
The second part that is more of a mistake than anything is having children perform static stretches before athletic contests or games. The contractile properties of a child’s musculoskeletal system does not work well with static stretching. But knowing this and then seeing groups of young athletes stretching the way that their coaches did “back in the day” just does not make any sense. And yet this is still taking place in every youth athletic league throughout this country. Clearly we still have some work to do to make changes.
Tim’s Non-negotiables
1. Constantly educate yourself and apply what you learn. Kind of self-explanatory really. It's a pity people choose not to learn.
2. Listen to your body. Sometimes it's the only one who knows what you need. It's a great teacher but are you a good student?
3. Eat for health not pleasure. No, this doesn't mean you can't enjoy food, it means don't be a pig. It means have a healthy relationship with food. Don't reward, motivate or medicate with food.
4. Move your body. This isn’t just about structured exercise; it's about living a life with more movement in it. Compared with our great grandparents, the majority of us expend about 800 less calories per day simply because we spend so much time lying and sitting. Increase your incidental and occupational activity.
5. Manage your stress. Along with sleep, stress is the one thing that can have a dramatic (negative) impact on your physical health in a very short time. That and getting hit by a truck. We now know that there is a huge relationship between mental and emotional stress and physical disease. If you don't manage it, it will manage you.
6. Sleep. Kind of important. Zzzzz.
7. Stay well hydrated. Being as your body's about two thirds water, you might want to stay hydrated. A surprising number of people (about 60-70%) are dehydrated on a regular basis. Constipation, headaches, lethargy, mood swings, inability to concentrate and reduced physical ability (endurance, strength, co-ordination) are some of the potential outcomes of dehydration. If you're not a fan of water, eat foods with high water content (fruit, vegetables).
8. Find happiness. There's a lot of evidence to suggest a very strong correlation between happiness and longevity. Find what (who) makes you happy and hang the heck on.
2. Listen to your body. Sometimes it's the only one who knows what you need. It's a great teacher but are you a good student?
3. Eat for health not pleasure. No, this doesn't mean you can't enjoy food, it means don't be a pig. It means have a healthy relationship with food. Don't reward, motivate or medicate with food.
4. Move your body. This isn’t just about structured exercise; it's about living a life with more movement in it. Compared with our great grandparents, the majority of us expend about 800 less calories per day simply because we spend so much time lying and sitting. Increase your incidental and occupational activity.
5. Manage your stress. Along with sleep, stress is the one thing that can have a dramatic (negative) impact on your physical health in a very short time. That and getting hit by a truck. We now know that there is a huge relationship between mental and emotional stress and physical disease. If you don't manage it, it will manage you.
6. Sleep. Kind of important. Zzzzz.
7. Stay well hydrated. Being as your body's about two thirds water, you might want to stay hydrated. A surprising number of people (about 60-70%) are dehydrated on a regular basis. Constipation, headaches, lethargy, mood swings, inability to concentrate and reduced physical ability (endurance, strength, co-ordination) are some of the potential outcomes of dehydration. If you're not a fan of water, eat foods with high water content (fruit, vegetables).
8. Find happiness. There's a lot of evidence to suggest a very strong correlation between happiness and longevity. Find what (who) makes you happy and hang the heck on.
Why The Tempo Works...
Tempo running improves a crucial physiological variable for running success: our metabolic fitness. "Most runners have trained their cardiovascular system to deliver oxygen to the muscles, "but they haven't trained their bodies to use that oxygen once it arrives. Tempo runs do just that by teaching the body to use oxygen for metabolism more efficiently."
How? By increasing your lactate threshold (LT), or the point at which the body fatigues at a certain pace. During tempo runs, lactate and hydrogen ions--by-products of metabolism--are released in. The ions make the muscles acidic, eventually leading to fatigue. The better trained you become, the higher you push your "threshold," meaning your muscles become better at using these byproducts. The result is less-acidic muscles (that is, muscles that haven't reached their new "threshold"), so they keep on contracting, letting you run farther and faster.
...If Done Properly
But to garner this training effect, you've got to put in enough time at the right intensity--which like those of many runners, are too short and too slow. "You need to get the hydrogen ions in the muscles for a sufficient length of time for the muscles to become adept at using them," . Typically, 20 minutes is sufficient, or 4 to 5 K if your goal is general fitness. Runners tackling longer distances should do longer tempo runs during their peak training weeks: 7 to 8 for the 10-K, 10 to 14 for the half-marathon, and 17 to 22 for the Marathon
How should tempo pace feel. "It's what I call 'comfortably hard,'". "You know you're working, but you're not racing. At the same time, you'd be happy if you could slow down."
You'll be even happier if you make tempo running a part of your weekly training regimen, and get results that make you feel like a Kenyan--if not quite as fast.
How? By increasing your lactate threshold (LT), or the point at which the body fatigues at a certain pace. During tempo runs, lactate and hydrogen ions--by-products of metabolism--are released in. The ions make the muscles acidic, eventually leading to fatigue. The better trained you become, the higher you push your "threshold," meaning your muscles become better at using these byproducts. The result is less-acidic muscles (that is, muscles that haven't reached their new "threshold"), so they keep on contracting, letting you run farther and faster.
...If Done Properly
But to garner this training effect, you've got to put in enough time at the right intensity--which like those of many runners, are too short and too slow. "You need to get the hydrogen ions in the muscles for a sufficient length of time for the muscles to become adept at using them," . Typically, 20 minutes is sufficient, or 4 to 5 K if your goal is general fitness. Runners tackling longer distances should do longer tempo runs during their peak training weeks: 7 to 8 for the 10-K, 10 to 14 for the half-marathon, and 17 to 22 for the Marathon
How should tempo pace feel. "It's what I call 'comfortably hard,'". "You know you're working, but you're not racing. At the same time, you'd be happy if you could slow down."
You'll be even happier if you make tempo running a part of your weekly training regimen, and get results that make you feel like a Kenyan--if not quite as fast.
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