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HVo2Max Testing in Los Angeles. Are you an athlete -
Runner, cyclist or a triathlete ? Then you know how important
metabolic testing is for your training regamint. Vo2 medical of Los
angeles is one of the top Vo2 max Testing centers in the County, one
of the few who uses Korr Equipment. Learn more about us at
http://www.vo2medical.com/
ARTICLE
VO2 Medical
What Goes Up Must Come Down
Did you know that there are over 85 billion web pages? Google
archives about 8 billion pages, so if you ?Google? a keyword or
phrase, I am sure you will find something that comes close to what
you are looking for. The health and fitness industry is a
multi-billion dollar industry, so there?s no doubt that a great deal
of information is available online on fitness-related topics. Search
for ?interval training? and you may just have a plethora of web pages
to browse - say about 1 million or so. How?s that for overwhelming?
And if that?s not enough, the WayBack Machine (an Internet Archive
organization) allows users to view millions of sites and pages that
date back to 1996 and are no longer available online. Wow! Talk about
information overload!
So where to begin? How do you know where to get your training
information? I would always recommend credible sources like textbooks
written by physiologists and the like within the sports training
industry as ideal reference sources. I use them a great deal myself.
But it?s also possible to find great tips online; just be sure to
cross-reference and make sound conclusions based on the information
you find. My hope is that the information I share with you can help
you to achieve a balanced training program and a better understanding
of proper training for endurance performance - without overwhelming
you. It?s pretty simple, really. Work at a higher intensity, and
expect to see a boost in your athletic performance.
Let?s talk a bit about what happens during an interval session. What
does a good interval session look like?
Intervals are comprised of ?work? and ?rest? intervals; the rest
intervals don?t allow for complete recovery, however. One thing to
keep in mind is that the harder the work, the longer the rest
interval needs to be. By now you have probably heard the term High
Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) used quite often when explaining
cardio workouts. HIIT mixes high intensity bursts with moderate
intensity recovery periods. You may sprint for 30 seconds, for
example, then jog slowly for 90 seconds. This would conclude one
interval. The intensity and number of intervals completed per
training session would be dependent on your overall physical
condition, goals and training stage. The initial conditioning stage
would include the first four to six weeks of training. The
improvement conditioning stage would take place during the next three
to five months. Once the desired level is achieved, you would be
within what?s considered a maintenance conditioning phase.
An ideal training session should include three components: a warm-up,
the workout and the cool down. The importance of the warm-up exercises
should be noted, as these increase cardiac output and blood flow to
the skeletal muscles to be used during the training session. During
this phase, muscle temperature is also increased. A proper warm-up
may reduce the risk of muscle injury. (I pulled my rectus femoris
[quad muscle] on a cold winter morning in high school by just
squatting down to get a cough drop in my backpack. This injury caused
years of lower back pain and took lots of expensive therapy to heal.
Imagine going into a full-out sprint without a proper warm-up?! The
risk far outweighs the benefit.) Cool-down exercises are a necessary
means to getting blood back to central circulation from the skeletal
muscles used during the activity. The length of the beginning and
ending phases of the workouts can vary from five to thirty minutes.
When planning an interval training program, you should look to
increase the duration first, then the intensity. An increase of 10%
every two weeks is sufficient. You should avoid going all out too
fast, as you need something to progress to as you get fitter and
faster. Injury prevention is also important. A good session may
include a five-minute warm-up jog, then a few intervals, then a
cool-down jog and stretching session, for instance.
If you were to perform running intervals on a track, you might look
to sprint the first 200 meters, then jog for 400 meters, then sprint
again for 30 seconds, or about 200 meters. If this is too strenuous,
try sprinting the first straight portion of the track, then
recovering with a light jog for the remaining meters of the track.
You might eventually progress to full-lap sprints, or about 60
seconds. Michael Johnson holds the men?s world record for the 400
meters; but as much as I?d like to see you do it, you probably won?t
be able to complete a full lap in 43.18 seconds.
Interval training does not need to be completed using exact time
measurements, however. Fartlek training (speed play) allows for more
customization depending on how the individual feels. You might go for
a run in your neighborhood and decide to sprint one full block, then
jog for a few minutes until you feel another burst of energy and are
ready to try again. The mind is a powerful thing, and you might be
able to push yourself harder by setting goals. I had a coworker once
ask me how I motivated myself to complete my runs. I shared a secret
with her that I have been using for years. I told her that when I am
getting tired I pick a landmark away in the distance and say to
myself, ?I?ll stop when I get there.? But then when I do arrive at
that landmark I convince myself that I feel just fine, and instead
choose something else as my new ?goal?. I keep doing this until I
feel that I?ve achieved a satisfactory run.
The most common reason people cite for not exercising is lack of
time. Lack of results is also a huge disappointment for many. Your
body becomes conditioned to the same responses, so you need to make
changes that will ?shock your system?. Interval training will do just
that. AND it can save you time. As Emeril Lagasse would say, ?Spice it
up a notch. BAM!? The New York Times published an article about the
benefits of interval training in which it mentioned a study completed
by the Journal of Applied Physiology. The study found that 75% of the
subjects doubled their endurance after just two weeks of interval
training. The individuals in the control group demonstrated no
improvement in endurance. Those at risk of heart attack or other
cardiorespiratory problems, and those with joint problems should
proceed with caution to such training. Interval training is a great
way to make improvements in VO2 max. But in order to achieve the best
overall health, nutrition, exercise and lifestyle change are all
crucial to success.
Keywords: Vo2 Max, Vo2 Max Testing, Vo2 Testing Los Angeles
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