Dorothy FarrarTraining principles
Training principles are overriding instructions for action in the context of sporting activities. They do not represent any concrete guidelines for action. The basis for the establishment of training principles is based on scientific knowledge and experience from training practice. Training principles are to be seen as the overarching basis and orientation of sporting activity in order to make training health-oriented and effective.
Physical requirements
The effectiveness of the training success depends on the quality and also on the quantity of the personal stress. The individual physical strain depends on the current performance level, the load requirement and the trainability. In this respect, attention must be paid to individual mobility. This is based on the plasticity and elasticity of the tissue surrounding the joints.
The plastic and contractile properties of the musculature are primarily responsible for quality and quantity, and less so for the parts of the connective tissue enclosing the joints.
The tendons, which are made of tight connective tissue, can only be stretched by about 5 percent in length. Muscles, on the other hand, are very flexible and can be stretched by up to 200 percent. In doing so, they retain a stretching residue when stretched strongly , which is an important prerequisite for expanding the range of vibration of the joints. Therefore, exercises are only functional when they are aimed at stretching the muscles, not the connective tissue portions such as tendons, capsules, and ligaments.
In order not to provoke overloading and possible sports injuries in this context , the various stress variables of training frequency, stress duration, intensity and speed must be coordinated. The knowledge of the respective ratios of the different load sizes enables an effective and individual implementation of the goals in the individual training units as well as for the entire training.
Training frequency and duration of exercise
After an effective training load, a certain period of recovery is necessary in order to be able to carry out a sporting load again. The human organism needs a certain amount of time to recover. For this reason, the load and the recovery should be considered as a kind of unity.
The frequency of training and the duration of the load depend heavily on the principle of super compensation for effective training. In order to improve the level of performance in the health sector, a training frequency of every 3 – 4 days a week is sufficient for beginners and every 2 – 3 days for advanced users. The upper limit of the training frequency is limited in particular by the performance of the passive support apparatus.
In order to avoid injuries as far as possible, you should not train more than 3 times a week at the individual limit of performance. It is important to ensure that the training days are evenly distributed throughout the week. The duration of the load is highly dependent on the individual, to what extent you are trained or untrained. In general, the stimulus values must be set in such a way that adaptation phenomena can be expected, which ultimately improve your athletic performance.
Principle of supercompensation
The principle of supercompensation explains how the body reacts to stress and how it affects the effectiveness of exercise. It assumes that the body is initially exhausted after exertion. As a result, the physical performance level falls below the initial level. Then the body recovers. After completion of this, not only does a restoration (compensation) of the initial level begin, but there is also a restoration of physical performance beyond the initial level (super-compensation). The body creates this power reserve in order to cope with future loads more economically.
However, care must be taken to ensure that the supercompensation returns quickly. In order to maintain or further improve the level of performance, the next training stimulus must be aligned with the peak of the supercompensation phase.
However, the increased level is not maintained after a single training stimulus, but is reduced again. The increase in the level curve achieved through the training oscillates to a certain extent around the line of the starting level. As a result, in addition to the first supercompensation, a second, albeit lower, supercompensation peak can appear. The optimal new load must accordingly take into account the peak of the supercompensation phase.
However, it must be taken into account that the next sporting activity does not take place too early in the regeneration phase. This would lead to performance degradation and ineffective training. Overtraining can occur when a load is sustained without recovery. The causes of such overtraining are, in addition to a too short recovery phase, too rapid an increase in the frequency of training and the intensity of the sporting activity. Excessively one-sided training, an irregular lifestyle, an inappropriate diet or severe mental stress can also be triggers.
In sporting practice, it is not easy to find the optimal point in time for the new reload. Ultimately, in addition to theory, only experience and observation lead to concrete results. In the case of training beginners in particular, the conversion of the super compensation into a higher level of performance takes place much faster than in the case of athletes who already have a higher level of performance.
Intensity
The intensity of the various sporting exercises should be limited to the individual pain threshold. This can of course be achieved, but not exceeded. However, a training stimulus should exceed a certain intensity threshold so that the level of performance is maintained or expanded.
In principle, too strong training stimuli cause physical damage and subliminal training stimuli are unproductive in that they make the result of the training appear ineffective or stagnant. Suprathreshold strong stimuli, on the other hand, increase the performance level.
In general, care must be taken to ensure that the intensity and the corresponding training stimuli vary over a longer period of time during training. If this is not observed, the organism adapts to the respective stress after a certain time. The given stimuli are becoming increasingly ineffective. The load components should be changed after about 6-8 weeks.
A change in the various exercises is particularly effective. This gives the muscles an alternating load, new stimuli are created and the training is effective in the long term. In addition, there should be a variation in either the frequency of training, the scope of training, the length of breaks or the training intensity.
Speed
The speed of the exercises must always be taken into account during training. The common misconception that the faster the more effective the training, is fatal.
A maximum pace hinders the development of optimal coordination skills and the effectiveness of the training. In addition, exercises with high speeds and accelerations are not suitable due to the associated stress and the endangerment of the supporting and musculoskeletal system.
Strong pre-stretching, but also seesaws and springs, can trigger reflex muscle contractions. These are all the more violent, the faster and more choppy the exercises are carried out.
It is therefore important during training to set the respective impulses carefully and in a controlled manner in order not to achieve the opposite of the sporting objective. In addition, if the different positions in the exercises are taken slowly, the training is particularly effective.
It is optimal if you do the exercises at only about a third of the highest possible speed. This allows your muscles to contract optimally and achieve the greatest possible performance.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.