Tri-vocabulary: FITNESS and FATIQUE

Tri-vocabulary: ATP

 What does it mean to be "fit" actually?
This is a similar story with that of "what does it mean to be healthy?"

To be healthy does not mean just not to be free of pains or sympthoms, as probably all the people are used to think!

To be really healthy means to have a constantly joy to live, to wake up in the morning with the prosperous feeling of singing, going out and cut the grass :-)

This is HEALTH! 

When you are not feeling this way, something is wrong. The soul, the mind or another component of yourself stops you to feel the joy of living and taking action.

This is my exerience so far.

In the same manner, fitness means different things to different people.

In terms of sport, fitness is directly related to the sport art for which one is preparing.

Speaking about endurance events such as triathlons and duathlons fitness is the ability to resist or delay fatique at a desired speed!

Reduced fatique means faster race times at the same effort.

Why do we train actually? Everybody is training, but how many of you really know the reason for this longterm torture?

Why everybody is willing to take into account this long period of stress over the mind and body without understanding the complexity of the reasons of doing that? I find this state of facts a bit funny when I look to some of novice athletes and then listening about what have to say sometimes :-) about "feeling themselves tortured" but .... going on into the process.

We train to be prepared for something.

As my focus is the endurance sport - such as triathlon, duathlon, trail running, adventure races which takes days and nighs -, I will refer to such of activities.

We train to be prepared. Because once we decided to start a race (organized or not) we want to reach the finish, no doubts. 

So, in few words, we train to reduce the effects of fatique that accompany race-like effort.

"That sounds simple enough, but to complicate things, there are at least three physiological causes of fatigue that slow the endurance athlete:

1. Accumulation of hydrogen ions in the muscles and blood

2. Depletion of carbohydrate-based fuel stored in the muscles (glycogen) and blood (glucose)

3. Failure of the muscles' contractile mechanisms.

A scientifically based training program improves fitness by stressing the systems associated with these causes of fatique."

Source of inspiration: The Triathlete's Training Bible by Joe Friel  

Going back on text: Why endurance actually?

Because in my last 12 years of long races - mountain bike, duathlon, triathlon, running, trail running, adventure races - I saw how my soul, mind and body get improved.

Endurance is not a diet, but a life style. Who is not ready to understand this simple fact will never be able to change his/her life in a better experience.

Some of the benefits I could mention:

- better self image

- better confidence

- clearer thinking

- better sleep

- better life quality and quantity

- inedite experiences

- meeting special people

- discovering new limits, places, opportunities