Proper Breathing Through Intense Training

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Proper Breathing Through Intense Training

It comes so naturally to us until we start working out. Breathing through exercise can get tough, but focusing on proper breathing while executing intense training is vital.

To maintain a high level of performance, you need to ensure oxygen is delivered to your organs and tissues. Proper breath control throughout your workout will maximize your performance. If we don’t focus on breathing through workouts, we risk overcompensating by hyperventilating. Here are some tips for maintaining proper breathing through workouts.

  1. Inhale through your nose before eccentric parts of motion (muscle-lengthening).
  2. Exhale through your mouth during concentric parts of motion (muscle-shortening).
  3. Exhale forcefully after a movement. This relieves thoracic pressure.
  4. Breathe in a rhythmic pattern to take in more oxygen and put less stress on your body.
  5. Engage in diaphragmatic breathing. This technique activates the parasympathetic nervous system, helping you relax, slow your heart rate, and conserve energy.
  6. To improve lung function, engage in pursed lip breathing. 
  7. Practice resonant or coherent breathing. This technique aims to keep your breaths per minute between 5 and 7.
  8. A final technique you can use is humming bee breathing or Bhramari breathing. This involves humming through a closed mouth while exhaling.

When in doubt, stop to catch your breath! 

Are You Getting Your ZZZs?

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Are You Getting Your ZZZs?

You work so hard in the gym, why not give your body the rest it deserves?

The average adult should get 7-9 hours of sleep each night. If you’re an athlete, you may need more. Just as athletes need more calories than most, they also need more sleep. Getting enough sleep is important for physical activity because it helps with muscle recovery, energy, injury prevention, and overall performance.

While you are resting, your body is working! After you push your muscles during physical activity, your body releases growth hormones that help muscles recover and repair. Sleep increases blood flow to muscles, delivering oxygen and nutrients that also help with recovery.

Along with muscle recovery, sufficient sleep is imperative to have the energy to exercise. Not getting enough sleep can lead to a decreased desire to be active, and can also reduce the amount of strength you feel while engaged in physical activity.

Getting your full night of sleep is a huge contributor to injury prevention. Lack of sleep can cause poor protein synthesis, muscle recovery, immune system function, and modulation of your body’s inflammatory response. All of which can increase your risk of injury.

Sleep helps with memory, reaction time, and decision-making, all of which impact overall athletic performance. That one extra hour could make all the difference in how fast you move, how well you execute technique, and how heavy you can lift.

The best way to make sure you are performing at your best is to hit the hay and catch the right amount of ZZZs!

 

How Flexible Are You?

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How Flexible Are You?

Be honest, how much time do you dedicate to stretching before and after activity? For most, it is not nearly enough. Stretching before any physical activity can reduce the risk of injury and improve performance. 

Flexibility is important during any physical activity. It lengthens your muscles, making them more flexible, and decreases the likelihood of tearing or injury. Stretching can also increase your range of motion. By improving your range of motion, your joints will move better, which can increase performance during your workout. A good stretch boosts the blood flow to your muscles, making them work more efficiently throughout your workout. Looking to decrease muscle tension? Stretching not only improves performance but also relieves post-exercise aches and pains.

Stretching during cooldown is just as important. Post-workout stretch has similar benefits to pre-workout stretch. Along with increased flexibility, range of motion, blood flow, and muscle tension, you will also improve your posture. Improved posture comes from stretching the chest, shoulders, and lower back. Stretching can also help relieve post-workout aches and pains, also known as DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness). Finally, stretching post-workout can help relieve stress. It brings the heart rate back to normal, slowly, making it easier to stay in that rhythm.

Don’t be stiff! Get flexible! Stretch for an appropriate amount of time before and after exercise. Remember, stretching should never be painful, so don’t force it to that point!

Strength Training & Kids

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Keeping Kids Safe While Strength Training

There is a lot of conflicting information regarding kids and strength training. Is it harmful? What are the long-term effects? Will my child get injured? Strength training is safe for kids when done properly and under the supervision of a coach. Let’s explore some tips for ensuring safety while strength training with kids.

1) Start Young

When you think of strength training, your mind probably goes to barbells and weights. Strength training also includes bodyweight exercises. Start young kids with bodyweight exercises like jumping, push-ups, or air squats and as they get stronger they can move up to light weights and controlled movements.

2) Use the Proper Equipment

Children are not meant to use adult-sized equipment. Opt for a 5 lb kid-sized barbell, use a smaller 4-6 lb wallball (they exist), shorter boxes, or height adjustable pull-up bars. Meet them where they are with the right stuff.

3) Teach Proper Technique

On top of using the right equipment, children need to learn how to use the right equipment. As coaches, we make sure that any kid who comes to Towpath Fitness is taught how to use equipment safely while using good form.

4) Get a Physical Before Starting

Before starting ANY training program, children should visit the doctor and get a physical examination. It is vital to rule out medical conditions that might prevent them from participating.

5) Proper Supervision

Kids who come to workout at Towpath Fitness will be instructed by a CrossFit Kids certified staff member. Any instructor working with kids must have the proper experience to work with kids and teens.

6) Proper Warm-Up & Cool-Down

A proper warm-up for kids includes 10 minutes of light aerobic activity and stretching. A cool-down should include some low-intensity cardio (walking, slower-paced rowing, etc) to bring the nervous system down slowly after amping it up during a workout.

7) Hydration

Kids and teens should be properly hydrated before any workout. The coach should also leave time in the workout for breaks to ensure continued hydration.

Strength training IS safe for kids. Mix the above tips with some fun and your kid will be hooked! Towpath Fitness offers three CrossFit Kids & Teens classes per week. As your child progresses, they can be approved to move into the regular CrossFit classes with adult members. Get started today by visiting our JOIN page or shoot us an EMAIL for more info!

6 Benefits of Rowing as Cardio​

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6 Benefits of Rowing as Cardio

The beauty of rowing is the full-body experience, but other benefits make it a key cardio element. Let’s explore six benefits of choosing rowing for cardio.

1) Total Body Workout

Often mistaken for an upper body workout, rowing works your entire body, top to bottom. According to the American Fitness Professionals Association, the rowing stroke is 65-75% lower body and 25-35% upper body.

2) Good for All Levels of Fitness

Rowing is something that any athlete can do, regardless of age, as a comfortable form of cardio. Athletes can safely burn serious calories while not putting heavy stress on joints. Rowing is a safe cardio option for those with low vision, those who are blind, and those who are in the early stages of osteoarthritis.

3) Puts You in a Meditative State

Rowing does not take a lot of thought or focus. The smooth, gliding motion along with the repetitive movements allows you to go into an autopilot state of mind. Rowing can also boost the release of endorphins, those happy hormones that help reduce stress.

4) Cardiovascular Health

According to the Cleveland Clinic, one way to prevent cardiovascular disease is by exercising for at least 30-60 minutes per day on most days. Rowing ensures that your heart, blood vessels, and blood all experience the benefits of the workout.

5) Builds Power & Endurance

The combination of strengthening and cardio will boost both your power and endurance. Using your arms and legs to propel your body back and row requires power. Rowing for extended periods builds your endurance.

6) Efficiency

Short on time? No problem! Put that damper on 10 and hit a quick Tabata of 30 seconds of high-intensity rowing and 30 seconds of rest. Even in 15 minutes or less, you will be working to boost your fitness level and improve glucose control, blood pressure, and cardiac function.

Towpath Fitness is a great place to discover rowing. Contact us today to join the Towpath Fitness Community!