Personal exercise plan
Planning
I am going to organise my plan and then perform a personal exercise program, the overall aims of my personal training programme are to: -
. Improve specific and current fitness levels required for my sporting activity football e.g. Cardio vascular endurance
2. To improve fitness levels so I can concentrate more on my techniques and skills without having to worry about whether I can endure a full practice session.
3. To improve the level of the standard of my performance and become more successful with my chosen sport 'football'.
I will organise a set number of sessions over a period of time these will be spread out sufficiently so that I have enough recovery time between each training session. This will be about three times a week with two days rest periods in between. The standard of football I'm at is a very high standard with me training regularly about twice a week plus games on the weekend. I also compete at Borough and County levels.
The individual differences of an athlete mean that the benefits of training are optimised when programmes are set to meet the needs and abilities of an individual. An aspect, which may help me to succeed, may not help another this always has to be taken into account when devising my fitness programme.
Fitness Requirements
Muscular Strength is required in football and is an aspect of my fitness which I feel could be improved, this will help me as it will mean that the extra strength will help me to win the ball in the air and in tackles helping me to be more successful within football. To gain better muscular strength I will be carrying out:
Weight training sessions; in order to develop this aspect of my fitness. In order to improve my muscle strength, I will not only be using the weight machines at the local gym but also free weights. To gain muscle strength I will use medium to heavy weights (70-80 per cent IMR) and will perform a low number of repetitions.
Flexibility - This factor of fitness is needed in every sport and is needed sufficiently within football to perform at a high level. Flexibility is the range of movements possible at a joint; the elasticity of ligaments, tendons, the strength of the surrounding muscles and the shape of articulating bones determine the range of these movements. The ability to carry out a wide range of movement's means I can perform even constantly required movements such as shooting the football at a higher level. Flexibility is lost very quickly through inactivity and the athlete must constantly develop a lack of flexibility training and so. Flexibility work should be carried out at the beginning of the training session after a warm up when the muscles are warm, though must be done lightly and at the end of a training session when the muscles are at there warmest as part of a warm down.
I scored highly on the sit and reach test, which indicates that I have a good amount of flexibility in the hamstrings and lower back. From the national averages my results are rated excellent
Speed and power - is needed within football and especially with the position I play in. As I play on the wings in midfield I am required to have speed and power to attack on breaks and take players on but also to get back on a defensive role. Speed will need to be improved to gain a higher level of performance when attacking with the ball.
Power will enable me to compete with greater success when trying to win the ball in a tackle and in the air.
* Power is the amount of work done per unit of time, so when we consider human movement is the product of strength and speed.
* The same work (strength) can be done in a shorter period of time (speed).
An increased amount of work (strength) can be done in the same period of time.
On my personal fitness profile the power aspect of my fitness scored very highly but I still need there is room for improvement. Plyometric training would be necessary for me to improve this area of my fitness. Plyometrics is a method of training, which may improve the speed at which a muscle shortens.
It has long been established that muscles generate more force in contraction when they have been previously stretched. Plyometrics enables this to occur by taking through an eccentric (lengthened) phase before a powerful concentric (shortening) phase. This stimulates adaptation within the neuromuscular system whereby the muscle spindles within the muscle causing a stretch reflex, which prevents muscle damage and produces a more powerful concentric contraction of the muscle group. This has important consequences for sprinting, jumping and throwing events in athletics, as well as in games such as football, volleyball and basketball where leg strength is central to ...
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It has long been established that muscles generate more force in contraction when they have been previously stretched. Plyometrics enables this to occur by taking through an eccentric (lengthened) phase before a powerful concentric (shortening) phase. This stimulates adaptation within the neuromuscular system whereby the muscle spindles within the muscle causing a stretch reflex, which prevents muscle damage and produces a more powerful concentric contraction of the muscle group. This has important consequences for sprinting, jumping and throwing events in athletics, as well as in games such as football, volleyball and basketball where leg strength is central to performance.
Current levels of fitness
COMPONENT
FITNESS
TEST
RESULT
Compared with national averages
Muscular strength
Flexibility
Sit and Reach
36cm
excellent
Agility
Illinois agility run
5.0 seconds
excellent
Power
These specific fitness requirements were tested as they are specific for football and the areas I find weak within my fitness. After the six weeks of training I will retake these specific fitness tests to see if they have improved, I will then be able to evaluate the successfulness of my PEP.
By improving these aspects of my fitness I will also improve my success in football.
Age and Gender
When putting together my PEP it is important to take into account my age and gender. Male's national averages for fitness are higher for most aspects of fitness and men tend to have more muscle strength and less body fat. However women's flexibility levels have a higher national average for the sit and reach test.
Our maximum fitness levels peak in our twenties when the body is fully developed, from around eleven years of age, males grow taller and stronger were as females are more flexible. Males produce a hormone called testosterone, which promotes the growth of muscles and bones. Males generally have bigger hearts and lungs and therefore produce more blood with higher concentrations of haemoglobin. These enables them to transport oxygen with greater efficiency, which means their muscles, work harder for longer.
Males have a narrower pelvis than women do and this means that it easier for them to transmit power, which helps with most sports. Males can usually run faster due to them having longer bones and bigger muscles. As women have a greater amount of body fat there is more strain put on the heart, muscles and joints.
Age causes the functioning of cardio-respiratory to decrease for many reasons:
* Maximum heart rate decreases by one beat per minute every year, this effects the cardiac output which then decreases as we age.
* Stroke volume also decreases due to the lying down of collagen fibres in the myocardium of the heart. This reduces the elasticity and the contractility.
These factors reduce blood flow and decrease ability to transport oxygen to working muscles. Aerobic capacity decreases at estimate rate of 10% per decade, largely due to a reduced VO2 max and a decreased a-VO2 difference (less oxygen is being taken from the blood and utilised in the muscles).
* Lung tissue lose elasticity with age which reduces the capacity and the amount of oxygen that gets to the muscles
* Effectiveness of the muscular-skeletal system change with ageing. Decrease muscle strength, mass, body fat and an increase in the percentage of slow twitch muscle fibres can occur with age.
* Decrease in the ability of the nervous system to initiate and respond to stimuli.
Nutrition and diet
Whatever the sport or activity, it is now widely recognised that diet and nutrition is vital to successful performance. Whether it be training or competition a well balanced diet is essential for optimum success. To enable the body to function at its peak during the daily training regimes, an adequate diet is needed. The diet should not only be designed to provide the energy required during exercise, but it should also provide the necessary nutrients for tissue growth and repair and those needed to keep the human machine functioning at its optimal level. There are six types of nutrient required:
* Carbohydrate
* Fat
* Protein
* Vitamins
* Minerals
* Water
Carbohydrate comes in various forms, including simple sugars (glucose, fructose) and complex starches (rice, pasta, potatoes)
This nutrient is vital to the athlete while training as it is our primary energy fuel (particularly high intensity training, which is what I will be carrying out) and is essential for our nervous system to function properly. Carbohydrates should compromise about 65% of the athlete's diet. Carbohydrate is stored in the muscles and the liver as glycogen but the amount that can be stored here is limited and constant refuelling is required. Sources of carbohydrates include fruit, cereals, vegetables and confectionery.
Fat is also a major source of energy in our bodies when doing low intensity exercise such as endurance activities. When resting up to 70% of our energy comes from fat.
In our body fat exists as:
* Triglycerides( the stored form of fat )
* Fatty acids ( the usable form of fat )
When sufficient oxygen is available to the muscle cell during exercise (during aerobic respiration) fatty acids is the favoured fuel for energy. The body tries to spare limited stores of glycogen for higher intensity activities, which can delay the effects of fatigue.
Through training the body adapts by increasing its ability to use fat as a fuel. Fat is not the sole source of energy while exercising due to its insolubility.
Proteins these are composed chains of amino acids and provide the function of tissue growth and repair (including muscle tissue) it produces enzymes, hormones and haemoglobin and provide energy when fat and glycogen levels are down.
For most sports people approximately 1.5g protein/kg of body weight per day should be sufficient. Sources of protein include meat, fish, poultry, beans and dairy products.
Vitamins are only needed within small amounts in the body, however they perform a very important role in energy production and metabolism. A source of vitamins is fresh fruit, vegetables and wholegrain cereals. Although some athletes think that taking large amounts of supplementation is beneficial there can sometimes be health problems.
Minerals are also needed in relatively small amounts but are vital for tissue functioning. Many of the minerals that are dissolved are ions; these have very important function of maintaining permeability of the cell, and also aid the transmission of nerve impulses and enable effective muscle contraction.
Water is a nutrient whose importance is sometimes neglected, it is vital for the sportsman as it controls the bodies temperature and carries nutrients to and removes waste from the bodies cells.
Water loss through sweating is accelerated when doing exercise in hot conditions and it's very important to maintain a level of water to keep a state of hydration. Dehydration of as little as 2% of body weight will have a great effect on performance. Even small losses of water can impair performance and adversely affect work capacity in a number of ways.
Circuit Training
Circuit training improves not only fitness requirements such as leg and arm strength but also specific sports skills, which are included within the training. Circuit training can easily be adapted to specific sports the exercises included will not only improve your fitness levels but at the same time improve your skills.
After looking at the specific fitness requirements I need to improve, and the ways, in which I can do it, I can now start to plan my sessions.
' I will carry out weight sessions on Monday and Wednesdays and circuit training on Fridays. Plus specific football training's on Thursday nights. This will be carried out for length of six weeks.'
Circuit training involves performing a number of exercises in succession, such as press-ups, abdominal curls (sit-ups) and step-ups etc. My circuit training will be based around varied exercises that can be done with weights, to improve my football skills I will carry out circuit training relative to football e.g. shooting, passing, controlling the ball etc. Each exercise usually has a set number of repetitions or a set time, this can also be adapted to meet specific fitness requirements e.g. My fitness requirements include muscle strength, agility and power and speed.
Strength training
I will carry out this type of training gain more muscle strength, which is a fitness requirement I feel needs improving. To do this I will carry out weight or resistance training this type of training is known as plyometrics. This will help develop strength and explosive power.
Because I am working on muscle strength I will need to perform 3 sets of 2-6 repetitions at 80-100% of maximum strength, with full recovery between sets.
Key points for power development is:
a) That the movement and contraction period is explosive to ensure the muscle works rapidly.
b) To use very high loads or resistance which will encourage the muscle to recruit all its motor units
c) To ensure the muscle recovers fully between sets, enabling the relevant energy system to recover.
Safety Aspects
When carrying out my training sessions I have to make sure that all the exercises are carried out safely with equipment set out correctly, especially when using the weights. When carrying out the weight lifting training sessions I have make sure I am doing the exercise correctly so that I don't injure myself, reference to text books and from my teacher to see if am doing the exercises correctly. When lifting the weights I will make sure there is someone else present supporting me so that just in case the weight is too much they are there to help me. As I have experience using the weights and machines I will be use them safely and correctly. To prevent injury I will not continuously exercise one body part so variation in the muscles I work on will be needed e.g. Arm, leg trunk, cardiovascular. I have to make sure that each training session is spaced out so that I have enough recovery time in between each session, so that the body can regenerate and adapt before I carry out another training session. Elite athletes in search for the best performance often over train, by increasing training levels and frequency above their optimum level. The symptoms for overtraining are feeling fatigue, loss of appetite, muscle tiredness, sleep disturbances and head colds.
Warm Up
To prevent injury I must make sure I contain a warm up and cool down before and after every training session. A warm makes sure that the body is ready for exercise by increasing the blood flow around the body, this prevents injury, muscle soreness, makes stretching alot safer as the muscles are warm and also has the following physiological benefits.
* Adrenaline is released which will increase heart rate and dilate capillaries, which enables greater efficiency of the blood and respiratory systems. It allows a greater amount blood and oxygen to be delivered to the muscles.
* Body temperatures will increase and therefore will facilitate enzyme activity, this will increase muscle metabolism and will make sure there is a readily available supply of energy through the break down of glycogen and if working aerobically then the break down of fat stores.
* The increased temperatures will also mean that there is less viscosity within the muscles. This will enable greater elasticity of muscle fibres, which ultimately leads to increased speed and force of the contraction.
* The warm up will make me more alert, due to an increase in the speed of nerve impulse conduction.
* There will be certain psychological benefits through the warm up, especially if the performer has superstitions or rituals that hey follow. As it will mentally prepare them for the performance or training session.
To make sure that I get everything out of the warm up I must follow three stages of the warm up.
) The first phase of the warm up will help raise my heart rate, and increase the rate of oxygen being delivered to the muscles and it will help raise body temperature. This will be achieved by carrying out a cardiovascular exercise such as jogging.
2) As the body temperature is increased, the muscles will be warm and I can carry out flexibility or stretching exercises. It is important that both static stretches and some type of calisthetic type activities are performed were the muscles are working over its full range e.g. Press-ups and squat thrusts are good examples.
3) The final stage of the warm up will include a sport specific or skill related component were the muscles are working in relation to the activity to follow e.g. Shooting basketballs, tennis serving.
Stretches for stage two.
I will mainly be carrying out static stretches for stage two. I will perform voluntary muscular contractions and hold for a period of 20-30 seconds. By continuously relaxing the target muscle at limit of the range of movement.
) I will start off by stretching my quadriceps muscles. This will be done by hyperextension of the pelvic joint this will then flex the quads.
2) I will then stretch my hamstrings. This will be done by sitting on the flaw and
Reaching forward and touching my toes. So that I don't injure myself I will have someone to support me while carrying out the exercise.
3)I will then stretch my gastrocnemius (calf) muscle. This will be done pressing against a wall with one leg stretched out and then pressure will be applied.
4) To stretch my triceps I will carry out two stretches. The first one with the arm across the front of my body and the second behind my back with my elbow pointing upwards
5) To stretch my abdominal muscles I will lie flat on the ground and raise the upper part of my body stretching the abdominal muscles.
6) I will then stretch my ankles this will be important due me having previous ankle injuries. This will prevent them from reoccurring.
Are the stretches sport related?
The stretches I carry out in the warm up are there to help me improve my flexibility. The stretches will be of a higher intensity in the cool down. IN the warm to each training session I will only do static stretching and not active stretching as if I over stretch before the training session it could cause injuries, the main purpose of stretching in the warm up is to help warm up the muscles and make the muscle tissue more elastic so that I don't injure myself.
Cool Down
Once the training session is carried out a similar process to that of the warm up in order to prevent unnecessary discomfort such as sore muscles in following day of the training session. I will need to continue some kind of light exercise after each training session, so the heart rate remains elevated. The purpose of the cool down is to keep metabolic activity high, and capillaries dilated, so that oxygen can be flushed through the muscle tissue, removing and oxidising any lactic acid that remains.
