Although we cannot increase the percentage of fast twitch fibres in our bodies, there are many other things we can do to include our speed. One of these ways is by increasing our strength this will give us more power and stronger muscles and therefore more speed. To do this I could use a programme of weight training and plyometrics. We could also improve our ability to cope with lactic acid in our bodies. Another way of improving the level of skill in our sport an example of this is if we have a well measured and sensible run up in cricket we will need less speed because we wont have to run as far to meet our maximum speed.
For our bodies to achieve speed, energy has to be supplied to the muscles very quickly. Muscles then have to contract in the shortest possible time. We will use our anaerobic energy supply system for speed work. If we have a high percentage of fast twitch fibres in our active muscles we will have a natural example. What I need to consider When I am designing my programme there are two acronyms that I need to remember, consider and use. I must make sure that I meet all the points on both otherwise it is highly unlikely that I will complete the programme. The first one is FITT.
F- Frequency of activity- how often we should exercise. For example if you just want to stay healthy you should exercise for at least twenty minutes twice a week. After each hard training session I should give my body at least 24 hours rest before I exercise again. I- Intensity of activity- how hard I should exercise? T- Time of activity- how long I am going to exercise. Aerobic training sessions tend to last for 20 minutes or longer where as strength training sessions are generally shorter and less sustained. T- Type of activity- what exercise I should use.
This means that I will have to decide how often every week I will have to train and how often I will train on each of the two areas stamina and speed. I will also have to make sure that I am training at the right intensity it will be important to make modifications to my plan while I am doing it if I feel that I am not being pushed hard enough. I will also have to decide how long each training session should last, the best way to do this will probably be to start off with shorter sessions and as the programme goes on increase the length of time for each session.
The main thing I will need to decide is the type of activity I do and make sure that it is relevant and improve my fitness in the way I want. The second acronym I need to consider is SPORT: S- Specificity- Every person will need a different training programme- we’re all different and we all do different things. 1) Train the right parts of the body- there is no point making a weightlifter run 10 miles a day-it wont improve his weightlifting. 2) Train to the right level-if someone is unfit don’t start him or her with a long run.
P- Progression- Steadily increase the amount of training that’s done-but only when the body has adapted to the previous training. O- Overload- You’ve got to make your bodywork harder than it normally would. It’s the only way to get fitter. You can overload by increasing any of these three things: 1) Frequency of training (train more often) 2) Intensity of training (lift heavier weights) 3) Duration of training (training for 5 minutes longer each session) R- Reversibility- Our fitness levels change all the time and it will down if we stop training.
It takes a lot longer to gain fitness than to lose fitness meaning that we have to keep up with the programme of we will not get fitter. T- Tedium- We must make sure that what we are doing is not boring and tedious and that we are not doing the same thing everyday. If the programme is boring then it is unlikely that I will complete the programme to the best of my ability. I will need to consider all these things when I am designing and actually doing my programme and if I feel while I am doing it these points are not being met then I will need to change it.
Fitness Tests To find out if I am improving my fitness during the programme I will need some sort of test, which I can do during the programme that will give me results which I can then record. I will need a test for both stamina and speed. I will do this test before I start the programme to find out my current fitness then I will do it once a week throughout the programme to see if I am improving. I will then do it again after I have finished and see how much my fitness has improved from before the programme.
These tests can also be used as part of my training programme as an exercise, which will also be helpful. Stamina Test: To see if my stamina is being improved I am going to use two tests. The first test I am going to use is the cooper 12 minute run but I will only carry out this test before my programme and then once after the programme has finished. This will show how much I would have improved over the six weeks. The Cooper 12 minute run is a very simple test all we have to do is see how far we can run around a marked area in 12 minutes, the distance we run is then recorded.
The other test I will use is the Havard step test. I will carry this test out once a week to see if I am making a gradual improvement. I will also do it at the start and end of the programme. To do this test our resting pulse rate is taken before the test begins. We then step on and off a 45cm high bench at the rate of 30 times a minute for a period of five minutes. We must start with the same foot each time and we must also fully extend our leg at the top of each step. At the end of the five minutes our speed of recovery is recorded.
This is done by taking our pulse for 30 seconds at three different time intervals: one minute after the end: two minutes after the end of the exercise and three minutes after the end of the exercise. The greater our aerobic capacity, the lower our pulse rate will be at the end of exercise. Also it will return to normal more quickly. I will work out my fitness score using the following formula: Speed Test: There are no real speed tests so what I will do to measure my speed is see how long it takes me to run a set distance.
I will set this distance as 50 metres; I will do this test every week plus at the start and finish to see if my speed is improving. This will be an easy test and will not take very long. I will just have to make sure that I test myself on the same surface every time and not one time of grass then another time on concrete.. After considering everything I have researched myself I have made up a weekly timetable which I will use for six weeks as my personal exercise programme, I have fitted it around the other sports I do, it has also been designed so I don’t suffer fatigue.