Reached your goal? Awesome work!
Let’s have a think about where you could go from here, so often the extension is further or faster or in the case of strength, heavier.
Breaking this down, they are obvious continuations of initial goals, say we wanted to run a 10k we get there, and then think I’d like to PB or run a half-marathon?
We touched on how to incorporate supplementary work into our training last week, and this also applies for continuation (or extension of goals). Often the workload to further improve has to be varied, in the case of running a 10k faster, we would need to improve speed and endurance coupled with strength.
In order to run faster, our muscles have to be able to propel us faster, this requires greater tolerances from our joints. When we start to increase the forces without the underlaying architecture being ready, our injury risk increases.
Adding stability to the mix – within our given discipline, we will have enhanced a set of muscles, now is the time to think about the supporting muscles and their recovery.
Think of it like this, we could have built up our quads and hamstrings, but our hip flexors are on edge when we go fast. We need to identify these areas and put plans in place to increase their tolerances, this will increase our overall tolerance to the given activity.
Often things like accessory work (strengthening of supporting muscles) and stretching/flexibility training are the ‘yeah I should really do those’ items.
If we really want to improve, all of these areas have to be brought up to unlock the next level.
How often do you check the air pressure in just one tyre? – thinking about our body as a unit, we need to be checking off all areas that influence performance.
Running example:
- Feet – our they in good shape, trainers right for our pronation and within mileage range (yep they have a range for optimum support!)
- Calf’s – wouldn’t even like to imagine how many contractions they perform every day, plus all the force of running – are they stretched out and rested properly
- Knees – have we looked at stability work, do we warm them up prior to running?
- Quads/Hamstrings – have we worked to strengthen them to support or hips and knees?
- Hip flexors – there is a direct correlation between hip extension and speed, our hips should not be ‘tight’
- Glutes – if our hips are able to make us faster, then we know the glutes are playing a role in that also!
There are many other areas we could’ve dropped into, however, my propensity to waffle is in the forefront of my mind….
When looking to extend your goal, keep in mind the need to develop all the supporting areas, this will put you in good stead for getting to and surpassing another goal!
Want some help exploring the best route for continuation or extension of your goals? – speak to Team SF email info@spikefitness.co.uk or call 07597215652