We’ve all experienced periods in our fitness programs where everything goes right for an extended period of time. Such periods are the exception, rather than the rule. But, man, are they amazing to experience when we’re blessed by them. Personally, and I’m guessing the same goes for you, I wish I could hang on to such gifts indefinitely. Not a realistic expectation, though.
That’s a tall order that’s impossible to achieve as no one has a week that doesn’t have schedule changes that don’t affect their training schedule. Changes in schedules that interrupt training aren’t good for the brain. The brain loves to see a progression on paper that shows systematic improvement over time. When it sees that it’s happy. But, when it sees holes in training schedules it concludes that fitness gains will disappear and improvements won’t be possible. The consequence of that on our psyche is often despondency, impatience, and the insatiable impulse to double up on training to catch up or proactively store up fitness gains to make up for the calendar holes. That math makes sense to the mind as the equation does pan out as far as training loads go on paper. And, sure, most can tolerate high volume/intensity for a week or two. But, the reality of compressed time lines while maintaining set training loads ultimately ends in two things – illness or injury.
The irony of this is that not only are the illness and injury preventable but when they occur put a person back much further in their training more than had they just appropriately adjusted their training schedule. The ideal solution when schedules change and open holes in training programs is to train exactly as the training program was originally set when training times are available without trying to catch up. When this approach is adhered to fitness gains will occur, perhaps a bit slower than hoped for a short period of time, but eventually that gains will be made as if no schedule change had occurred. A slower pace also offers the body the chance restore hormone levels that are decimated by attempts to catch up.
The importance of having a well-functioning and healthy immune system has become increasingly obvious in recent times.
Sadly, everyone seems to have a different answer as to how you should go about strengthening your immune system. When you go to your local health and wellness shop, you might see twenty or thirty products that tout their “immune boosting” powers. An Amazon search reveals thousands of results.
Well, we’re here to tell you about an effective and ancient remedy that has been in use for over two thousand years: the red reishi mushroom.
We’ve all heard about all the negative effects of stress and the modern lifestyle.
We’re all rushing around, overworked, in a constant state of fight-or-flight and it has disastrous effects on our health.
But what if “stress” wasn’t the real problem?
What if our bodies knew exactly how to cope with the intensity of modern life… if we just gave the body what it needed to thrive?
And the key may be one little mineral.
I hope this finds you healthy and able to still get outside (or inside) for a daily run during this trying time of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many of us are grieving several losses including race cancellations. Though it's a bummer, I want you to know that your hard-earned training is far from wasted.
Those miles are in your legs and all kinds of wonderful benefits have occurred including the addition of mitochondria, adding new capillary beds for increased blood flow, and strengthening the heart muscle for future training.
As athletes, it's important for us to be proactive in maintaining a strong immune system. We're not only doing this for our own prevention but also our loved ones that we spend time with.
Read on for 5 tips to consider as you seek to stay healthy.
