Blog
How to Prevent Illness by Boosting Your Immune System
Are you constantly suffering from colds and sniffles? Feeling run down and lethargic? Then it could be that your immune system is depressed. Matt has done some research and come up with some ideas on how to to help you.
Read MorePrinciples of Training: Overload variations
“If your only tool is a hammer, then everything becomes a nail”
If your only way of overloading an athlete to cause adaptation is adding weight, then you are limiting what they can achieve.
Not every sport, or every athlete needs to be loaded in the same way. One way of defining overload (as I learnt from Jim Radcliffe on GAIN 2011) is shown here:
Read MoreHow to warm up for fencing
“We want faster, cleverer and more independent fencers”
an aspirational goal discussed by SW Fencing hub coaches last week.
I was fortunate enough to be working on 2 great fencing camps last week: Norman Golding’s summer course at Millfield School and James and Ian Williams’ sabre camp in Grantham.
The above quote came from many conversations I had with some great individuals over the course of the 7 days on camp.
Read MoreWater intake for athletes: Body weight chart
How much water should I drink during exercise?
I hope the table below is useful to the all the athletes we train. It outlines the quantity of water that athletes should be consuming in a normal resting day and training days, with different amount of fluid intake dependent on number of hours training.
Read MoreGuide to eating before competing
“When should I eat before a competition?”
is one of the questions we are asked most often, followed by “What should I eat before matches?” Pre- competition nutrition is a vital part of any athlete’s preparation. Maximising available energy and properly hydrating are necessary to ensure that you perform at your best.
Read MoreFrom the ground up: how to get fit for netball part2
Netball is primarily a female sport, which due to their anatomical construction are prone to knee injuries in sport before adding in the complications of landing, jumping and multi directional movement.
Read MoreShoulder pain- how to get it better
In response to Tommy’s question about persistent shoulder pain.
If you have shoulder pain, then there are a few things you need to do:
Diagnosis- what is actually wrong with it? Going to the GP and being told to rest and given some anti inflammatories may work in the immediate future, but not necessarily in the long term.
Read MoreWhy PE should be more WE than ME
“Children need to express themselves as individuals” So goes modern thought as we create a generation of self-centred, narcisstic kids who are unable to cope with failure when it happens. In the U,K. there is a perceived crisis in our society and politicians are calling it “Strivers versus Skivers“. (I wrote about discipline versus liberty last week).…
Read MoreGetting my gymnasts stronger
Understanding Strength for Gymnastics
Over the past few sessions I have been going through the strength section of James’s Athletic Development Manual with him. We went through strength and velocity and how a high velocity exercise means the strength aspect could be low, and vice versa.
How can a gymnast maintain a healthy weight?
Take Nastia Liukin and Beth Tweddle. Both very different body shapes but both have won Olympic titles! Still, young female gymnasts don’t live in a vacuum and society itself places immense pressure on the female body image.
Read More