Anaerobic endurance training

ALTERNATE AND INTERVALED METHODS

The alternating and interspersed ones are fundamental methods to overcome the performance levels reached with long and medium training. These techniques are based on the execution of repetitions at submaximal intensity, interspersed with a certain recovery period at a lower pace. The rest between one stretch and the other, therefore, must not be complete; on the contrary, the athlete must continue the effort at a more or less moderate pace.

During the repetitions at submaximal intensity (generally lasting 30 "-3"), there is a massive production of lactic acid which causes a certain amount of O2 debt to contract in a short time. In the subsequent recovery period, the heart and lungs remain particularly stimulated, with the aim of filling the oxygen debt and disposing of the lactate produced. Such a workout is useful for improving aerobic power (maximum amount of energy produced by aerobic metabolism in a unit of time) and lactacid resistance (the ability to withstand and dispose of lactic acid). There will also be a general cardiovascular and respiratory improvement, as well as a more efficient mental endurance and aptitude for effort. The interval method also improves the anaerobic threshold and avoids bradycardia (reduced heart rate with difficulty in reaching HRmax values during exertion) induced by continuous running at low intensity.

The alternating and interspersed training methods are particularly numerous, since it is possible to intervene on the intensity, the number and duration of the repetitions, the type of terrain (ascent, descent, etc.), the pace and duration of recovery. these, the flartlek (game of gaits) is the least structured, because the athlete trains in a terrain (hilly, rural ...) which forces him to vary the pace (climbs, descents, bumpy sections, puddles, etc.) . There is therefore a not negligible interaction of the athlete with nature, so much so that fartlek is often considered a regenerating strategy (the rhythm is also imposed by individual sensations), rather than conditioning (precisely because it lacks structure). Much more training and specific to the competition gesture are the repeated tests, in which the athlete is committed almost to the maximum in measured sections or in pre-established periods of time, to then recover according to what is established by the program. In addition to between one test and another, a further and longer recovery period can also be granted between one series (group of 3-6 repetitions with relative recovery) and the other.

These methods, as anticipated, are typical of advanced athletes and useful for anyone who wants to optimize their performance; certainly, in their classical conception they are not suitable for the beginner, who could still alternate short stretches of walking with others of running to gradually get used to the gesture, without overloading the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems too much. Apart from this last case and also excluding the classic fartlek, the interval methods require adequate recovery times, in order to allow the body to metabolize the training loads. In fact, an unsuitable recovery risks having the opposite effects to those hoped for; for this reason these sessions are generally separated by at least 3 or 4 days in which different and in any case less demanding workouts take place.

Methods of anaerobic resistance training

The training of anaerobic endurance aims to increase the power of the energy mechanisms that occur in the absence of oxygen. The general principle is to subject the body to high intensity but short duration work. Also in this case, the interval methods are widely used, in which the repetitions have, however, a higher intensity (up to 95-100% of the ceiling) and a limited duration. "elasticity and muscle reactivity, but also, very importantly, the individual tolerance to lactic acid (produced massively at submaximal intensities); moreover, a better efficiency of the heart pump and the capacity / speed of recovery after changes in rhythm are acquired.

The training of alactic anaerobic resistance is also carried out with the application of exercises with overloads and opposition, especially when you want to improve the resistant strength (lifting weights, running wearing a heavy jacket, running uphill, towing or better pushing a object, wearing drag belts or "tubs" in swimming, etc.); short jumps and sprints with a gradual increase in length are also useful. In cycling, a classic example is given by the S.F.R (Climb-Strength-Endurance), in which particularly long gears are pushed in certain uphill stretches at low pedaling speeds (30-40 rpm). As the name implies, this work stimulates the resistant strength, but also the lactic strength (if short), as well as the lactic resistance (if medium) or the specific one (if long).