This article may be preaching to the chior a bit, but if I can
help even a few in thier quest for health or performance, I will
have done some good. I am a flatland BMX freestyle bike rider,
and I have been riding for 21 years now. About 7 years ago, I
decided that I would start to do some strength training to hopefully
prevent injuries, help prolong my riding career, and yeah, look
better too.
I promptly ran into the mess that is the fitness industry. It
didn't take too long to see that almost all commonly available
sources of information were just trying to sell me something -
usually some supplement or gadget. Steroid bloated bodybuilders
or borderline anorexic models were portrayed as the ideals of
fitness. Other magazines tried to tell me that running or perhaps
yoga was all that I needed to do to be fit. Even books in the
library just offered typical bodybuilding routines, complete with
more photos of juiced guys.
I ended up training like a bodybuilder and buying supplements.
I didn't get huge (gained about 15 lbs), had MORE injuries, and
didn't improve my quality of life. Well, I am really kind of a
nerd at heart, so I continued reading and learning. Over the years,
I estimate that I've spent over $7000 on books, videos, &
seminars. I'm now far from where I was in the beginning, but my
journey is hopefully far from complete. I plan to continue on
this path until my final breath. The following things have contributed
the most to my health, fitness, sport performance, and well being.
1. Develop flexibility and pain free range of motion
This is the most important thing you can do, I firmly believe.
Almost everyone has some kind of imbalances or disfunctional movement
patterns. Adding greater stress on the body through training only
serves to reinforce these patterns, or accelerate the onset of
injury. This is a complex area to consider, but for starters,
I have found Coach Sonnon's Warrior Wellness tapes and Pavel Tsatsouline's
Super Joints program very helpful. Joint mobility drills also
help with recovery from your other training.
2. Eliminate processed foods
If you think about it, the modern American diet is so far from
the one that our bodies are designed to eat, it should be no suprise
that health problems are rampant. No one diet fits everyone, but
I have found that lowering my carbohydrate intake improves my
energy levels and keeps me leaner. I only supplement with things
that are really just food - Flax oil, fish oil, and some protein
powder. Instead, I concentrate on trying to eat only whole, natural
foods - usually organic. I am reminded of the value of eating
this way from time to time when I visit family, or am on a road
trip. I am always amazed by how sluggish I feel during these times
when I revert to a socially acceptable diet.
3. Be aware of the influence of bodybuilding
There is nothing wrong with bodybuilding if that is what you wish
to do, but I am talking about training for fitness. Training to
be fit is very different from training to LOOK fit. Bodybuilding
dogma has influenced sport specific programs, and even rehab programs
in this country. One of my pet peeves is how a picture of someone
doing a biceps curl is always shown as an example of someone being
fit. Isolation exercises like this contribute very little to real
world functional strength and even less to health. Yes, I'll admit
these exercises might have some limited use at times - but most
programs are full of them.
4. Increase the complexity of your exercise
Most try to progress by adding more weight, doing more reps, or
increasing the duration of the exercise. Another option is to
make it more complex. In addition to stimulating the nervous system,
this can help you work on coordination and balance - plus it is
challenging and fun! Kettlebells and Clubbells are great tools
for this, as are the Power Rings. Using the rings as an example,
after becoming proficent at dips and chins on the normal aparatus,
move to the rings. You will be amazed at the added difficulty.
Once proficent at this, then work up to muscle ups. Another example
is instead of always doing standing military presses, learn handstand
pushups, then press to handstands.
5. Get enough rest
Being an ambitious individual, I often sacrificed sleep time to
get things done. Even worse, I often partied on saturday nights
during my first few years of training. It doesn't take a rocket
scientist to know this isn't good, but I didn't realise that the
effects would linger until mid-week. I now make sure to get plenty
of restfull sleep every night. This has improved both my recovery
time and my mood, and most importantly, my quality of life.
6. Explore sport psychology
If you are training for any sport, this may be one of the more
beneficial things you can do to improve your performance. In my
sport of BMX freestyle, it is easily the most important area to
attend to. Great levels of strength, endurance, or speed help
little in such a skill based sport. In addition, consider learning
about psychology in general. I won't elaborate on this, but the
body and mind are not two seperate things. You will not have a
healthy, functional body if you have a disfunctional mind. This
leads into my final point-
7. Continue learning
Knowledge is power. Find your weaknesses, then educate yourself
on how to eradicate them. If you have money to invest in your
health and fitness, it will pay dividends if you use it here.
If you expect to acheive your potential, you will need to know
how to get there.
Hopefully, you found something usefull information in this. I'll
elaborate on some of my training methods in a future article.
Scott Hagnas is a professional flatland BMX rider.
He produces and films top quality BMX videos.
