How important is it to breathe normally while running or sprinting?

While I run, I seem to be holding my breath. Is breathing while running something I can control?
I play soccer and usually play the wing.

Need help on training for cross country?

So I’m thinking about doing cross country or soccer next year for a sport in the begining of the year to have something to do and I’m leaning towards cross country. But the only problem is i’ve never really run before, only a few miles in gym class in middle school every now in then. Next year I’m going to be a sophomore and I wanted to know what exercises and what schedules I should start doing over the summer to increase my endurance?

London 1948 Marathon

Muay Thai good football cross training?

I play defensive tackle, but I would like to do something to cross train next season. I refuse to take lacrosse, soccer, or basketball. End of story. Do you think Muay Thai would be good?
Also I picked Muay Thai for INTENSE training. I’m not afraid to go 3 hours of heavy workouts. Please don’t suggest family kickboxing at the Y.

Free running viva Phoenix

Hey all. This Video is me and my friend in Arizona for the summer. You can call what we are doing Free-running or Tricking or whatever. Its not that important. The fact is that we were just way bored so we started hucking off of stuff and then made a video out of it. Anyway hope you like it. One of us is in Brazil and the other in Lithuania for a couple years and we dont have time to write or read or do anything really so dont fret about writing us. Laikykis Biciuliai!

What types of Yoga would be good for soccer?

What types of Yoga would be good for soccer? I know there are different types but am not entirely sure which to try that would best suited for physical fitness for soccer performance. Thanks in advance.

When i run my legs get sore like i have been running up stairs, but when i stop running it goes away?

I play soccer, but i dont notice it during games. And it’s not sore after i run just while i am running. I get it when do laps. It never happened to before because in the beginning when i started running, i just ran out of breath, and then i didnt run out breath and my legs were fine, now my legs kill. WHat’s wrong with them?

Cross-training: Variety is the Spice of Sport

One sport may not be enough anymore. As the triathlon grows in popularity and professionals from every sport share the secret of their success, athletes at all levels are learning the value of cross-training.

Could Bikram yoga make you a better tennis player, as Andy Murray has claimed? Can running make you a better soccer player, as running-shoe giant Asics asserts in its magazine ads? While the latter may sound like a marketing ploy, Andy Murray was able to defeat Roger Federer and credits yoga for the win. Cross-training has grabbed a share of the exercise market for decades, but today, its value is more widely appreciated. Cross-training is also becoming more creative as new and lesser-known sports make their way into the mainstream.

Spice Up Your Cross Training for Running

Running can become tedious after a while.  It takes a toll on your mind and body so you gotta trick your brain and make it think that running is FUN.  It’s good that you cross train with weight training at the gym, climb stairs or aerobics at the gym, but it can get boring just staring at the machines or running the same routine all the time.   So here are some ideas you can use to spice up your cross training.

I participate in a lot of sports such as rockclimbing, dragonboating, snowboarding, swimming, softball, ultimate, yoga, squash, cycling and more.  But those are not my main sports, I don’t tie myself to any one of them.  I pick them because they have a unique feature in them that will help me improve my running, whether it be in upper body strength, speed training, core strength, breathing, stretching and the list can go on.   So you can also pick a sport or multiple sports that you not necessarily enjoy, but have access to and you can add to your cross training routine.

I’ll give a highlight of each sport and their benefits to running.

Rockclimbing – helps build arm, quad and calf muscles.

Dragonboating – helps with upper body strength, arm strength and stamina.

Snowboarding – helps build co-ordination, quad muscles, breathing in cold weather and strengthens your ankles.

Swimming – helps build overall body strength, core strength, and breathing.

Softball – helps build arm strength, hand eye feet coordination, and sprint training.

Ultimate – helps immensely in building stamina in speed and sprint training, also helps you control your breathing, and pushes your lactate threshold.  Highly recommended for long distance runners to help with speed work.

Yoga – helps build core strength and with stretching.

Squash – helps with sprint training and stamina.

Cycling – helps strengthen legs.

All these sports are great if you already have a high level of stamina as with most long distance runners.  You will be able to last longer in each sport but try to exert yourself to the max when participating in them.  In other words, running slow to first base or biking at a very low speed and intensity, just doesn’t cut it.  Push yourself to 100% each time you run.  If you get tired, just think it’s only for a few more minutes.  Ultimate or Softball runs don’t last long, they are just tiring because it’s short sprints across the field.  I know that soccer and volleyball are also great sports to participate in but I’m just wary of all the injuries with sprained ankles and dislocated joints.  I don’t want to injure myself in secondary sports for my primary sport of running.

Overall, have fun in your sports and try to pick a mixture of low to high impact sports.

How Much Water Does An Athlete Need?

 

By Dr. Lorraine Williams, chiropractor turned TrackMom.

One of the biggest challenges for parents, athletes and their coaches is determining how much water an athlete needs at different times in their day and training.

If the athlete’s urine is dark and scanty, it is concentrated with metabolic wastes and the athlete needs to drink more fluids. When the urine is pale yellow, your body has returned to its normal water balance. Your urine may be dark if you are taking vitamin supplements; in that case, volume is a better indicator than color.

All athletes must drink water before, during, and after exercise. Follow the basic guidelines below to be sure that a child is drinking enough water throughout an exercise session.

• Before Exercise: Drink 10 to 14 oz. of cold water 1 to 2 hours before the activity. Drink 3-6 oz.of cold water or diluted fruit juice 15 to 20 minutes before the activity.
• During Exercise: Drink 3 to 4 oz. of cold water every 15 minutes.
• After Exercise: Drink 2 cups (16 oz.) of cold water for every pound of weight loss. With no weight loss still drink the minimum of 8oz of water.

You must watch and see how much water a young athlete actually drinks. Supervision is essential because children do not instinctively drink enough fluid to replace body water losses. Children may not recognize the symptoms of heat strain, and they may push themselves to the point of heat injury. Young athletes can use non HFCS sports drinks, especially during activities lasting lore than 90 minutes (such as Football or  Soccer). These drinks should contain between 6 and 8 percent carbohydrate or 15 to 18 grams of carbohydrate per cup.

Other tips include:

• If products labeled “sports drinks” do not meet these guidelines, they may need to be diluted. Water is adequate for most children.  However, some youth athletes are more likely to drink sufficient amounts if you give them flavored fluid; sports drinks or diluted fruit juice are appropriate choices.
• Be sure to dilute fruit juice at least twofold: 1 cup of water for every 1 cup of juice.  Tell children not to drink carbonated sodas or undiluted fruit juice as a fluid source during exercise. These beverages are too rich in carbohydrate (which can cause stomach cramps, nausea, and diarrhea).
• Caffeinated beverages (such as tea, coffee, and cola beverages) will dehydrate the body even more.
• Athletes can also replace their body fluids with foods containing a lot of water, such as oranges, watermelon, apples, grapes, and tomatoes, along with water. These foods provide water and carbohydrate, and they are good for replacing lost water and lost energy (glycogen) after exercise.

 

Next Page »