Functional Sports Training – Strength and Cardiovascular Training

Functional muscle mass and strength is a vital component of many sports, whether or not competitive, and so requires careful, targeted training and development.  This is often over-looked, especially among the popular sports of running, cycling and swimming.

Professional athletes spend time in the gym doing weight training, but it is not just for the pros. Aerobic fitness is vital, of course, to many sports.  But developing strength and power in the key large muscle groups is indispensable.  A strong body and core provides the platform to produce the power in the relevant muscle groups.
 
Consider all of these benefits for your particular sport or activity:

• promotion of better performance technique.  For example, think of the core control and contracted hip flexors involved in time trialling in a streamlined position;
• increased stability and balance control, strengthening muscle tissues around joints;
• minimised injury risk from working weak muscles groups and correcting imbalances;
• increased running, cycling, swimming or, simply, aerobic economy from being able to maintain the same pace or intensity while burning less oxygen; and
• increased power.  When you need a sprint finish, to surge up that hill, to pick up that drop shot, have you got that extra turn of speed and can you maintain it?

 
Incorporating resistance work into training is as vital for female athletes as for men.  Do not worry, strong does not mean big.
 
Cardiovascular fitness is the ability of the heart, lungs and muscles to take in, transport and use oxygen during exercise.  This is also known as stamina or aerobic fitness.
 
The cardiovascular system's efficiency is improved through regular aerobic training.  Cardiovascular activities increase the heart rate and breathing rate with the aim of increasing the blood flow and delivering more oxygen to the body to produce energy aerobically.
 
The long-term benefits of cardiovascular training for both performance and recreational athletes include:

• a stronger heart;
• increased stroke volume, meaning that more blood is circulated in a single heartbeat;
• improved delivery of oxygen to the muscles;
• growth in both size and number of mitochondria in the muscles.  These are the cells which use oxygen aerobically to create energy; and
  
• more efficient removal of the waste products of exercise, such as carbon dioxide and lactic acid.​​

"My goal was to increase my flexibility and strength so I could keep playing golf and ideally reduce my handicap.
The end results have been that I have improved by five shots from 14 to 9.  The lowest I have ever been."
​Tony