How to Train More Without Getting Hurt [SimpliFaster]

Training for peak performance is tricky business. Push too hard, and you get hurt. Don’t push hard enough, and you still get hurt (from being unprepared for the rigors of competition).

Luckily, there’s a new way to measure how hard you’re working. And amazingly, the research shows it actually protects against injury. That’s right: sports scientists have finally figured out How to Train More Without Getting Hurt.

I break down all the latest research -- and show how to implement it -- in my brand new article for SimpliFaster:

https://simplifaster.com/articles/train-more-without-injuries/

The Biggest Gimmick in Performance Training

“Sports-specific training.”

Everybody wants it for their athletes, but do they really know what it means?

Taken literally, sports-specific training is often interpreted as the act of mimicking sporting movements in the gym. This approach sounds great in theory, but it doesn’t always pan out in practice.

Not only do “sports-specific” exercises tend to be awkward to load and perform, but the added load also changes the movement pattern subtly. This change can be just subtle enough to negatively interfere with the actual performance of the sport.

A classic example of this type of error is wearing ankle weights to run. The weights change the way you run, which can reinforce bad habits.

Wearing ankle weights could make you run like this.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, you have the camp that believes strength and strength alone is sports-specific. Get freakishly strong in the gym, they say, and leave the sporting movements to the sports coaches.

As with most things, the answer typically lies somewhere in the middle of the extremes.

Why Do HIIT when Hypertrophy is the Goal?

I recently reached out to my good friend Marc Lewis with a question regarding muscle hypertrophy and interval training. With Marc's background in exercise physiology and research interest in concurrent training, I knew he'd have the answer.

When I received Marc's incredibly thorough response, I realized just how lucky I am to have such a smart friend. I learned so much, I figured I'd share it here. If nitty gritty exercise science tickles your fancy, read on!

Hey Marc,

Even when someone’s primary goal is muscle hypertrophy, we still recommend a combination of cardiac output training and high-intensity metabolic training (i.e. HIIT).

In really simple terms, cardiac output training improves a person’s ability to recover, which helps them train with more volume and more frequently (thereby promoting hypertrophy). 

Why, though, do we recommend the high-intensity component? The argument you see a lot of the time is “just look at a sprinter’s body,” but you could also make the case that elite sprinting selects for muscular body types. Is there research showing that high-intensity metabolic training builds muscle?

Thanks a bunch,

Travis

Marc's All-Star Response

Staying a Step Ahead of Running Injuries

Just a few days ago, I received this e-mail from a loyal reader in pain:

“I have been experiencing knee pain in my left knee...sometimes right as well. It usually comes after mile 4-5 of a run and causes my knee to hurt whenever bent for the next 24 hours. Yesterday I did an 8 miler and today I'm in a lot of pain. Try to keep the leg straight. Only my left knee hurts this time. I am scared... I like to run and I'm only 28. It'll only get worse as I get older. Curiously it never hurts when I play tennis.”

Running can be a pretty brutal sport. Rare is the runner who goes his or her whole life injury-free. For some it’s their ankles, others their knees, and still others their hips. For this reason, extra attention is required to ward off the injury bug and stay on the streets.

If I had it my way, every runner would do heavy strength training twice a week in order to stay strong and stable and fight back against all that repetitive pounding.

But I know runners. They’re a stubborn bunch. With all the time they’re already putting in, they definitely can’t be bothered to get to the gym to pump iron. Nor do most of them even particularly enjoy it, for that matter.

As such, here are some warm-up/cool-down strategies for the non gym-going runner that, with good compliance, will reduce injury and help runners maintain their mileage.