I found my personal exercise programme enjoyable to do as I found the productivity of the whole duration to be of great benefit to my club Tae Kwon Do training sessions. This was because I could develop a range of techniques that stood in need for improvement. I chose my exercises to specifically interact with the Tae Kwon Do training I do. By making it sport specific I was able to see vast differences in the performance levels of the techniques needed to be performed in order for me to develop.
As proven from the results of my retest I have improved in all areas of fitness necessary for Tae Kwon Do by what I would consider to be quite substantial amount for a six-week period, which proves that my personal exercise programme has been worth while. One area of fitness that I was very pleased to have improved upon was the sit and reach test, which surprised me on how much I could progress from stretching regularly as part of a workout routine.
My ability to perform in club training sessions has been very beneficial and effective as I feel that I can currently push myself further than previously without massive strain on my muscles leaving me fatigued or without a possible injury. My kicks and punches are noticeably quicker whilst being more controlled. My stamina throughout sparring is greater as I can perform at my personal optimum level for a longer period of time with greater ease.
As a result of my personal exercise programme I have felt that I have gained a productive psychological advantage when training in my club as my concentration and commitment has improved. My circuit training has gained me great advantages in terms of Tae Kwon Do as I had made my circuit training routine to be specific to the aspects needed to perform in the sport to the high standard I would like. I felt that when I was carrying out the whole personal exercise programme I was being constantly motivated as I noticed changes in my performance occurring which could then be applied to my Tae Kwon Do sessions. This caused me to work very hard, enabling me to regularly move up the intensity, whilst still being fully in control and maintaining full concentration.
Development of fitness I evaluated each session individually after completion, which made it easier to make the necessary adjustments for the next session in order to continually develop my fitness to the necessary standards. Evaluating the sessions individually allowed me to make adjustments constantly throughout and to pin point the areas which were not gaining the full benefits I required.
I felt certain that the theory of overload and progression was being put to efficient use in order to improve my level of fitness. The correct application of overload and progression has become clearer to me throughout this programme as it is clear that increasing weight or frequency too rapidly can result in tiredness and muscle pain, and increasing the workload excessively will result in injury. Whereas increasing the weight and intensity gradually has left me able to improve my fitness and capability to the fullest. I could improve all of my sessions quite easily and obviously to good affect due to me evaluating each and every training session as soon as I could to finishing it, which produced the most accurate and constructive comments that enabled my ongoing development. By keeping an ongoing report in the future I can ensure that I can make the best adjustments and therefore the most improvements.
Appropriateness of fitness tests, method of training & selected exercises I found that all the intensities I chose either straight away or through adjustment were of the right level of intensity that did not leave my muscles feeling sore or damaged after each session. I chose to do five exercises in the gym and I chose nine different exercises as part of my circuit training routine. Both of these figures were chosen to ensure that my sessions did not exceed the safety limits of what a training session should consist of with regards to the duration. The frequencies I used were also correct as when combined with the chosen weight I felt certain that the theory of overload and progression were being put to efficient use.
As my programme progressed I cut my warm up short several times to allow for the increased weight that I was to be using. This did not affect my recovery time or level of performance at all which would suggest to me that my warm up was probably too long to begin with. Also, due to the gradual increase in intensity I found I had to extend my cool down in order to be able to recover fully ready for my Tae Kwon Do sessions.
Section 10 Application of training Principles By devoting to the fundamental exercise principles my training program was developed successfully. I applied the principles of exercise were to all parts of my personal programme. To achieve the training effect I completed training sessions twice a week, each time exercising each of the four fitness components. The intensity and/or duration of the exercise were gradually increased to improve my level of fitness. My program included activities that addressed all the fitness components to be affective, since overemphasising any one of them may hurt the others.
I also executed a variety of activities to reduce boredom and increase my motivation and progress like altering the intensities. I trained toward specific goals, which was to become a better fighter in Tae Kwon Do. I made a particular effort to split my training sessions in order to work around my Tae Kwon Do training sessions in my club. I did this, as an easier training day or rest for that component and / or muscle group helped to permit recovery following a hard day of training for a given component of fitness. I also managed to alternate muscle groups in my sessions, which assisted my recovery. The workload of each exercise session I performed exceeded the normal demands placed on my body in order to bring about a training effect.
Suitability of levels of intensity & recovery
My intensity depended on my fitness to begin with. I worked with my H/R as a guide. During aerobic activity, increased H/R is in proportion to the increase in workload. I therefore worked at a level of intensity that overloaded my cardiovascular system but was below my anaerobic threshold. Should I have been training above my anaerobic threshold the predominant method of energy production would have been the lactic acid system. The accumulation of lactic acid in the tissue would have resulted in fatigue. I carried out my training sessions twice a week in order to gain long term physiological benefits to aerobic training. By carrying out my circuit training routine I improved my aerobic capacity as it consisted of continuous sub maximal activity.
The duration of both my sessions depended on my fitness levels and for recreational purposes I did not let either session exceed 45 minutes. The sessions were continuous as otherwise my body would have recovered and the principle of overload would not have been applied. To equate the level of intensity I used my H/R because during aerobic activity, H/R increase is in proportion to the increase in workload. I worked at a level that overloaded my C/V system, but was below my anaerobic threshold.