There are pro ballplayers who get hung up on hangnails and head to the showers. And then there's Kobe Bryant with a smashed finger, and a messed-up back, yet the guy figures out how to hit game-winning shots at the buzzer to secure Ws for the Los Angeles Lakers. Which could cause budding ballplayers to equate such outcomes with the lore about Bryant's legendary workout regimen.

A Kobe-in-training might adopt the more-is-better, no pain-no gain approach, because it's about being like No. 24, who, many would argue, got to where he is trying to be like a certain No. 23, who once dominated a game while flu-like symptoms were dominating him. Thing is, Bryant can afford to fly in his very own massage therapist to work on his back. Most people don't have that kind of money, nor the time - the therapist spent at least three hours on Bryant's back.

While emulating somebody like Bryant and his work ethic seems a whole lot better than kids looking up to gun-toting Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, the truth, according to experts, is punishing the body without proper rest is problematic.

N.C. Central University basketball coach LeVelle Moton can tell you all about that. When his Eagles don't get enough rest, their wings go limp and their on-court character is lethargic, he said.

"No lift on shots," Moton said. There's a reason for that, Durham, NC-based fitness professional Alex Baskerville said. He's been fine-tuning bodies for 10 years, and he's just about seen it all, including the sort of plummeting performance Moton observes when his players overdo it.

"Overtraining is a huge concern when someone tells me that they want to train every day of the week," Baskerville said. "The client might start off on a good track, but too much exercise isn't necessarily a good thing because your body needs rest in order to become stronger and to rebuild itself. One day between workout sessions for the novice exerciser is adequate, but it all depends on each individual's ability to recover." Are you moody? Trouble sleeping? Don't feel like eating? Your resting heart rate is increasing? Then you're probably overtraining, and if you don't watch it, you're going to end up with the bodily dings that are overuse injuries. Resting around 48 to 72 hours per muscle group is about right, Baskerville said.

But more rest might be required; it just depends on how the body feels, he said. "If you are sore to the point that you have a hard time moving and completing daily living tasks, then you shouldn't train just because it is your scheduled day. Take another day off. Your body will thank you for it," Baskerville said. "You can actually make it a whole lot worse if you continue to push through the soreness. During resistance training while your muscles are under tension, microscopic tears occur, and if you don't stretch and eat the proper diet it will take longer for the muscles to repair themselves. If you continually work those same muscles every day, they will never heal."

Those overuse injuries? That's what Baskerville is talking about.

"Think of yourself taking a knife and slicing your hand in the same place day after day. Will it recover or will it stay an open wound? The next thing that will happen is it will somehow get infected and you will have a bigger problem than you started with," Baskerville said. "This is the same thing that will happen to the body if it keeps going until it can't fight it off anymore. Then the body will begin to shut down! The warning signs will become more apparent as you continue to tear the body down."

The body isn't stupid, Baskerville explained. Trying to trick it to believe you're resting it by not lifting heavy isn't the way to go, because the body still is going to interpret that exercise as stress on it, he said.

"Train the body, don't sap all its energy or drain it," Baskerville said. "Your body will get to a point where it will plateau, and it will not progress past that point. The workouts should be varied in intensity as well as selection, so your muscles will continue to be stimulated. Progressions and regressions should always be used to prevent overtraining .

Periodized training cycles use variations in training frequency to alter and enhance exercise stimulus and to provide for recovery. Don't believe in the saying, 'No pain, no gain!' Continuous pain means absolutely no gains! Your body actually gets stronger at rest, not when you are exercising. Exercise is just the stimulus that will trigger the response of growth and repair that builds more fibrous muscle, increases the metabolism and makes you stronger." It's not always about working harder, but smarter, Baskerville said.

"People often think more is better, but it is not always the case," Baskerville said. "Less is actually more because it is always better to train moderately then to overtrain. Never stress over your training. If you don't enjoy your training, find something that you can enjoy. Remember you have a lifetime, so missing a session now and then is just fine."

Writer John McCann is certified in personal training through the National Federation of Professional Trainers. Reach him at www.johnmccann.net.

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed