Sunday, September 15, 2013

Do Differently

Simply put, you can have more predominately fast twitch muscle fibres or slower twitch muscle fibres. So sprinters have an above average level of fast twitch- that is, their muscle can contract with incredible speed.
So what?
For fast twitch fibres to stay 'fast', you can't train them too much. Short periods of intense training followed by long periods of rest.
So what?
Sprinters are well known for genetically having very fast twitch fibres. So someone like Yasann Bolt is genetically predisposed for this physiology. He is also well known for being a very lazy (relatively) athlete. That is, he likes his rest! Given the training program required to keep fast twitch fibres fast, his laziness probably assists his training.
Conversely, professional soccer players, many of whom have a genetic predisposition to these fast twitch fibres, have to partake in team training, where endurance is of importance, long training sessions, small recovery periods. Perhaps it is this training that leads to the research into soccer players in the Brazilian league which found that very few of the athletes exhibited fast twitch fibres.
So what?
Fast twitch fibres mean speed and agility. Lost to the soccer training regime.
So what?
Conventional wisdom may tell you something. A way of doing. That's how we always do it. It usually has a lot to say. Mostly wise things.

Sometimes not. It's worth looking at things again. seeing whether the outcomes are what you want.
And if not.
Think differently.
Do differently.

No comments:

Post a Comment