Physical Conditioning is vital to enhance your athletic performances. It comprises various elements such as strength, power, balance, agility, coordination and endurance. Here are the answers to some of the lesser known, yet vital questions on Physical Conditioning.
What does physical conditioning mean and why should athletes care?
Physical Conditioning is basically the integration of all these components including power, strength, speed, balance, agility, coordination and endurance, which also plays an important role in the enhancement of fitness and sports performance. In the case of tailored conditioning according to specific demands of the sport, then the performance capability of the athlete increases and the performance shows great improvement.
How to structure an effective conditioning program?
It should be remembered when developing a conditioning program that the athlete is targeting specific goals and pertinent to their sport, their needs. The right strength and conditioning professional should then be consulted to optimize their performance and hopefully minimize their risk of injury. Specialist strength and conditioning professionals will assess the athlete’s current levels of fitness and then orchestrate a cross-training program designed to introduce different stresses in other directions; such other stresses will then generate greater all-round performance and minimize overuse injury.
What are some typical conditioning program risks?
The main forms of injury resulting from conditioning are acute and overuse injuries. Acute injuries, including muscle strains and fractures, usually result from a sudden traumatic event, whereas overuse injuries, such as stress fractures and tendinosis, result from increasing training intensity or duration too rapidly. Appropriate treatment and recovery strategies both apply.
How do athletes avoid conditioning injury?
Prevention starts with providing training plans that ensure ample time to achieve performance goals. For example, an athlete should increase their mileage gradually to allow adequate time for marathon training to avoid overuse injuries. The kind of variation during training allows the loads to be spread throughout other parts of the body. In their nutrition and hydration, together with proper support in resting, they will adequately fulfill their needs in their training and later recover perfectly.
When should an athlete consult a doctor on injuries?
See a physician if symptoms are painful and the athlete cannot train. There can be such severe pain that would not let him or her exercise and even slight pain while running or feeling tight in the shoulder that limits performance. Early detection prevents worsening of the injury or secondary complications.
Where does nutrition fit in with physical conditioning?
Nutrition is a very important factor and should be right in athletes, especially those that focus on losing weight or wanting better performance. Adequate calories and proper provision of vitamins, minerals, and fluids are fundamental requirements for athletes to reap the benefits of training. Consulting with a sports nutritionist would be pivotal for personal guidance on how to actually improve dietary habits to boost performance.
Knowing the principles of physical conditioning and taking proactive steps in training can help athletes improve their performance with minimal injury risk. Of course, a good program must take into account one’s specific goals and his or her health needs for successful conditioning.
The Sportz Planet Desk,
Atharva Shetye
