enelide2010
Friday, January 4, 2013
#$“Know thy athletes”
If you want to design a training program that will give the best possible results, you must
know the needs and capabilities of a client (or yourself). Ready-to-wear training
programs can be a big problem for some individuals. While they can be good, (hey, even
I will give you a few program samples in this book!) when it comes to peak performance
you must tailor a program to the client (or yourself) perfectly.
To accomplish this you must know his weaknesses, strengths, goals, and physiological
makeup.
Strengths and weaknesses
Knowing an athlete’s relative strengths and weaknesses will allow you to choose the
training methods best suited to his needs. For example, an individual with a less than
efficient nervous system will benefit from training means that will increase his neural
drive. Another athlete may have a very efficient nervous system, but a low amount of
muscle mass. This athlete will benefit from an increase in the “size of his motor.”
Furthermore, some individuals have what are called “muscle imbalances.” If the agonist
and antagonist muscles of the same joint are way out of balance it can increase the risk of
injury. Knowing which muscles are too weak compared to their antagonist will allow you
to choose exercises that will not only improve performance, but also reduce the risk of
injury.
Goals
An individual who wants to gain a lot of muscle will not train the same way as a sprinter!
It’s important to know the ultimate goal(s) of your athlete (or yourself) and plan the
training program accordingly. A lot of peoples are seduced by the latest training “fad”
and will jump from one such fad to the other, never really questioning whether this is
adequate for their objectives or not.
You improve in what you train for. Thus choose training methods that will give you the
best results in your area of specialization.
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