Fitness Around Christmas

Talking to friends and clients over the last 10 years has taught me a lot about how people view their exercise through December and January. 

So this is Christmas

It's a particularly tough time for many people so I've written this post to help others understand why some struggle and others thrive. 


I'll also discuss how you can set yourself up for daily exercise, without sacrificing quality social time.  


The Different Mind Sets

For many people, who I've talked to, the festive season is the absolute hardest time of the year to work out. Routines become disturbed by holidays, discipline is tested by Christmas gatherings and many of the organised trainings and competitions take a break.

For others it's an annual opportunity to train without having to fit it into a pre-arranged time slot such as before the birds wake up, the working lunch break or after a full day at the office.

These people love the opportunity to spend more time with friends and family but also love being able to schedule a longer workout between a backyard cricket match and the family lunch.

Fun Time with the Family

1. "I'll get back into it in the New Year"
When asked to attend a staff function, some of my clients see it as a great opportunity to let the hair down and if it means having to miss a workout then so be it. Regardless of how many functions they're invited to, they are special occasions and any loss of health or fitness through this period is simply what happens during the festive season.

Many people actually figure they're going to make the most of Christmas by eating all of their favourite unhealthy foods, drinking till late and putting a hold on their exercise. They've been sacrificing all of these behaviours since last January and they're not going to get do so again for another 10-11months.

This mind set is a sure sign of someone who has not actually embraced the concept of a healthy and balanced lifestyle. They put weight on each Christmas and struggle to lose it in the months between. They hate coming back to work in the new year and hate coming back to exercise even more.

Don't make exercise harder than it needs to be

2. "I'm Just Too Busy"
Some of the reasons I hear for not exercising during the festive season are actually very similar to those I hear from people who can't fit exercise into their working week.

They refuse to prioritise the time over other important tasks and will not put this very personal need over the needs of others who may not understand.

Many people just aren't used to putting themselves first, so spend all holiday running the kids around and cooking meals for others. They may have tried and given up asking for help, but figured the job will get done faster if they do it themselves.

Christmas is a time for giving so why not give your body the attention it deserves?

3. "Yahooooo, it's Christmas!"
The clients who I find come back to work feeling the best about their holidays are those who:

•  took their training to another level
• attended and enjoyed various social functions without eating or drinking to excess
• spent plenty of quality time with their family

Having achieved all this for their first Christmas ever, returns the happiest of clients. They managed to push ahead with their training, not only keeping everyone else happy but even managed to get them involved.

I can't think of a better way to enjoy your kids than while exercising with them. Contrast this with having a hangover as you try to enjoy the summer sun and active kids who would give anything to have you join them.

Get up for the Sun rise this Festive Season!

How to Thrive through Christmas!
If you'd like to truly enjoy your holiday then that good feeling needs to last beyond the Festive Season. If you spend half of your time racing around trying to get everything done, or recovering from the previous night's excesses then you're not going to look back on your time so fondly.

Here are some big things you need to setup if you'd like to be able to look back on a Great Festive Season:

1. Build a Team Environment
You'll be surprised how well people will grow to enjoy helping around the house if they notice the positive effect it has on you. If you can catch up and bond with friends and family while they help clean the kitchen or cook then they're more likely to do it without being asked later on.

This will free up time for activities which everyone can enjoy such as Back Yard Cricket, Scrabble or Sing Star! Setting out a couple of teams such as Boys and Girls, Old and Young or Tall and Short can add some ongoing, friendly competition which encourages banter and a great atmosphere around the house.

Tug of War is a Great way to bring people together

2. Promote your Daily Exercise Time
Once you've got everyone in a mood of sharing and caring, it's time to let people know when you're going to be out training. You may get some funny looks at first but each time you return, positively glowing from a workout, they'll accept it and hopefully get in behind you.

Whether you go off for a jog, a swim at the beach or a game of tennis, this is something you need to be proud of and committed to doing each and every day. You don't need to train hard each time you go out, in fact, you should either make every day a light session or alternate between easy and hard.

Every day seems like a big deal, but it's not. This is not just your time to exercise, it's your time to do get away and think about how you're going to make this day a joy for everyone you see. Doing it every day removes the question of when and whether you're training and it's the perfect excuse for going to bed at a reasonable hour.

Go and explore the neighborhood!

Few people have the opportunity to book out a slot for themselves every day during the working week, but over the festive season you'll actually find people congratulating you for your commitment.

3. Settle for a Great Time 
For most of us, the middle of the day is for kids, the afternoon is for family and the evening is for fun. This means your best opportunity for a daily workout is probably in the morning. One of the biggest killers of this morning workout is a late night of excesses.

If you find it hard to resist the urge to enjoy your food, drink and company into the early hours of the next day then this may just be where you're doing the most harm to your holiday experience.

There's nothing wrong with having a few drinks after dinner, but there comes a time when you're either going to:

•  turn in with a glass of water, excited about your early morning workout 

Party hard, but not too late!

or 

• grab another drink, a handful of crisps and destroy any hope of waking in time to enjoy your Daily Exercise Time

Getting back on the Scales should be Fun!

Sorry if this Upsets You
What you've just read will either make perfect sense or annoy you to no end.

Many people see the festive season as their reward for sacrificing over-indulgence all year so will only consider my suggestions when their doctor warns them to.

The people I most want reading this are those who want to get fitter and feeling better about themselves at the end of their holiday. If this post did make perfect sense and you think others could benefit from reading it then please forward the link on to a friend.

So what do you think?

Is any of this achievable?


I'd love to hear how you're planning to actually improve the quality of this festive season for yourself, your friends and family.


Feel free to come back and tell me how it all went.

Merry Christmas!!!

How Fitness Won the Rugby World Cup

The All Blacks have finally won the Web Ellis Cup and it took all of their fitness and depth to do so!

France Hit their Straps
Previous World Cups have shown France to be a bit of a 'One Hit Wonder', managing to pull off one fantastic performance when it counted against a higher ranked opposition but playing below their potential for most other matches.

Just when it seemed like they were about to buck the trend they pulled out a rippa performance, to give the All Blacks (and most of New Zealand) a massive scare.

New Zealand Convert their Potential
The All Blacks bucked the even less favourable trend of playing untouchable rugby before being bundled out of contention in an act commonly referred to as 'Choking" (no longer a swear word). Learning from previous Cups the All Blacks managed to get ahead on the scoreboard, leaving France to chase them instead of being the team having to push the play.

They defended well and made the most of the fact that few referees will award a match winning penalty for a minor infringement, especially in such an important fixture. As a result France were the ones to cough up possession with 5minutes left in the game and the All Blacks held on to win.

Piri to the Rescue
The All Blacks showed fantastic fitness in the tournament but there was one player not exactly known for his fitness who was pushed to his limits. Piri Weepu came into the cup expecting and prepared to play a rotating role at halfback: 50mins one game, 30 the next.

Instead he found himself playing brilliant, but intensive 80minute games, kicking goals and being publicly branded as the 'go-to-man' with Dan Carter out injured. Fatigue, public pressure, along with the added stress of losing a family member would no doubt have further lowered Piri's immune system and eventually resulted in him catching a bug before the Semi Final.

Other over-strained symptoms were the niggle he picked up in warm up and relatively poor performance in the Grand Final. Both absolutely understandable based on what he had to go through.

Piri Weepu was my Player of the Tournament.

More Injuries and More Depth
Thankfully the All Blacks had fantastic depth and a setup which lead to fringe players being ready to be come into camp, prepared to play the role of whomever needed to forfeit their position. The most obvious example of this was at first five where three replacements all managed to play the required role.

What does interest me is why three first fives managed to fall to injury. Most would call it bad luck but those responsible for each of the players' fitness would know of weaknesses predisposing each player to their particular injury. There's no doubt these players were match fit but I hope we're not about to see a continuing trend of first five injuries at Rugby World Cups.

The Effects of Fitness on this World Cup
From the start of the Rugby World Cup I've discussed the effects fitness was having on the performances and results. In the pool matches I pointed to the ability of the minnows to get up for their first match due to the state of freshness and need to prove their place.

Those performances steadily declined as teams were forced to back up 4-5 days later and lost players who did not have suitable back-up. Things got progressively worse for the underdogs but whenever the odds were even you could usually count on the team who had the lightest lead in to come out on top.

The Quarter Finals went freakishly according to who was in the best physical state, following their final pool match. The Semis were both won by the team who started the strongest and held on for dear life as did the Final. They say World Cups are won with defense and defense requires fitness.

How this all Relates to Our Own Sporting Success
Every team sport has had rule changes which make the game faster and as a result more entertaining for the public to watch. The hard thing about this is that the rule changes are also applied right down to club level, meaning less rests and more running.

If the fittest international teams are winning then the same is also happening at club and provincial level. This leaves massive potential for those teams prepared to dedicate more to their fitness. Professional sports people generally have an inactive Off-Season of 2-3 weeks, before getting back to building a base and preparing for the next campaign.

Amateur endurance athletes and individual fitness based athletes such as swimmers, runners and rowers train all year round, similar to how Winter Team Sports people play relaxed versions of their sport in Summer. The difference is that these fitness based athletes have always known their sport is about fitness, whereas many winter sports have only become fitness oriented in the last few years due to the rule changes.

Whether you play Rugby, League, Football, Netball, Hockey, Touch or Ultimate Frisbee, you are playing a Fitness based sport. Learn to make fitness part of your year round activity and you'll incur less injuries, become faster, perform better and get more game time.

Go on, Start Now before your competition get's ahead!

All Blacks Through to the Final!

Another great couple of games have decided the two finalists for the Rugby World Cup with France kicking and defending their way to victory over Wales and the All Blacks dominating Australia.

Were Wales Robbed?
There is a lot of talk about how Wales were robbed by the red card after about 10minutes but I really don't think it would have made a difference. An extra man is not going to stop you from coffing up the ball and kickable penalties.

France did what every team has done to win in these and practically every World Cup playoffs: get ahead then defend like your life depends on it. Watching Wales go through phase after phase of attack, making very few inroads tells me they just didn't have an answer to the French passion. I only hope Wales keep Warren Gatland on for the next World Cup because he'll have learned a lot over the last four years and Wales will come back stronger for it.

Can Anyone Win Pretty?
France didn't win pretty and but neither did Australia against South Africa or the All Blacks against Argentina. I said France may just have played their final against England but I was wrong. I'm even a little concerned they may not have played their big game at all so far, but hopefully they don't actually have a big game to unleash on this World Cup.

Although the All Black performance was fantastic in almost every way, we only scored one try and scoring tries is supposed to be how the All Blacks win matches. Great to see Cruden take the initiative with a drop goal and although Dagg's attempt was poor it shows that the All Blacks have accepted that winning ugly is more important that losing pretty.

The Physical and Psychological Toll
Australia did play their final against South Africa and had little left to compete with the most passionate All Blacks performance we have seen in years. Everyone bar Sonny Bill stepped up but I wasn't surprised to hear Weepu has caught a bug.

He will not have prepared for the amount of high intensity rugby he has been asked to play. Throw in the stress of expectation and the loss of a family member, Piri was always going to suffer some over training symptoms. Most bugs are coming to an end after a week so unless his stress levels remain high this week we should see the new 'go to man' take the field in the number nine jersey.

So will the All Blacks brush off France as Expected?

Tough to say. We're starting to see some signs of fatigue in the All Blacks Squad but once again they had the depth to allow tiring players to sub out early where as France had to fight all 80 minutes to get their win. We all know the All Blacks are the better team on paper and they'll run France off their feet but there is still some chance France will get a lead and hold on to win.

My pick, based again on fitness is that the All Blacks will win and by a big margin.

What do you think?

When to Start Pre-Season Training

The New Zealand Winter Sports Season is over for 2011 and many Football, Rugby, Netball and Hockey players are happy to have their Saturdays back but when should we start building fitness towards the next season?

Start Now!!

Whether you’re 3 weeks or 3months out from your first competitive match you should be doing something to prepare for next season. The less you do at the end of your season the harder it’ll be to get back into it.

It doesn't need to be painfully hard training. In fact in order to improve the durability of your ligaments it needs to start softly. Start early enough and you can progress slowly. Start slowly and you might even enjoy it.

Leave it till the last minute and you'll have to train harder and go through more pain before having another unsatisfactory season.


Getting it Wrong
Starting back in January or February when your Coach's Pre-season Training begins is dangerous!

It always starts with a hiss and a roar but our bodies just aren't ready for high intensity training yet. The coach has every right to expect the team to get straight into the sprints, shuttle runs and high intensity games because there's only one month before that pre-season tournament or the start of the season proper.

If we've taken the last 4 months off exercise then there's a good chance we're going to get unlucky and fall injured before the first game of the season.


So How do we Prevent all of that Pain and Risk of Injury?
In order to have a great pre-season with your team from January till March you'd ideally do a couple of months of Base Fitness Training before the festive season break.


Base Fitness Training should be aimed at:

• Increasing the distances we can run
• Improving our running, speed and playing technique
• Improving our durability

Two months before Christmas means starting at the end of October.

It sounds early but for most of us that's August, September and most of October which we're letting ourselves get less fit for our sport and the rigors of our Coach's Pre-Season Training.

If we don't have a Coach's Pre-Season Training then the entire team is looking at a season with moments of brilliance but dominated by cramping, injuries and frustration.

So if you want a great season for you and your team get them together and Start Now!

Rugby World Cup Semi Final Analysis

The Quarter Finals presented four great games with France redeeming their poor showing against Tonga to beat England, Wales peaking right when it counts to beat Ireland, Australia just managing to outlast South Africa and Argentina proving that they would be able to foot it with the All Blacks if they could only sustain their passion for 80 minutes.

So how will the Four Remaining Teams Fare in the Semi's?

It really is so tight that i'm going to base my picks purely on Match Fitness

Wales were fantastic against Ireland and showed better execution, equal passion and good match fitness when compared to France's win. Wales also had a slightly easier game than France and to me that'll decide it.

France showed that they do deserve to be in the playoffs by beating England but both teams were poor and I'm picking that game to have taken enough out of them to have em struggling against Wales.

The effects of a previous fixture on match performance will also be the undoing of Australia. While I believe their freshness following the pool stages helped them against South Africa, this game hurt, requiring their 'go to players' stay on the field and give 100% for the full 80minutes.

A Spanner in the Works
Though I don't want to believe it; history could have a say in this World Cup.

Apparently, every team who beats the previous World Cup Winner goes on to win the title...but we don't take history that seriously right?

The All Blacks had a hard 50minute encounter against Argentina and that hit out will have given them a better sense of the big match familiarity they require to get up for the semi final. It won't have had the same physically taxing effect as the Australia v South Africa game so I'm expecting our boys to run the Aussie to a stand still.

The only way the AB's can loose is if Craig Joubert has a shocker and allows Aussie to slow the game down.

So who will be in the Rugby World Cup Final?


The Mighty All Blacks vs The Perfectly Timed Peakers (is that a word?): Wales

Other points to consider:

• Eden Park-The AB's do not loose to Aussie at Eden Park!
• Injuries Gallore-I've intentionally disregarded the raft of injuries as they effectively cancel one another out...Has Piri really "got this"?
• Is Quade Cooper due a match winning performance? He'll be reeling after his poor Quarter Final 
• World Cup Ch@#ers: Four years of success means nothing if our boys choke against Australia

Can Wales make their first ever World Cup Final?

What do you think?

Speed Training Methods: Speed Interval Training

STS Speed Interval Training involves repeated medium to high intensity runs to a cone which is set at a particular distance from the start line.

Each athlete has their own cone and each cone is set at a distance depending on each individual's personal fitness level. This means that fitter athletes run further in the same amount of time as the less fit.

180 degree turns, 'Get up and Go', 'Jump and Go's' and other pre-sprint activities add variation and specificity to the set.

In Early Pre-season you'll find there are lower intensity runs with less recovery time than in Late Pre-season.  This means athletes are able to perform more high intensity activities when we switch to Late Pre-season in January.

See photos of Speed Interval Training in Action

See a video from You Tube

My Rugby World Cup Playoffs Analysis

This Rugby World Cup will be won by the team who performs with the best Tactical Execution, applies the right amount of Passion when it counts and has the best Match Fitness to convert the previous attributes into vital wins.

Tactical Execution
From what we've seen I think it's fair to say that the All Blacks and South Africans lead in this department but every team in the quarter finals has shown their ability to get up against good opposition, if only for brief moments, over the last six months.

There's no doubt that once again, the All Blacks have the best running game but previous World Cups have proven that you can't always rely on tries and that earning penalties and drop goal attempts in the last quarter do pay off. I just hope they've worked on this 'Plan B' option.


The Element of Surprise
If any team have been holding on to a secret strategy which they can execute well then it could lead to a major upset. We know the South Africans are going to turn to the drop goal in the big games and that Australia can play very smart when it counts. I'm just glad they're playing each other before the All Blacks.

Passion
The amount of heart each team puts into their play-offs campaign will be unquestioned. From the 'Backs to the Wall' circumstances of the underdogs in the Northern Hemisphere to the 'Defending Champions' status of South Africa and the well documented 'Favourites', 'Chokers', 'Home Nation Pressure' labels which are cast on the All Blacks. I doubt we'll see one team out passion another unless a radical tactical strategy is employed, effectively psyching out it's opposition.

Passion could enable a less skillful team to outperform a favourite but only if match fitness allows it.

Match Fitness
This comes down to pre-tournament fitness, rotation policy, depth on the bench and the toll of previous performances. Though it was prevalent in the bottom 12 teams, I don't recall seeing any of the top 8 fading in the final 15mins so far this tournament.

Looking at the quarter finals, on the other hand, the only team which does not have a hard road into the semi finals is the All Blacks. This could have added to thier undoing in previous World Cups where players were kept relatively fresh at the expense of competition familiarity which is required to perform at the highest level in sudden death sport.

Still, fatigue does carry from week to week and for those who have been asked to play big games three weekends in a row, maintaining Passion for 80minutes could become too big an ask.

South Africa, England and France have had very hard final pool games where as the All Blacks, Australia, Ireland and Wales got their hardest pool matches out of the way earlier in the tournament. I'm expecting this to give Australia the edge over South Africa on Sunday.

Player Injuries
There have been major injuries in all the top teams so depth has become a major factor in this tournament. If someone told me Dan Carter would not survive the group stages three months ago I'd say we've got no chance but because there are so many injuries in other teams and the rest of the squad is so strong, I'm still backing Black...

My Picks for the Quarter Finals

• Wales to beat Ireland based on Tactical Execution and a very subtle difference in Match Fitness.
• France to beat England based on Passion, helped by their loss to Tonga.
• Australia to beat South Africa based on Match Fitness.
• NZ to beat Argentina based on Match Fitness and Tactical Execution. I'm hoping Eden Park and the home support will nullify the Argentinian Passion...Please do not mention the word 'Complacency'!!

Go the All Blacks!!!

Fitness Variation vs Progress

They say "Variation is the Spice of Life", but how should we apply variation to our fitness?

With the invention of new methods and fitness products many Personal Trainers are ensuring their clients get a completely new workout every time they train together.

The positives are obvious to the Trainer:

• Show off your expertise and physical ability by demonstrating and teaching new exercises regularly.
• Offer clients the sense of achievement from learning new exercises.
• No need to plan anything because you have a wider range of exercises in your head than the client.
• No need to record anything because you're not going to use the same exercise variables next session.

Each of these points can be justified to an extent as it's important for trainers to demonstrate their expertise and few can spare time to plan or record and store training data.

The negatives exist only for the client:

• If you're learning a new exercise you're not progressing on a more familiar exercise.
• If you're not progressing then you're stuck doing beginner weights and progressions.
• If you're not actually progressing in any particular exercises then you're using less energy.
• If you're using less energy then you're not burning as much fat, let alone asking your body to consolidate any muscular adaptations it's made from previous sessions.
• Doing new movements causes more muscle damage and while you may think more pain equals more gain excessive muscle soreness slows you down and can even bring you down emotionally.

Muscle Confusion Theory
Trainers will often point to the idea that every newly performed workout is more effective than a regularly performed one because the body never gets a chance to make the adaptations which lead to plateaus, hence the muscle confusion theory. 

The problem is that the whole point of fitness training is to stimulate the body to adapt. It's only by adapting to a workout that we can then perform the same movements with higher intensities, weights and volumes.

How to Avoid Plateaus
Fitness plateaus are inevitable if we don't vary our training at all, but so long as we change the reps and weights every 2-3 sessions then it's going to take at least 8 sessions before we hit a plateau. The fastest way people hit a fitness plateau is to either :

1. Keep the Programme Light - This is most common in those who are not interested in exercise and simply expect that by showing up and doing anything they should see improvements.
2. Keep the Programme Heavy - This is most common in those who have the best intentions but lack guidance. 

In order to avoid plateaus and keep our training varied we need a programme which encourages Progressive Variation.


Progressive Fitness Variation
Making non-stop improvements in our fitness really is easy:

1. Whatever exercises you use, start easy. Enjoy the first few workouts of your new programme by completing the prescribed reps and sets at weights and progressions which you can do at 65-70%. The better conditioned you are the harder you should start but the first session should be no higher than a 7/10. 
2. Gradually increase the intensity and volumes, session by session, increasing the reps of each exercise but maintaining the same weight or progression level. This will still feel relatively easy (and fun) but by the end of each session you should notice that you've done more than in previous sessions. 
3. Continue to increase reps every 2-3 sessions for 3 weeks, by which time you're finding the workouts quite tough and unsure whether you'd be able to increase the reps again the following session. 
4. This is when you can drop the reps and increase the weight or progression level. Decrease the reps enough that you get a few easyish sessions with your new weights. This "back off week" is when your body get's a chance to recover from the incrementally hard training it's been doing over the previous weeks. 
5. Repeat steps 2-4 with the new weights and you'll find yourself working up to higher reps with heavier weights and progressions. 

As you can see, the progression and variation lie in the reps and weights, not just the exercises. There are no reasons why you couldn't use this process with 3 workout routines, each with a different range of exercises, which are each performed once or twice a week, on non consecutive days. Using split routines like this add further variation and allow a wider range of movements to be truly mastered, not just learned and forgotten.

How Often should I Train?
If you only perform any particular exercise once a week then you're not going to improve as fast as if you do it 2-3 times a week. If you're only training 2-3 times a week then doing 2 or 3 workout routines is going to mean slower progress at each exercise.

The equivalent could be running once a week, swimming once a week and cycling once a week. You're going to get fitter at each but not as fast as focusing on any one of them.

The same principles work for non gym based exercise, with weights interchanging with speed and reps relating to distances. Increase distance first, then drop it and increase speed. 

How Progressive Variation Works

It's easy to think that light exercise isn't going to get us anywhere and if it's all we do, it won't. But starting light does lead to neural adaptations which prepare the body to perform the same movements under heavy loads down the track. 

Progressing slowly means we get less muscle damage, which enables us to train more frequently without getting injured or having to reduce intensity for fear of causing more pain. Muscle soreness is normal with many forms of training but by minimising it we actually enable more consistent progression.

Isn't Consistent Progress what we want in our Results?

Finding a programme which starts at the right level for you can be frustrating because few fitness professionals have the time or technology to estimate the best weights to lift or speeds to train at. If you'd like affordable programmes which help you progress visit any of these pages on the STS Website:

• Gym Programmes
• Running Programmes
• Speed Programmes
• Back to Fitness Programmes

Rugby World Cup Fitness

After just one round of the Rugby World Cup many are talking about how far the "minnow" nations have come.

But what would have happened if they were able to maintain their first half performances into the final quarter of play?

Argentina scared the English, Romania scared the Scottish, Japan performed well against France, Italy had a good first half against Australia and USA had great moments against the Irish, but in every match the favoured team finished the strongest and won.

Fitter and More Skillful
The only game where a favoured team dominated from the start of the match, showing a completely different level of skill, was the All Blacks vs Tonga, but even that didn't go the way New Zealand fans were expecting. Tonga came out of the sheds looking fresh in the second half and managed to hold their own, scoring a good forwards push over try, only to fade away in the last quarter.

Backing up Against Fresh Opposition
Canada, playing their first game of the tournament beat Tonga who were playing their second game, in a match they would usually be expected to lose. Scotland have had another tough second game against Georgia who were playing their first, winning by just 9 points and unable to dot down over the Georgian line when they were also favoured to win by a big margin.

The Effects of Fatigue
If any of the minnows mentioned above were able to maintain the performance they displayed when fresh, the Rugby World Cup would be a much tighter competition. In each of the games there was a stage in the second half when the under dog nation's players started to slow down. Whether expressed with mass outnumbering on defense or guys stopping to stretch out cramps.

Players stretching their calf and hamstring muscles is a tell tail sign that they're struggling to keep up with the fitness demands being placed on their legs. The more players from minnow nations get into high level proffesional rugby the better prepared their teams will be for the physical demands of International rugby and the more upsets we'll see in future world cups.

Back to Status Quo
As for this Rugby World Cup, you can expect to see less convincing performances from the underdogs in their second and third games against the top tear. Russia, playing their first game, will push the USA but results will start to go back to what was originally expected as the minnows incur more injuries and are forced to play their top team game after game to avoid embarrassment.

STS Online Fitness Coaching
Ever thought about what you could do for your fitness if you just had a plan to follow?

Online Fitness Coaching is not new but it has come a very long way in the last few years. Online Fitness Applications such as Map My Run, Garmin Connect and GymCalc have made it easier than ever for coaches to provide quality programmes and feedback.

Features Include:

• Value for Money
• A Training Plan you can see and use
• Goals and Methods of Achievement Kept on Record
• Your Training Calendar
• Fitness Testing
• GymCalc Client Log-In Included
• Print or access your Programme on Smart Phone, Tablet, Laptop or Desktop
• Easily Record your Training
• Analyse your Results
• Other Online Tools such as Map My Run
• Discuss you Training with your Coach

Programmes can be written for:

• Marathon, Half Marathon and 10km Running
• Football Fitness
• Rugby Fitness
• Other Team Sports Fitness
• Gym, Weights, Flexibility and Stability Programmes
• Strength Training, Plyometrics, Power Training

STS Online Fitness Coaching fosters your motivation by providing results you can see in numbers and feel in yourself.

Running for Speed: Part 3

Know How Fast You're Running

There are a range of ways to estimate how fast you're actually running, while you do it:

Knowing the distance and time regularly such as on a 400m track, 500m or 1km marks on a flat footpath. All you'll then need is a stopwatch and a good mathmatics brain/calculator.

Pedometer based systems which calculate speeds based on a pre-entered stride length multiplied by stride frequency which is recorded each time your foot lands.

A GPS training system which calculates your speed depending on how far you travel every second or so. 

Treadmills turn the conveyor belt at the speed you input, meaning you just need to keep up.

Each system has it's advantages and disadvantages which I'll discuss in this post. I'll also discuss my preferred methods and where i see the future of speed analysis going.

Distance Track with Stop Watch

Using a track can be boring if you're not used to running in such an environment. Even a 1km track can get monotinous if you're running more than 6km. If you're a numbers person and can keep your focus on pace and running technique then the time can fly by but that also depends whether you're doing even paced or interval training. 

Using a basic stopwatch and a track as described above is by far the cheapest option as the most tracking devices rarely come for less than $300NZ.

It is harder to know whether you're going at the right speed until you're approaching the next marker/lap as you can only see how much time you have to get to the next marker. This can often leave you speeding up or slowing down to a walk in order to stick to the correct average speeds. 

If you're using the most basic stopwatch you'll need to print out your split times or record them on your hand every workout. If you have a lap timer then you only need to know how much time you're allowed on each fast and slow lap which means no comparing pen to watch. If you don't keep an eye on the overall time it's easy to get away from the overall average speed of the workout, even if you're only missing the prescrided time by a few seconds each lap.

GPS Training Devices

GPS is the most accurate distance running speed analysis tool i have used next to a cycle speedometer. The ones i have used fluctuate a lot at slower instantaneous running speeds but level off at average speeds over 100m+. As a result i set the display to average lap speed so i know i just need to keep the speed as close to that prescribed as possible until the next marker/split. 

If you can set an auto lap then you can run anywhere flat and with relatively little wind. Having used the Garmin Forerunner series of devices i struggle to go for a run without one now as i just can't stand not knowing my average speeds and heart rates. When you can download your speeds, heart rates, elevation and distances into a graph and chart it doesn't take long to figure out why you got that stitch, muscle cramp or simply started feeling empty. It will also become obvious why you had such a good run that you just wanted to pick up the pace over the final 2km to use what was left in the tank! This is the best feeling you can get in traininer and part of the reasons we runners run. 

GPS Application on your Smartphone
There are now hundreds of Applications such as RunKeeper and Map My Run which are gaining popularity and I suspect it won't be long before the wireless watch and heart rate monitor are made available to make it easier to monitor speed and heart rate while you run.

RunKeeper allows your iphone's built in GPS system to display your current speed, distance and time. I am yet to use one as i don't have an iphone, but i've had a few NZ friends report that the GPS keeps loosing signal so i'd be interested to hear from anyone who has tried this app overseas. I've read good things on the website so i'm sure the GPS signal will improve as will the application. As technology advances, i doubt the training aids will be able to keep up with the cell phones although i haven't run with an iphone strapped to my upper arm yet. 

Foot Pods/Pedometers

My experiences with top of the line polar pedometers are not great when compared to cycle speedo and gps in the same session. Due to this i do not use them but if you've paid out for one and do not want to switch to a gps device then try to recalibrate it to match the speed of a cycle speedo over 1km at around 80% max. Even if it's not spot on it will at least give you an idea of when you're slowing down or going too fast relative to what you were at the start of the session. You can still compare how long it took you to run the total distance to the prescribed time to determine whether you went too fast or slow.

Treadmills

Treadmills are very good at keeping us at the correct speeds but how much they help our outdoor running is up for discussion. I suggest using a 1-2degree incline to make up for the fact you're not actually propelling yourself forward so much as you are propelling yourself vertically. I'll use a treadmill if it's no good outside but you need to find out how much easier you find the same workout on a flat treadmill so you can figure out the amount of incline to use. 

In Summary

• It's not good enough to be prescribed workouts based on time running at perceived intensities 
• You can get a program which sets the speeds for you to run at 
• You can run at those speeds, knowing that you're doing the best to make optimal improvements to your running.

This article is derived from the STS Fitness and Nutrition Website

Running for Speed: Part 2

Knowing the Right Speeds to Train and Race 

What you and your coach really need to know is how fast you should be able to run other distances such as a 5km, 8km, 12km and so on so they can give you at least an approximate idea of how fast you should be running, depending on how far you're going in each session.

The speeds you are asked to train at should take into account the fact that you're not going to be able to run 12km at the same speed as you ran a 10km time trial at 100%. It should also take into account that you're not going to be able to run at your 100% speed, for any given distance, every time you train.

Progressing your Running Fitness

How does your running program progress you? 

If you're asked to do your next run 5% faster than last time do you think you could stick to it?

Even a mind set of increasing speeds by 5% will often be enough for us to increase speed 0.5-1kph, leading to an increased effort intensity of more like 15-20%. What seems like a small increase in speed over 30-90mins often magnifies the intensity effect, leading to lactate buildup and detrimental pacing.

Interval Training
If you're doing interval training, your programme needs to be able to give you faster and slower speeds which take into account the fact that it's going to be much harder, if not impossible to maintain the same average pace (that's average speed of entire run) as you would be able to hold in an even paced run.

Don't agree?

Try running your next race at significantly different speeds each kilometre and see how you get on...it didn't work for the hare when he raced the tortoise!!

The best runners in the world run negative splits (first half of the race slightly slower than the second half) but to most it would look as if they're running the entire race at the exact same speed. Their ability to keep such an even pace is part of what makes them such good runners as they're less likely to go too quick in the first half, putting them into that state discussed in Part 1.

Knowing your Speeds

There are means of finding what speeds you should run at and a few on-to-it running coaches know these means. There are many calculations involved in creating a program, dealing with times, speeds and conversion factors. Many coaches simply don't have time to do the math.

You can see how STS Running uses these methods to create intelligent running program on the STS Website

So assuming you do know how fast to run in k/h or mins/km, how do you then know how fast you're going? Read Part 3 to find out.

Running for Speed: Part 1

The Problem with Running for Time at Perceived Intensities

When our coach or programme tells us to perform a running workout they'll usually give us a type of session, the time we're running for and the approximate percieved intensities we should aim for.

Eg. do a long run for 90mins at around 75%


The problem with this workout description is that 75% at the start of a run is likely to be considerably faster than at the end due to cumulative fatigue and muscle damage. Only the most experienced runners can pace themselves accurately, based on this kind of a workout description but even they can struggle after a couple of weeks of enforced rest due to illness or injury.

The Reality of Running to a % Perceived Intensity

We've all gone out for a run with an idea of preserving ourselves so we can get through the prescribed time only to get carried away due to feeling great over the first 20-30mins. You think you're running 65-70% of your max because you feel so damn good, but you're actually going at 90-130% of your maximal speed for the designated time you're supposed to be running for.

This can only end badly unless you recognise you're going too fast and slow things down. Problem is that by the time you've realised you're working too hard there's a good chance you've already caused enough damage to make the rest of your run painful, no matter how slow you go.

I believe that the number one reason people give up running is not because they find it boring, but that they simply let their speed get too high and spend the rest of the run in pain. You see it all the time, guys looking absolutely broken with another 2-4km to run. Hunched over with a look of complete agony on their face and thinking "why do i do this?".

So Who's to Blame?

If a running coach put you through this workout you'd never use him again, but chances are the workouts your coach or program is giving you has put you into this state many times before. It's not your fault as you thought you were going at the right speed. It's not really the coach's fault because they don't know how to keep you at the pace they have in mind.

There is another problem here though.

How does your coach know how fast you should be running?

If you had your coach cycling next to you with a speedo, what speeds would they be asking you to run at?

Say they've timed you over a 10km race or time trial and found out your average speed. They now know how fast you should be able to run over 10km on similar terain at 100% of your max. This is great if they only plan on having you run 10km time trials in training. No matter what distance you aim to be your best in, you cannot rely on one distance or time to run for each time you train.

So how else can your program describe your workout? Read part 2 of this article to find out or visit the complete 3 part article on our website.

All Blacks Fitness Leading into the Rugby World Cup 2011

In 2007 I attended a Strength and Conditioning Workshop in Brisbane run by the Head Trainer of the almighty Brisbane Broncos, Dan Baker. 

Towards the end of the Workshop we had a Q & A's session when, being the only Kiwi, I had to ask Dan what he thought of the All Blacks "Reconditioning Period" leading up to the 2007 Rugby World Cup. At the time I was extremely confident about our AB's and understood exactly why the Sports Science Staff wanted to keep our boys out of the Super 14 in favour of a Recovery, Speed and Strength building phase.

Dan chuckled and simply replied;

"It's not how I'd do it...What'll happen to their match fitness?"

I brushed it off telling myself we'd get enough match fitness in the Tri-Nations and Rugby World Cup pool games. Alas...we dipped out to France in the Quarter Finals.

All Black Injuries
Now I should be careful here and state that I don't believe that the Reconditioning Period was the sole reason for our AB's bowing out of World Cup Grand Final contention but it only takes a couple of injuries to seriously inhibit a team's performance and lead to loss in a high priority match.

Coming back from the reconditioning period, we suffered major injuries, blow, after blow from players getting themselves into "unlucky" positions such as Chris Jack's Hyper-extended knees or simply pulling up short with muscle strains such as Conrad Smith and Reuben Thorne.

Then the most significant injuries ever to hit the All Blacks...Dan Carter and Ritchie McCaw both pulled out of the most important and devastating game since the previous world Cup, the Semi Final against Australia. Right when we needed the two best players the world has seen in their positions, they're forced off with injury.

Was it Typical Bad Luck or was it a Lack of Match Conditioning?

There's no way to be sure but Henry and co survived and the conditioning staff were given the boot. This time around there is no "Reconditioning Period". Every All Black, in the running for this year's World Cup is allowed to play in the Super 15.

Will this make a Difference to our Rugby World Cup Success?

So far there are few injury concerns to speak of and our teams seem to be performing well in the Super 15. We haven't done anything obviously conservative this time around and our boys seem to be getting plenty of rugby, with no talk of "needing a break from rugby".

We all know a fit All Blacks team can beat any side on the planet but will they remain fit enough?

Getting Back into Running

I love getting back into running because I know I won't have to put much time into it in order to get fast results. When I've had a big break from running it literally takes me 25-30mins of easy running before I feel my legs tighten and know that if I don't stop I'll be very sore the next few days.

The good news is that just that 25-mins at an easy pace is all I need to do to get improvements to my running fitness. Once I've built my running durations up and got over the initial adjustment period, it takes a lot more running to elicit the same results.

Start Easy to Avoid Pain and Maintain Improvements
If you're getting back into running, the worst thing you can do is go out without thinking about how long you should run for. A run should always start fun and easy but that's because we're fresh. If we get carried away and think that somehow we never lost any running fitness, then we're destined for a painful few days of recovery.

Now you might think that "the more sore we get the better the results" and it's often true that muscle soreness tells us we've done a challenging workout but if you're sore for more than 3 days then you're probably not training during that time.

If you're not training then you're missing the opportunity to improve or even maintain your fitness level. If your legs are sore they will come back stronger but in that time, your cardiovascular system isn't being exercised so will start heading backwards.

6  Steps to Easing Back into Running

1. If you can figure out and stick to the appropriate duration and speed for your first run then you'll have a great first run back. Figure out your first run details or follow those in step 2.

2. If you haven't run in a while but used to run lots, then start at 20mins and see how far you get running around a park at a 7/10. You can use the footpath if you prefer but stay on the flat to keep it simple.

3. Do exactly the same as above a few days later to consolidate. Don't go faster just because you feel better.

4. Next time run for 25mins at a 7/10 and consolidate a few days later. Follow this pattern for 4 weeks (taking you to 40mins) then peg the duration back to 30mins for an easy couple of sessions.

5. After your easy week go back to building up durations until you reach a duration you're happy with such as 50mins.

6. Now that you know you can run at a comfortable pace for your target duration it's time to slowly increase your speeds. If you have a means of monitoring your speed then record it each time you run and increase it in the same way you did your durations.

Increase speed in one session, consolidate the next. Do this for 3 weeks, then peg the speed back for a couple of easy runs. You'll soon hit a plateau which is when you should look at introducing hill and interval training.

If you have a gym membership then running on a treadmill will allow you to know exactly what speeds you're going and if you record each run speed and distance then you'll learn for future runs and see concrete improvements.

Treadmills are a good way to get monitor your progress

Walking to Jogging
The above steps are a brief guide for getting back into running and will only work for you if you've done a fair bit of running in the past. If you've never done much running then I suggest you use the same 6 steps discussed above but with walking.

When you're no longer getting challenged and find yourself becoming impatient, bring in a short jog to increase the speed of your workout. Jogging increases the demands of your workout a lot so once again, increase your speeds slowly and progressively to assure comfortable, ongoing improvements.

Summary
This article will sound very conservative to many of you but if you're looking to get back into running as a lifestyle change then your progress does not need to be fast. Running is far more fun when you're experiencing non-stop progress and planned recovery weeks as opposed to non-stop muscle soreness and chronic injury lay-offs.

Visit our Website for information on how The Cheltenham Running Club can help

I Love Swimming

Jee I love swimming.

This video just makes me want to race...maybe not 100m right now but I should be able to last 25 or 50m at a decent rate...once :-) 

If you have never really got into swimming this video should give you some idea of why swimmers swim.

If you swim then let's have a race, just for the fun of it.


Directed by Lionel Hirlé & Grégory Ohrel
Music credits
Artist : DatA
Title : "Blood Theme"
Label: Ekler'o'shock / EOS Records
Publisher: Naïve Editions
Special Thanks : Alain Bernard,  Arena France Stade Nautique d'Antibes & Agence Tokyo Elegangz
 Canon France

Visit our website to see how STS Fitness and Nutrition help

Winter Sports Training in the Wet - Part 2

Optimizing Each Individual's Trainings

Asking amateur team sports athletes to put in extra fitness training off their own back is a common request but often ineffective. Those who do it would have been training in their own time regardless of what the coach says. Those who don't won't unless they have an extraordinary reason to do so. In this post I'd like to offer athletes a range of training options they may have considered and how useful is mid to late season.

Running Fitness

A totally over rated form of training for team sports mid season is straight line, even paced running. It is about as specific to most team sports demands as cycling but involves far more impact. 

This form of training is great in the off season and early pre-season as a means of getting back some base fitness but has little purpose other than as a recovery session during the season. 

Games Based Conditioning
This is the most specific training an individual can do for their sport as it mimics many of the demands they experience on match day. Social leagues in the city make this form of training easier to do than ever before but it can do more harm than good.

Athletes playing and filling in for multiple teams per week often pick up over training symptoms in the form of muscle strains, ligament sprains and bruising which does not get time to recover between match day and social league games. I would only recommend these leagues for the fittest and injury conscious of athletes or the most unfit and least likely to do anything else between match day.

Gym Training
The most common forms of gym training I see team sports athletes doing is mirror training for next summer. If each athlete could be given even a generic but progressive gym programme to do in their own time it could prevent useless weight gain and injuries while improving performance.

Once a gym programme with exercises, reps, sets, weights and rest times becomes available athletes can develop a relationship with gym staff to teach and correct technique as regularly as once every few sessions, for free.

What many gym users don't realise is that most the gym instructing staff are employeed to either clean, walk the floor, introducing themselves and offering technical tips (which is not fun at all) or helping members who actually want their help. By utilising these qualified members of staff and a decent gym programme athletes can do some great training for no more than their gym membership.

Speed and Agility Training

While this form of training can put more strain on tired bodies between match day, performed with the right amounts of rests and work durations, speed and agility training is just what every team sports athlete needs mid week. 

The challenge with Speed Training is that few athletes know how to run a good session without a session plan or a coach with them. A good coach or team trainer will put together basic session plans for individuals to either use alone or with a couple of team-mates, mid week. 

Speed Interval Training

Improving each athlete's ability to perform repeated maximal sprint efforts with restricted recoveries holds the biggest potential for improvement in any team sport. It's very similar to the physiological demands of a fast match and can be designed specifically for the individual's fitness level and position. 

As with speed and agility training, speed intervals are near impossible to expect of an individual unless a suitable session plan is available to follow. Again, I believe the coach or team trainer who does not provide this to each athlete is missing an enormous opportunity to boost the overall performance of the team and capitalise on the opposition's complacency.

In Summary
Your club has a great opportunity to move up the ladder this winter by simply training with the same enthusiasm they have done in pre-season. It may take some creative thinking on the coach's part to maintain motivation but providing session plans and holding players accountable for doing them may lead to a turn around in the Winter Club Training Culture which is prevalent in New Zealand sport.

Visit our website for more on Team Sports Training

Winter Sports Training in the Wet

The Honeymoon Period
We're well into the New Zealand winter sports season now so if you're playing something like rugby, football, netball or hockey you've made it through the warm, dry spell which the early season puts up year after year.

The Dark Days are Coming
You know it's coming though...It's already dark at training since the days have shortened and the temperatures are starting to drop. We've had a few wet weeks already but there's far worse to come. June and July in New Zealand club sport is where the season is won or lost.

Many teams training attendances fall due to the various thresholds of "fair weather trainer" each of us posses. Many clubs have indoor venues they can use but these are often reserved for the top teams. Even having a training moved to the gym is enough to turn many club sports people off training for the night due to a lack of space and preparation on the coach's behalf.

Capitalising on the Competition's Failings
These "worst of winter months" are an ideal opportunity for any club to make a big move in there standings come the business end of the season. By targeting these months as keys to success and really pushing the players to take ownership for making the most of it, any team can find themselves a far fitter, more cohesive unit each game-day.

Optimising Team Trainings
Coaches need to have indoor sessions planned for this time of the year and many do. If the players know they're going to get a good training regardless of the weather then they're more likely to turn up. Setting up circuit for skills and fitness phases of the training keeps athletes moving and on their toes. This really is the bare minimum requirement as no one wants to stand about listening to the coach talk in an unheated hall or freezing southerly.

Setting a work and recovery time for every game and drill let's everyone know how long they're going to have to work for and how much rest they're going to get. This increases the energy again, especially in a game situation whereby the coach is giving score and time updates regularly.

Rolling Subs vs 3+Teams
One format I'd like to see all coaches change is whether to have two teams with rolling subs or 3+teams whereby two teams play while one or two teams sit out. While the latter scenario is most common it allows athletes to cool down and get bored for too long.

Having two large teams with rolling subs means those on court have to work hard then get off. The coach needs to drive this concept as there will always be those who just want to stay on the entire game. This is another opportunity for the coach to develop team players who recognise when they're too tired and need to sub for the better of their team.

Part 2: Optimising Each Individual's Trainings...coming soon!