Cardiovascular Training for Wrestlers Part 2
The whistle has blown marking the end of the first period of your match.
Your heart is racing and you can hardly breathe.
You have been running 2 miles everyday just like your coach and dad told you to.
So why are you tired after only 2 minutes? Running long distance conditioning works the body's aerobic energy system to use energy over a long period of time, where with wrestling we are required to sustain high levels of energy very quickly and recover in a short period of time.
As much as a wrestler needs to have heart on the mat to win, they also need to condition the heart long before the match begins.
A strong, well-conditioned cardiovascular system (heart and blood vessels) will enable the body to receive more oxygen and a higher volume of blood with every pump of the heart.
It will also allow the wrestler to sustain a high level of exertion for a long time.
Obviously, such cardiovascular conditioning will enhance both the youngster's health and their wrestling performance.
In part 1 of our series on cardiovascular training we learned how the body is affected during exercise.
We learned how our body uses ATP for energy and how aerobic training helps us to recover from anaerobic bouts of exercise.
When we talk about training we are not trying to take any thing away from what coaches are doing during practice only explaining how training affects the body.
In part 2 of our series on cardiovascular training we have made a change to our program so we can take a deeper look at cardiovascular training by going inside the different types of endurance that we as wrestlers use.
What is the objective of endurance training for wrestlers? In a sport that many spectators characterize as sudden, explosive attacks and counterattacks that are executed on a repeated basis for duration up to 6 minutes or until an opponent has been pinned, the need for endurance training is simple, to develop the energy production system(s) to meet the demands of a wrestling match.
It has been documented that the average wrestling match has an explosive attack executed approximately every 6-10 seconds.
For top level athletes endurance training is just as important as training for technique.
When it comes to a wrestling match, weekend tournament wrestlers who lack good muscular endurance and aerobic/anaerobic conditioning will start to tire as they wrestle in the later rounds.
What types of endurance are there? Endurance is the ability of your body to maintain a high quality of work in the face of fatigue.
There are 4 major types of endurance, aerobic endurance, anaerobic endurance, speed endurance, and strength and power endurance.
All 4 require a good sound aerobic conditioning level to maintain them.
Aerobic Endurance Aerobic means "With Oxygen.
" During aerobic exercise the body is working at a level that the demands for oxygen and fuel can be met by the body's intake.
Physiological adaptations to aerobic exercise involve some of the following: Respiratory System: Enhanced Oxygen exchange in the lungs Improved blood flow throughout the lungs Decreased submaximal respiratory rate Decreased submaximal pulmonary ventilation Cardiovascular System: Increased cardiac output Increased blood volume, red blood cell number, and hemoglobin concentration Decreased resting heart rate The basis for almost any sports conditioning program is good aerobic capacity.
As we mentioned before a good solid post-season and off-season aerobic conditioning program will be the foundation for the upcoming season.
So what does all this mean to a wrestler? Having a good solid aerobic conditioning level will ensure that your heart beats slower but stronger, moves greater volumes of oxygenated blood (which is important for your muscles), and you breath slower.
Anaerobic Endurance Anaerobic means "Without Oxygen.
" During anaerobic exercise at maximum effort, the body is working so hard that the demands for oxygen and fuel exceed the rate of supply and the muscles rely on stored reserves of fuel.
Few sports display the anaerobic stress that wrestling does.
The majority of the body
Your heart is racing and you can hardly breathe.
You have been running 2 miles everyday just like your coach and dad told you to.
So why are you tired after only 2 minutes? Running long distance conditioning works the body's aerobic energy system to use energy over a long period of time, where with wrestling we are required to sustain high levels of energy very quickly and recover in a short period of time.
As much as a wrestler needs to have heart on the mat to win, they also need to condition the heart long before the match begins.
A strong, well-conditioned cardiovascular system (heart and blood vessels) will enable the body to receive more oxygen and a higher volume of blood with every pump of the heart.
It will also allow the wrestler to sustain a high level of exertion for a long time.
Obviously, such cardiovascular conditioning will enhance both the youngster's health and their wrestling performance.
In part 1 of our series on cardiovascular training we learned how the body is affected during exercise.
We learned how our body uses ATP for energy and how aerobic training helps us to recover from anaerobic bouts of exercise.
When we talk about training we are not trying to take any thing away from what coaches are doing during practice only explaining how training affects the body.
In part 2 of our series on cardiovascular training we have made a change to our program so we can take a deeper look at cardiovascular training by going inside the different types of endurance that we as wrestlers use.
What is the objective of endurance training for wrestlers? In a sport that many spectators characterize as sudden, explosive attacks and counterattacks that are executed on a repeated basis for duration up to 6 minutes or until an opponent has been pinned, the need for endurance training is simple, to develop the energy production system(s) to meet the demands of a wrestling match.
It has been documented that the average wrestling match has an explosive attack executed approximately every 6-10 seconds.
For top level athletes endurance training is just as important as training for technique.
When it comes to a wrestling match, weekend tournament wrestlers who lack good muscular endurance and aerobic/anaerobic conditioning will start to tire as they wrestle in the later rounds.
What types of endurance are there? Endurance is the ability of your body to maintain a high quality of work in the face of fatigue.
There are 4 major types of endurance, aerobic endurance, anaerobic endurance, speed endurance, and strength and power endurance.
All 4 require a good sound aerobic conditioning level to maintain them.
Aerobic Endurance Aerobic means "With Oxygen.
" During aerobic exercise the body is working at a level that the demands for oxygen and fuel can be met by the body's intake.
Physiological adaptations to aerobic exercise involve some of the following: Respiratory System: Enhanced Oxygen exchange in the lungs Improved blood flow throughout the lungs Decreased submaximal respiratory rate Decreased submaximal pulmonary ventilation Cardiovascular System: Increased cardiac output Increased blood volume, red blood cell number, and hemoglobin concentration Decreased resting heart rate The basis for almost any sports conditioning program is good aerobic capacity.
As we mentioned before a good solid post-season and off-season aerobic conditioning program will be the foundation for the upcoming season.
So what does all this mean to a wrestler? Having a good solid aerobic conditioning level will ensure that your heart beats slower but stronger, moves greater volumes of oxygenated blood (which is important for your muscles), and you breath slower.
Anaerobic Endurance Anaerobic means "Without Oxygen.
" During anaerobic exercise at maximum effort, the body is working so hard that the demands for oxygen and fuel exceed the rate of supply and the muscles rely on stored reserves of fuel.
Few sports display the anaerobic stress that wrestling does.
The majority of the body
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