This is another article from "The Coach" in the Galway Independent by Liam Horan. A few weeks ago I posted the article about stopping a big full forward like Donaghy. This week they are talking about over training and fatigue.
Pushing them too hard? The signs of overtraining.
An Intermediate football club's coach asks: "We trained harder than ever last season. But when it came to our biggest game of the year, the lads looked very flat. I'm worried we left it, as they say, on the training field. What are the signs of overtraining?"
We talked to Tyrone manager Mickey Harte, whose Tyrone teams famously adopt a less-is-more approach to training, yet maintain impressive fitness and hunger levels when championship comes round.
"We've always adopted a policy of organising collective training one night per week until the clocks change. Then we step it up to a second night. And if we have no game at the weekend we might sometimes have a third session.
Obviously everyone has their own ideas, but it's my feeling that if you have guys slogging through the muck four nights week in the depths of winter, it's awful hard to ask them to step up another level when the summer evenings come round.
But guys have their own strength and conditioning programmes, so it's still important to watch carefully for signs of overtraining.
Every player responds differently to training regimes but there are ways a coach can gauge players' different levels of fatigue. You can get players to record their own heart rate before they get out of bed each morning. Increased resting heart rate is a real indicator of overtraining.
Blood tests also very revealing. Overtraining can be detected from changes in blood variables.
But the important thing is to know your players. Watch them carefully. The symptoms of overtraining typically appear in three stages.
1. Psychological; the tired player will exhibit mood changes and increased levels of mental fatigue, tension, depression and disinterest.
2. Performance; watch the players' movement and the way they run. With a fatigued player, the execution of skills and movement patterns that were previously smooth, now appear strained.
3. Physiological; in the final stages of overtraining-related fatigue, the tired player will suffer joint and muscle soreness and stiffness, heart rate may increase and the player may suffer loss of appetite and bodyweight and become more susceptible to headcolds and headaches."
Next week, Mickey talks about the ways you can prevent and treat overtraining. Mickey Harte has just launched a Player's Training Diary, available at sporttracker.ie Questions to coach@dvdsales.ie
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Interesting stuff. It is the case that sometimes "it is left on the training ground". It certainly seemed that way when Mayo last faced Galway in Pearse stadium. I cant be sure if its related to over training but that Mayo team had reached the final stages of the AI Championship since 2004 and they looked very flat on the day. It could have been the case that they hadnt any prolonged break or a chance to recover properly and were training nearly all year.
Players need a good break to be fresh for matches too. There shouldnt be much done on the training ground the week coming up to a match. It was Jack O Connor that said in his book that its the work you do the month before a big match that counts on the day; not necessarily the work you do the month leading up to a match.
It will be interesting to see what Mickey comes up with next week in the same article but I reckon the proper diet, rest and lots of sleep will be the order of the day.
Definitely believe in that. I remember starting training November one year... all the training was going great and we'd done well in the league yet when we played championship against a team we should have beaten relatively easily we had nothing there... it is something I think this Down team would need to watch out for because it's very difficult for a team to play as well as they did last week and hope to keep that momentum going for 5-8 months longer!
Quote from: screenexile on January 30, 2008, 02:56:39 PM
Definitely believe in that. I remember starting training November one year... all the training was going great and we'd done well in the league yet when we played championship against a team we should have beaten relatively easily we had nothing there... it is something I think this Down team would need to watch out for because it's very difficult for a team to play as well as they did last week and hope to keep that momentum going for 5-8 months longer!
Exactly, to quote Jack O Connor again he remarked about the Mayo team early in the league in 2006:
"They have too much running in them for this time of year"
Its all about peaking at the right time and Kerry are experts at it.
Exactly, to quote Jack O Connor again he remarked about the Mayo team early in the league in 2006:
"They have too much running in them for this time of year"
[/quote]
How right he was, every year Kerry just plod through the league then come c\ship they are a different team altogether. Both Mayo & Donegal last year showed that league form has nothing to do with c\ship form, both teams fell out the c\ship last year
I agree. Winning all around you and looking good in January and February is usually the kiss of death.
Quote from: Davitt Man on January 30, 2008, 03:05:54 PM
How right he was, every year Kerry just plod through the league then come c\ship they are a different team altogether. Both Mayo & Donegal last year showed that league form has nothing to do with c\ship form, both teams fell out the c\ship last year
I reckon Derry peaked against Mayo last year which was still early in the championship. Im not trying to be harsh but I felt that way at the time.
As far as I know, most of the recent All Ireland winning teams came through the back door which highlights that they lost a game earlier in the championship when they hadnt peaked as a team.
But with the extra training and the extra game or two later in the season they were allowed to peak at the right time. I could be reading too much into it though.
Quote from: Davitt Man on January 30, 2008, 03:05:54 PM
Exactly, to quote Jack O Connor again he remarked about the Mayo team early in the league in 2006:
"They have too much running in them for this time of year"
How right he was, every year Kerry just plod through the league then come c\ship they are a different team altogether. Both Mayo & Donegal last year showed that league form has nothing to do with c\ship form, both teams fell out the c\ship last year
[/quote]
You have to remember though that Kerry and Tyrone both won the league and Sam in the same year (2005 & 2006..cant recall years before that)..
So not just as simple to say that teams that do well in the league do poorly in the championship. Sometimes its a good launch point for the season...
Clubs are starting back training now and some clubs are training Monday Wednesday Friday Sunday. Is this too much??
Quote from: donelli on January 30, 2008, 04:14:26 PM
You have to remember though that Kerry and Tyrone both won the league and Sam in the same year (2005 & 2006..cant recall years before that)..
So not just as simple to say that teams that do well in the league do poorly in the championship. Sometimes its a good launch point for the season...
Good point, both teams had peaks and valleys throughout the season.
Kerry won both league and AI championship in 2006. But lost to Cork in the Munster SFC Final Replay
Tyrone won both Dr. McKenna Cup and AI championship in 2005. But lost the Ulster SFC Final Replay against Armagh
Donegal started training a month later this year, having learned a few lessons from last year. A league win is nice, but it doesn't mean shit if you have nothing in the tank come Ulster championship time (even the first day against Armagh they were very flat). In 2003, they didn't train at all until McEniff took the team in January, got relegated in the league, gave arguably one of their poorest performances ever against Fermanagh in Enniskillen in June and then made an All Ireland semi. The likes of Kerry and (formerly?) Tyrone have the depth to win both both competitions, but most of the rest of us have to prioritize. I'll be surprised if Down do anything in the championship this year, but we'll see.
ive seen Cavan do it year in year out,
Start training back too early,
Look a lot fitter than all the teams they play in the league
Then when Championship comes, They look stale and a quick exit usually follows.
This Down team im afraid looks like their fitness is what it should be in March and i question whether they can keep that up for the championship.
PEOPLE DON'T FEEL IT'S IMPORTANT TO GET DOWN OUT OF DIV 3? Surely the talk of Down doing anything in the championship considering their league position is lunacy? I would have thought promotion from div 3 was the number one priority this year.
Quote from: Davitt Man on January 30, 2008, 04:31:49 PM
Clubs are starting back training now and some clubs are training Monday Wednesday Friday Sunday. Is this too much??
I have noticed the local teams all back training. 3 times a week at that.
Senseless i have to say. Come the business end of the year, lads are fed up with it and are jaded.
I think i've found the reason for this too. May be cynical, but most trainers these days are being paid by the night traininig. Its in their interests to have as many training sessions in the year to bolster their bank accounts... :o
There is no real reason that a team can't do well in the league and championship, even the likes of Down, Donegal etc. If Down have sensible training structures in place they should be fine. The problem is often that lads are also playing and training with their clubs and of course holding down full time jobs. If they only served one master and could get the right rest and recuperation then they'd be fine. You can generally only peak a few times a year but there is no reason that one of them can't be in January and another in September.
how would you go about peaking at certain times Zulu?
Having rest periods of just say 2 weeks from training a few times throughout the year?
Quotehow would you go about peaking at certain times Zulu?
Having rest periods of just say 2 weeks from training a few times throughout the year?
Yeah, something like that BM, there is a basic concept in training called periodization. Where a training schedule is planned out over the course of a season with intense weeks of training interspersed with 'down' weeks. This type of training schedule is designed to allow a team to peak at various times in a year.
Could you elaborate please Zulu ?
I have to say last nite training was horrible, only one of the floodlight came on so it was decided seeing as we were all out we wud do a bit of running. The pitch was like a beach to run on and it was about minus 40!! We ran for 30 mins constant except for a 1 minute water break and stretch which lasted for a minute at the half way point.....
Quote from: Hank Everlast on February 01, 2008, 08:53:50 AM
I have to say last nite training was horrible, only one of the floodlight came on so it was decided seeing as we were all out we wud do a bit of running. The pitch was like a beach to run on and it was about minus 40!! We ran for 30 mins constant except for a 1 minute water break and stretch which lasted for a minute at the half way point.....
So much for your training not being too tough at the minute then Hank. You spoke too soon. :D :D :D
QuoteCould you elaborate please Zulu ?
Well OM every coach should get a list of games his players are involved in during the coming season. So if your training the senior footballers in order to plan your training season properly you should know when all your games are fixed for. Not only that but you should know when the U21's and minors are playing if you have some of those lads on your squad. If your a dual cub you should know about all the hurling matches that your footballers are involved in. Of course you'll need to agree a training regieme with all these coaches so as to make sure no-one is doing too much. You'll also need to take into account lads who played soccer, rugby or any other game during the winter as these lads may not need the same type of pre-season training. Now when you have all this done you need to plan out your season with these factors in mind. Break up the season into blocks of 4-6 weeks with a goal for each block e.g. the first block will build up stamina. After each block of training you have a down week. This might consist of one easy night of training or a game of soccer/rugby/basketball etc.
As for IC players, clubs need to be careful here, counties often give IC players a week off but clubs insist that they attend all their training sessions during that week. This means that the players aren't getting any break and this can influence their form later in the season. What coaches need to remember is that the only purpose of training is to prepare for games and then act accordingly.
Quote from: Zulu on February 01, 2008, 11:30:06 AM
QuoteCould you elaborate please Zulu ?
Break up the season into blocks of 4-6 weeks with a goal for each block e.g. the first block will build up stamina.
After each block of training you have a down week. This might consist of one easy night of training or a game of soccer/rugby/basketball etc.
Zulu
In your opinion is a 'down week' say every 6 weeks enough of a break for a team training 3 times a week on the training ground and 1-2 nights in the gym?
As what often happens in Mayo there is very few club games around July / August because of the Inter County Championship. Do you think that (within reason) when there is no club games in that period that a club could use a 1-2 week period to recharge the batteries and rest up (not necessarily going on the beer) ?? As I mentioned before this has worked for county teams.
Yeah definately, if I was coaching a team in Mayo and I knew we would have 7-8 weeks without a competitive game, I would take field training down to 2 nights a week in the first week, down to 1 night the second week and let them off altogether in week 3. Then I'd bring them back for 3 nights a week for week 4-6/7 with at least two games in those weeks. And in the week of the game it would be back to 2 nights with both sessions 45min-1 hour in duration. So the 2 month period would look something like this;
Week 1- 2 sessions
Week 2 - 1 light session
Week 3 - off
Week 4 - 3 sessions (1 game)
Week 5 - 3 sessions
Week 6 - 3 sessions (1 game)
Week 7 - 3 sessions
Week 8 (game week) - 2 short sessions (45 - 60 min)
Thanks for that Zulu !
Quote from: Zulu on February 01, 2008, 12:00:12 PM
Yeah definately, if I was coaching a team in Mayo and I knew we would have 7-8 weeks without a competitive game, I would take field training down to 2 nights a week in the first week, down to 1 night the second week and let them off altogether in week 3. Then I'd bring them back for 3 nights a week for week 4-6/7 with at least two games in those weeks. And in the week of the game it would be back to 2 nights with both sessions 45min-1 hour in duration. So the 2 month period would look something like this;
Week 1- 2 sessions
Week 2 - 1 light session
Week 3 - off
Week 4 - 3 sessions (1 game)
Week 5 - 3 sessions
Week 6 - 3 sessions (1 game)
Week 7 - 3 sessions
Week 8 (game week) - 2 short sessions (45 - 60 min)
Fair play Zulu, your talking a lot of sense there. Im curious now as to who you were training in Mayo but you dont have to answer that with forum anonymity and all that! ;) Are you in the field of sports science or professional training ?
Nah AB, I never trained a team in Mayo, but I'd love to and hope to do so one day. I don't have any connections there or anything just feel that it would be a good county to develop a team in.
I meant to post the follow up to this article last week.
Mickey Harte talks about the signs of over training and player fatigue.
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From the Galway Independent 6th Feb 08
Rest and recovery – how to avoid overtrainingLast week we asked Mickey Harte about the telltale signs that a coach is overtraining his charges. This week the Tyrone manager advises how coaches can prevent and treat overtraining.
Image
"A crucial factor in preventing fatigue is players' own nutrition and rest. It's critical that players eat and drink properly and have at least seven hours quality sleep each night.
Players need more protein after intensive training to rebuild muscle tissue. By increasing their carbohydrate intake from 50% to 70%, players can restore muscle glycogen reserves – basically energy stored in the muscles – in 24 hours, rather than it taking up to twice this time.
However, it's also important that coaches tailor their programmes to guard against over-exertion. Coaches should cycle sessions of heavy training with lighter work and recovery sessions. Swimming pools are ideal for active recovery sessions because players can exercise lightly and remove lactic acid without any impact forces.
With young players who are in demand for several teams, and where burnout is a real worry, it is vital to put a limit on training and playing schedules – five days per week at most, with two full days rest each week and a two-month complete closed season each year.
Players showing signs of chronic fatigue should seek medical advice. But rest and regeneration is the key to recovering from overtraining. Massage and hydrotherapy will help.
There is a simple five-step recovery regime that many players find beneficial:
1. Drink and eat. Start restoring energy levels within five minutes of completing training with a sports drink, light sandwich or fruit.
2. Stretch and shower. Lightly stretch while the muscles are still warm to prevent blood pooling in the limbs and help remove lactic acid. Continue to rehydrate and refuel and restretch muscles in a warm shower. Alternate between hot and cold water every 30 seconds for three to five minutes.
3. Continue recovery. Have a meal within an hour and half of completing training. Drink regular fluids. Try a relaxation technique or simply listen to music to unwind.
4. Prepare for sleep. After a tiring session, it's important to switch off from the day with breathing exercises of visualisation techniques.
5. Morning check. Players should check resting heart rate for fluctuations and measure body weight to monitor hydration."
Mickey Harte has just launched a Player's Training Diary, available at www.sporttracker.ie. The Coach is compiled by Liam Horan.
Original Article...
Quote from: AbbeySider on January 30, 2008, 02:44:42 PM
Pushing them too hard? The signs of overtraining.
An Intermediate football club's coach asks: "We trained harder than ever last season. But when it came to our biggest game of the year, the lads looked very flat. I'm worried we left it, as they say, on the training field. What are the signs of overtraining?"
We talked to Tyrone manager Mickey Harte, whose Tyrone teams famously adopt a less-is-more approach to training, yet maintain impressive fitness and hunger levels when championship comes round.
"We've always adopted a policy of organising collective training one night per week until the clocks change. Then we step it up to a second night. And if we have no game at the weekend we might sometimes have a third session.
Obviously everyone has their own ideas, but it's my feeling that if you have guys slogging through the muck four nights week in the depths of winter, it's awful hard to ask them to step up another level when the summer evenings come round.
But guys have their own strength and conditioning programmes, so it's still important to watch carefully for signs of overtraining.
Every player responds differently to training regimes but there are ways a coach can gauge players' different levels of fatigue. You can get players to record their own heart rate before they get out of bed each morning. Increased resting heart rate is a real indicator of overtraining.
Blood tests also very revealing. Overtraining can be detected from changes in blood variables.
But the important thing is to know your players. Watch them carefully. The symptoms of overtraining typically appear in three stages.
1. Psychological; the tired player will exhibit mood changes and increased levels of mental fatigue, tension, depression and disinterest.
2. Performance; watch the players' movement and the way they run. With a fatigued player, the execution of skills and movement patterns that were previously smooth, now appear strained.
3. Physiological; in the final stages of overtraining-related fatigue, the tired player will suffer joint and muscle soreness and stiffness, heart rate may increase and the player may suffer loss of appetite and bodyweight and become more susceptible to headcolds and headaches."
Next week, Mickey talks about the ways you can prevent and treat overtraining. Mickey Harte has just launched a Player's Training Diary, available at sporttracker.ie Questions to coach@dvdsales.ie
Have a meal within an hour and half of completing training.
How can you have a meal after a training session when your not home untill maybe 10.30 on a week night. What kind of meal should you be having? I usually just have a sandwich after training, thats all i am able for and then off to bed
DM, you could prepare one beforehand and bring it with you, for example, you could bring a wholemeal chicken salad sandwhich and apple with you to training and eat them on the way home.
Should be high in protein by all accounts for muscle regeneration I think.
High in carbs too.
Best one I've heard is tuna pasta salad.
All your meals should have a good balance of protein and quality carbs. Another way of getting your nutritional needs quickly after a training session is to have a protien supplement powder with an isotonic drink.
Zulu, do you mean a protein shake? i know alot of the county lads take stuff. Is it ok to take it like are there any side effects to it such as weight gain maybe?
No none at all, the only thing is it might be a waste of money if your training isn't all that serious. They're very drinkable and handy though, so look for one with a good balance of carbs and protein and mix it with water,milk or an isotonic drink. Having something to eat before training is just as important as having sonmething after training so be sure to make one of these meals a solid meal.
on the day of training i usually get a solid meal at 1pm which is usually pasta or a chicken based dinner then maybe a sandwich at 5.30 before training at 7.30
Quote from: Zulu on February 11, 2008, 12:04:20 PM
No none at all, the only thing is it might be a waste of money if your training isn't all that serious. They're very drinkable and handy though, so look for one with a good balance of carbs and protein and mix it with water,milk or an isotonic drink. Having something to eat before training is just as important as having sonmething after training so be sure to make one of these meals a solid meal.
Some of the supplement shakes are packed with carbs as well so be careful which to choose because some act like a total meal replacement.
Like USN muscle fuel dynamic is packed with carbs but to be honest it nearly has too many! I got a free sample can once and you would be very full afterwards. Its like a whole meal and was very heavy IMO.
Something like USN 100% Whey Protein (half the portions if you like) with a small sandwich used to work for me after training. I dont bother with it anymore and instead I try and have a pasta & chicken dish and it works just as good. Also loads of fluids....
Quote from: Davitt Man on February 11, 2008, 12:17:50 PM
on the day of training i usually get a solid meal at 1pm which is usually pasta or a chicken based dinner then maybe a sandwich at 5.30 before training at 7.30
I would usually have a regular dinner (potatos, veg, meat) at around 2 O clock on the day of training and fluids for the rest of the day.
I find that if I had anything like a sambo to eat 3-4 hours before training that I get nauseous and it I often get sick if there is hard running.
I can never eat anything too close to training. Not sure if its my stomach thats weak or that the body is rejecting it but I sometimes find myself "dry reaching" with nothing coming up at all! ::) :D
Quoteon the day of training i usually get a solid meal at 1pm which is usually pasta or a chicken based dinner then maybe a sandwich at 5.30 before training at 7.30
I think that's sensible enough DM but like Abbeysider points out it is a personal thing really. There can be no hard and fast rules with these things, what works for one person may not for another. The thing to remember is that achieving optimum performance isn't a matter of doing things right one or two days a week but all week, every week. So eat properly for the level of training you do, the more training you do the more you eat. Get your rest and monitor yourself for signs of overtraining, one of the best ways to do this is to monitor your heart rate as soon as you wake up. Use your local pool for recovery sessions, and work on your flexibility on your own time. And allow yourself relaxation time and a good booze up (if you're in to that kind of thing) every so often. The GAA coach is too anti-drink IMO. Also if your coach isn't periodizing your training try and do so yourself.
Quote from: Zulu on February 11, 2008, 12:51:24 PM
Quotea good booze up (if you're in to that kind of thing) every so often. The GAA coach is too anti-drink IMO.
Zulu, what kind of drining habits would you be against? This time of year everyone is trying to get a certain level of fitness behind them, wouldnt they need to scale down the sessions big time in order for that to happen.
Well no not really. For example if I trained Monday to Friday for endurance and each Saturday I went out on the lash and I did this for 3 months by the end of it my endurance capabilities would still have increased greatly. My drinking in itself wouldn't have prevented me improving my fitness levels. Now don't get me wrong I'm not encouraging drinking at all, but I don't agree with drinking bans for teams. There is no reason why amateur sports men who look after themselves during the week and are training 3-5 times per week can't go out on a Saturday night and have 6-8 pints with their friends. If I were in charge of a serious senior club team I'd leave it up to the players themselves but I'd ask them to be sensible about their social lives rather than being fanatical about it.
Quote from: Zulu on February 11, 2008, 02:23:09 PM
Well no not really. For example if I trained Monday to Friday for endurance and each Saturday I went out on the lash and I did this for 3 months by the end of it my endurance capabilities would still have increased greatly. My drinking in itself wouldn't have prevented me improving my fitness levels. Now don't get me wrong I'm not encouraging drinking at all, but I don't agree with drinking bans for teams. There is no reason why amateur sports men who look after themselves during the week and are training 3-5 times per week can't go out on a Saturday night and have 6-8 pints with their friends. If I were in charge of a serious senior club team I'd leave it up to the players themselves but I'd ask them to be sensible about their social lives rather than being fanatical about it.
I disagree on that one Zulu. Im not playing GAA at a serious level but I like to stay fit. I find that a session of beer sets you back a week or so as regards training and fitness. A major session sets me back a lot more.
Drinking alcohol itself stops the body from breaking down vital nutrients that food provides. The food you eat while on the beer or hungover will more than likely be stored as fat rather than energy. Therefore your muscles are not getting the fuel it needs to recover/build when you are on the beer/suffering from a hangover.
Your recovery time slows way down also so I cant see any positive effects of a session of beer. Most lads in my home club got off the beer for 13-15 weeks last year and we won a county title. It was mostly their own choice to do it. You can only get so-fit by by drinking regularly IMO. If you get off the drink you can push on to higher levels of fitness. That said I wouldnt agree with a total drinking ban in the season, a session (within reason, nothing crazy) is Ok now and again but drinking every weekend is out of the question. IMO
Quote from: AbbeySider on February 11, 2008, 02:46:49 PM
Quote from: Zulu on February 11, 2008, 02:23:09 PM
Well no not really. For example if I trained Monday to Friday for endurance and each Saturday I went out on the lash and I did this for 3 months by the end of it my endurance capabilities would still have increased greatly. My drinking in itself wouldn't have prevented me improving my fitness levels. Now don't get me wrong I'm not encouraging drinking at all, but I don't agree with drinking bans for teams. There is no reason why amateur sports men who look after themselves during the week and are training 3-5 times per week can't go out on a Saturday night and have 6-8 pints with their friends. If I were in charge of a serious senior club team I'd leave it up to the players themselves but I'd ask them to be sensible about their social lives rather than being fanatical about it.
I disagree on that one Zulu. Im not playing GAA at a serious level but I like to stay fit. I find that a session of beer sets you back a week or so as regards training and fitness. A major session sets me back a lot more.
Drinking alcohol itself stops the body from breaking down vital nutrients that food provides. The food you eat while on the beer or hungover will more than likely be stored as fat rather than energy. Therefore your muscles are not getting the fuel it needs to recover/build when you are on the beer/suffering from a hangover.
Your recovery time slows way down also so I cant see any positive effects of a session of beer. Most lads in my home club got off the beer for 13-15 weeks last year and we won a county title. It was mostly their own choice to do it. You can only get so-fit by by drinking regularly IMO. If you get off the drink you can push on to higher levels of fitness. That said I wouldnt agree with a total drinking ban in the season, a session (within reason, nothing crazy) is Ok now and again but drinking every weekend is out of the question. IMO
I reckon this time of year its important to scale down or quit the beer for a while just so that you can get to a good level fitness and then after a while during the summer e.t.c you can have your few pints . I find it easier to recover from a session when im fit. But i suppose you have to watch how close to games that you drink
QuoteI disagree on that one Zulu. Im not playing GAA at a serious level but I like to stay fit. I find that a session of beer sets you back a week or so as regards training and fitness. A major session sets me back a lot more.
Drinking alcohol itself stops the body from breaking down vital nutrients that food provides. The food you eat while on the beer or hungover will more than likely be stored as fat rather than energy. Therefore your muscles are not getting the fuel it needs to recover/build when you are on the beer/suffering from a hangover.
Your recovery time slows way down also so I cant see any positive effects of a session of beer. Most lads in my home club got off the beer for 13-15 weeks last year and we won a county title. It was mostly their own choice to do it. You can only get so-fit by by drinking regularly IMO. If you get off the drink you can push on to higher levels of fitness. That said I wouldnt agree with a total drinking ban in the season, a session (within reason, nothing crazy) is Ok now and again but drinking every weekend is out of the question. IMO
While most of what you say is true enough AB I think you're missing my point (or I'm not expressing myself properly). If you want to improve your cardiovascular fitness and you go about it in the proper manner then regardless of what you eat or what you drink your cardiovascular fitness will improve. Your diet won't improve or dis-improve your cardio ability rather it affects your recovery and the body's ability to engage in serious training and of course your weight. Remember that I'm not saying you should drink 8 pints every Saturday what I'm saying is that on weekends if you don't have a game and you want to go out for a meal with the girlfriend and some friends there is nothing wrong with having some wine and a few beers in the club afterwards. That won't undo your fitness levels in anyway whatsoever.
I often go without any drink for 3-5 months when I'm training seriously but that isn't because the drink in itself would affect me but because I'd need 3-5 days to get back training after a serious session i.e. I'd lose nearly a week of training. The ideal for all people is not to drink at all since alcohol offers the body nothing valuable but as amateur sports people I feel that loosing out on that social aspect of life is something that GAA coaches over emphasize. If your average adult male goes out and has 6 pints over a 5 hour period on a Saturday night he should be fine to train again on Monday and if weight loss isn't an issue then I'd not worry about it too much. In saying that I wouldn't encourage it every week but certainly every second week is fine. The problem arises when fellas drink 12 pints and a lash of vodkas and red bulls, now that's a different story.
Quote
Your diet won't improve or dis-improve your cardio ability rather it affects your recovery and the body's ability to engage in serious training and of course your weight.
Surely if you have a poor diet you will not be able to get the most out of a good cardio session and therefore not improve your cardio fitness. I agree drinking 12 pints and wiskeys or vodkas will affect you big time it will take a toll on your weight as well
Your diet is important for providing the energy, nutrients and minerals that will allow your body to function to its optimum. But if two lads went on a 12 week training program designed to improve cardio fitness and one ate a very healthy diet and the other ate an average diet, you couldn't say with any confidence that the first guy would improve more than the second guy. At Olympian level everything becomes important because small improvements can be the difference between winning and losing but at club level GAA while your diet and social life needs to be sensible it can be overemphasized. Again I'm not saying forget about eating healthily and drink like a fish I'm just saying that living the life of a monk may do you more harm than good, we all need to unwind every now and again so having a few pints with your friends can be a release for players. Club level GAA needs to lighten up IMO as long as players are sensible there is no harm in a social life.
you should not be condoning binge drinking
2-3 pints is more than enough for someone to help enjoy themselves and not impact too much on fitness levels.
rest is the most important thing in any training schedule. your body cannot improve itself in any way without proper rest
I agree to a large extent Zulu- i wouldn't have been capable of drinking 6 pints and still can't -but 2-3 is no harm once a week. I wholeheartedly concur that club Gaa needs to lighten up a bit- people aren't professionals and expecting people to live like amateur monks is ridiculous at club level. There is such a culure of training to playing games that i often marvel at these teams that stay off the beer for 6 months, train like demons and then tank come summer time- and wonder what went wrong? They might play a whole lot better if they lightened up sometime.
Quote from: Zulu on February 11, 2008, 04:08:07 PM
We all need to unwind every now and again so having a few pints with your friends can be a release for players. Club level GAA needs to lighten up IMO as long as players are sensible there is no harm in a social life.
Id agree with the first part of that Zulu, you need to relax and enjoy life now and again.
However you might think that the at club level, the GAA need to lighten up as regards players drinking etc. I think its the players themselves that have chosen the lifestyle of training and keeping fit and looking after their body. Not that much pressure is put on players these days to get off the drink, its more a players choice.
The game has changed like that in recent years. Things at club level have moved on from the time where you went on the piss after every championship match. Club players at all levels are making that conscious decision. I see it myself at even junior level. I see junior teams in the gym, on diets and training hard. I head a man say; "God be with the days when you played a Junior game on a Saturday across the county and didnt come home until the Monday morning". That day is gone. The game has moved on. Its at a much more professional level nowadays and players individually are always looking for ways to get fitter, eat better and look after their bodys. The pressure is not coming from the hierarchy as players know, to compete at the standard today you need to make certain sacrifices. Sessions of beer and drinking most weekends are part of that sacrifice.
QuoteId agree with the first part of that Zulu, you need to relax and enjoy life now and again.
However you might think that the at club level, the GAA need to lighten up as regards players drinking etc. I think its the players themselves that have chosen the lifestyle of training and keeping fit and looking after their body. Not that much pressure is put on players these days to get off the drink, its more a players choice.
The game has changed like that in recent years. Things at club level have moved on from the time where you went on the piss after every championship match. Club players at all levels are making that conscious decision. I see it myself at even junior level. I see junior teams in the gym, on diets and training hard. I head a man say; "God be with the days when you played a Junior game on a Saturday across the county and didnt come home until the Monday morning". That day is gone. The game has moved on. Its at a much more professional level nowadays and players individually are always looking for ways to get fitter, eat better and look after their bodys. The pressure is not coming from the hierarchy as players know, to compete at the standard today you need to make certain sacrifices. Sessions of beer and drinking most weekends are part of that sacrifice.
I'd agree with all of that AB and I rarely drink myself so lads who make a consious decision not to drink for their sport is fine by me and to be lauded. All I was saying is that some coaches can make demands on players social lives that aren't needed and are of little benefit. If a player is happy to adstain from drinking then more power to him.
Quoteyou should not be condoning binge drinking
2-3 pints is more than enough for someone to help enjoy themselves and not impact too much on fitness levels.
I wouldn't regard 6 pints as binge drinking but I only used a random figure that I think most men could drink without being grossly hungover the following day. If you drink 2-3 pints on a night out then it would have no impact on your fitness levels at all. And that really is the point I was trying to make.
As far as i can see the commitment at club level is nearly as bad as county level. Club players now are probably putting in as much commitment as some county teams. Players have really changed their attitude towards training methods, diets, drinking. But its true what Zulu and Abbeysider say, you cant live a monk, you need to blow off some steam every now and then, its good for you.