BY: Corissa A Conard
Certified Personal Trainer
B.S. – Exercise & Sports Science,
Nutrition
Every dedicated collegiate athlete knows the
feeling of that last competition or competitive season – it’s
the moment
they’ve worked so hard for, the time where the athlete proves to themselves,
their teammates, and coaches, what they can truly do. It’s why athletes do what they do; it
is the peak of their performance throughout those four, or sometimes even five
and longer, hard years of work. It’s the
countless days of unrest due to practices and school work. Friday nights spent resting up for the big
competition instead of going out with friends.
Hours spent in the Athletic Training Room (with Joel) to pre-rehab,
post-rehab, or even both. And let’s not
forget the massive nerves that built up right before the competition.
So why did do you do
it? A
question I have been asked far too often given the above statement. I always said, “If you’re good at it, why not
see where it can take you?” It’s the mystery of that last competition that
keeps you going back to practice every day.
It’s the comradery of your teammates and the friendships that develop
for the love of the same game. You all
want to see where you can get at the end of it all, and you can count on each
other for the support of that same goal.
So, it sounds like you
made it big? I had been a long-distance
runner, competing in Track & Field and Cross Country for the University of
Wisconsin – La Crosse, with aspirations and expectations that were beyond exciting. Race times were decreasing and the
advancement to Nationals in 2012 created a mindset of enhanced discipline and sacrifice. Although, it’s
probably not to the extent anyone would find appealing.
So sure, I was thriving in the sports world –
performances had boomed from my first to second year, and I had even been
published in a newspaper article back home.
But the problem was I wasn’t thriving in other areas of my life. Diet and exercise became mentally
overwhelming and had started to consume every part of my day. On the outside,
some saw this as dedication; always fitting in that extra mile or weight room
session (which was usually deemed “optional”) and frowning upon anything other
than fruits and veggies. But I was starving for perfection; sacrificing calories and disciplining myself on the
track/gym/etc. to do so – a whole different and less attractive view of the
characteristics one would think of as being beneficial. Now, I could go on about the details of this
journey, but for the sake of the length and focus of this article, the journey
beyond the athletic career is much more important to highlight as it envelopes
how I train now – personally and professionally. It’s probably not what Joel
had in mind when he suggested the topic, but the past is definitely the biggest
influencer of my current goals in Personal Training, and future goals in
Dietetics. Because after Nationals in
2012, I hit a wall emotionally and physically and was unfit to compete at the
level I aspired to do. Psychological and
physical therapy followed – two therapies no one is very fond of –but aside
from all the negative experiences, there are no regrets as they truly made me a
better person and well-rounded professional.
Professional Development from Athletics
From your
experiences, what do you think is important for trainers and trainees?
After hip surgery,
physical therapy was a very humbling and educational experience. Being able to run fifty miles in one week, to
barely being able to get off the couch, I realized how important function and
moderation was. That is why today, I
stress the importance of functionality
first, as well as balancing exercise
modes, intensity, frequency; nutrition; rest; and daily life. Functionality can
mean many things, and can be taken care of in multiple ways. For instance, improper lifting techniques can
fire the wrong muscles leading to weak targeted muscles involved in the sport
or activity. Those targeted muscles
could be crucial to injury prevention and proper movement of the kinetic chain,
especially if the motions are repetitive. Functionality could also mean
balancing work-out days with rest and recovery days, and truly listening to
your body. Athletes: This is when
listening to the coaches is crucial.
When they say to take it “easy” on this drill, run, etc.; take it
easy! There are no champions in
practice, especially on easy days. Easy
days are meant to help your body recover from a previous workout or setting it
up so that you’re able to perform optimally on the next workout. If you have
experience with athletics, telling an athlete to take it easy is definitely
easier said than done.
Here are some easy
methods/tips I use for myself and my client in order to ensure that the proper
exercise regime throughout the week is being achieved:
·
Categorize exercise
modes as easy, moderate, or hard and avoid doing them on two consecutive
days. For example, Vinaysa yoga could be
used as an easy exercise mode, whereas sprinting/running could be used as a
hard exercise mode. Spread them out.
·
Ask yourself, “on a
scale of 1-10, how hard was that?” and make sure to vary that number throughout
the week. Use an RPE (rate of perceived
exertion) scale and plot your numbers on a graph. If the points are going up
and down, good job! Keep in mind, that
the same exercise mode may get easier with time, so re-evaluate every so often.
·
Always take an active recovery day. Active recovery means to move around, but
move easily. It can involve things in
the same activity level as gardening, walking the dog, or participating in a
hatha yoga class. Invest in a foam
roller (or find a baseball lying around) and spend a good half hour or more
releasing those deep knots and keeping up on flexibility of the muscles surrounding
the joints. I definitely look to Total
Athletic Therapy’s website and blog posts for Mobility Monday Movements – super
helpful and professional knowledge right at your fingertips!
·
Active recovery also
means using those days to have fun, relax, and enjoy good company. We live in a
fast-paced, stressful environment so having a cocktail or two, eating dessert
before dinner, or taking a nap in the middle of the day is okay. Getting stronger, losing weight or any other
type of training goal can be achieved without an ‘all-or-nothing’ mentality. Remember that recovering the mind is just as
important as recovering the body.
·
Recognize that
everyone is different. Not every one
person will improve at the same rate, recover at the same rate, and/or prefer
the same exercise regime. What one considers an easy exercise mode may be hard
for another, and that is okay. Accept
those differences because without them, how would we know what to improve upon?
For those of you who
are more sports-specific, especially at a high level, there is much more to
take into account as it comes down to much more of a science. The above rules are typically more for
general fitness gurus or youngsters with aspirations to improve in their sport,
as that’s who I mostly work with now.
Sports fanatics shouldn’t shy away from these basic concepts either,
however.
One final note: Optimal sports performance and daily performance in general is a
great goal to shoot for, but doing so in a way that is healthy. If it hinders your relationships, school or
job focus, and health, then it’s time to re-evaluate.
Check back in a few
weeks for Part 2 of this article examining behaviors/characteristics and other
tell-tale signs that you, or your athlete, may have an unhealthy relationship
with athletics.
Corissa A Conard
Certified Personal Trainer
B.S. – Exercise & Sports Science,
Nutrition
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