Training Days

[Rabid Mongrel]

Does anyone know if the Swans are playing an intra-club game today?

[Nich]

Does anyone know if the Swans are playing an intra-club game today?

Yep!

Swans intra-club match
Lakeside Oval (Driver Ave, Moore Park - opposite the Sydney Swans offices)
Friday, February 11 at 9am

[Rabid Mongrel]

Thanks alot........will be there.

[Real Commando]

Serious question RC, The fitness of the modern athlete is truly impressive but i've always wondered if you can be too fit and whether there's a point where the benefits of exercise start to decrease (a bell curve if you like). The heart is a muscle which exercise can strengthen but it is a muscle so surely it could be over worked.

Hey Big Al,

Good question. The thing with the heart is it's not quite the same as the other muscles of the body. The way it contracts is different from skeletal muscles. It works (in the main - unless you have a pace maker!) involuntarily. It does this at different rates depending upon how much oxygenated blood needs to be pumped around the body. So if you run around like the lads do, it beats fast and at that 'mean' rate for about 2 hours (in a match).

Now if you're under/in your 20's your heart is normally a little more resilient to this sort of frequency (beats per min (BPM)) than if you're untrained, unfit, older, overweight, very tall, high blood pressure etc etc. As long as you keep activity rates and their frequencies high throughout your life, you are less likely to see a drop off in heart function. If however you decide in your 40's/50's that you are going to become the next champion Ironman, you might very well have heart issues!!

So back to your question. You have to understand that 'fit' is essentially how quickly you can reduce your heart rate back to resting BPM from maximal BPM. The more training you do the quicker this happens and therefore this means you are 'fit'. So you can't be too fit. You can place demands on your heart that it isn't ready for, which sometimes sees you waking up in a hospital bed somewhere! But no, you can't be too fit.

Bell curve wise you're right in so much as when you age your heart's ability to 'be fit' reduces because, like skeletal muscle, it ages/gets worn out. So yes in the grand scheme of things your heart health is on a bell curve throughout your life, but not when you're an active athlete.

Hope I haven't talked too much gobbledy gook for you and you get the point. Let me know.

RC

[Big Al]

Thanks RC, the human body does fascinate me (some more than others if course so I love learning this stuff.

Btw... Next time I see you I'll say hi. You were deep in conversation with Braddles when I walked past and I didn't want to be rude.

Thanks again for posting mate it's been fascinating reading.

[Bas]

Btw... Next time I see you I'll say hi. You were deep in conversation with Braddles when I walked past and I didn't want to be rude.

What a snob. Didn't come looking for us.

Are you sure you were there today and not like the 3.2 million people that were there when Plugger kicked his record?

[Big Al]

What a snob. Didn't come looking for us.

Are you sure you were there today and not like the 3.2 million people that were there when Plugger kicked his record?

Yeah and the Photos prove it...hehe.

If you're going to the fan day we'll definitely have to say hi at some point.

[Real Commando]

Thanks RC, the human body does fascinate me (some more than others if course so I love learning this stuff.

Btw... Next time I see you I'll say hi. You were deep in conversation with Braddles when I walked past and I didn't want to be rude.

Thanks again for posting mate it's been fascinating reading.

Look forward to it Al.

By the way, just to finish/add to what I was saying earlier I add the following (that you could see on my FB page) that lends more weight to the subject:

"I was reading an article by Mike Boyle today about how the fitness industry has managed to 'sell' lies and misconception to the public. Thought I'd share it here with you guys:

[MOD Edit (Frog): Article text removed in accordance with RWO rule 7b - Real Commando will add new post later]

Hope that highlights the point mate?

RC

[Real Commando]

Yeah and the Photos prove it...hehe.

If you're going to the fan day we'll definitely have to say hi at some point.

Please do mate...I certainly plan on being there.