Post by John A. Casler on Oct 4, 2008 7:08:38 GMT -8
Respnose of Ralph Giarnella MD on SUPERTRAINING
================================
Ed, I believe that the basic training principles that apply to younger athletes also apply to the older athletes. However I do believe that older athletes have to take certain aspects of training into consideration that do not affect the younger athlete.
In my opinion,(no studies to back me up on this) the most important concern for the older athlete is is the triad of tendons, ligaments and joints(TLJ). These elements have a very poor blood supply compared to other parts of our body and as a result when injured take much longer to repair. The also take longer to adapt to increased stress.
This slower adaptation while of concern also for the younger athlete becomes of greater concern for the older athlete.
Perhaps the most common injuries are overuse injuries that have a great impact on the TLJ much more so than on the muscles.
Overuse injuries (along with stress fractures) are more likely to occur when there is a sudden increase in either intensity or volume (or both) of exercise.
Once these injuries occur they take a long time to heal and in many cases many never completely occur.
Then there is what I call the normal "wear and tear" that comes along with natural aging. Just as our skin wrinkles and sags to a certain extent the the tendons and ligaments may begin to weaken over time time due to small tears or strains that are incompletely healed over time. Much like a an old rope or cable may begin to fray and weaken over time. Just a few strands at a time but over a lifetime the overall integrity is compromised and more likely to break.
Likewise the surfaces of the joints also begin to wear down as well over time.
Perhaps the most common complaints of non athletes are degenerative joint disease affect the knees, hips and spine. The aging athlete is not immune to these problems and some cases the exercise itself may make these problems worse especially in athletic endeavors that have a lot of weight bearing activity.
Keeping these points in mind I believe that the older athletes has to be satisfied slow but steady progress in their training and be happy with modest gains in performance over a longer time. Trying to do too much too quickly may lead to taking one step forward and two backwards.
Also the older athlete needs to allow more time for recovery with more interspersed easy days or recovery days.
Other considerations for the older athlete are that while exercise is good for your health it does not make you immune to illness and is not a guaranteed fountain of youth. Just like non athletes,the older athlete is also subject to heart disease and hardening of the arteries no matter how good their diet and steady their exercise has been. This is even more so for the athlete who began to lead a "healthy lifestyle" after many years of not so healthy habits. You cannot turn back the clock.
I have seen "healthy athletes" drop dead of a heart attack.
Ralph Giarnella MD
Southington Ct USA
================================
Ed, I believe that the basic training principles that apply to younger athletes also apply to the older athletes. However I do believe that older athletes have to take certain aspects of training into consideration that do not affect the younger athlete.
In my opinion,(no studies to back me up on this) the most important concern for the older athlete is is the triad of tendons, ligaments and joints(TLJ). These elements have a very poor blood supply compared to other parts of our body and as a result when injured take much longer to repair. The also take longer to adapt to increased stress.
This slower adaptation while of concern also for the younger athlete becomes of greater concern for the older athlete.
Perhaps the most common injuries are overuse injuries that have a great impact on the TLJ much more so than on the muscles.
Overuse injuries (along with stress fractures) are more likely to occur when there is a sudden increase in either intensity or volume (or both) of exercise.
Once these injuries occur they take a long time to heal and in many cases many never completely occur.
Then there is what I call the normal "wear and tear" that comes along with natural aging. Just as our skin wrinkles and sags to a certain extent the the tendons and ligaments may begin to weaken over time time due to small tears or strains that are incompletely healed over time. Much like a an old rope or cable may begin to fray and weaken over time. Just a few strands at a time but over a lifetime the overall integrity is compromised and more likely to break.
Likewise the surfaces of the joints also begin to wear down as well over time.
Perhaps the most common complaints of non athletes are degenerative joint disease affect the knees, hips and spine. The aging athlete is not immune to these problems and some cases the exercise itself may make these problems worse especially in athletic endeavors that have a lot of weight bearing activity.
Keeping these points in mind I believe that the older athletes has to be satisfied slow but steady progress in their training and be happy with modest gains in performance over a longer time. Trying to do too much too quickly may lead to taking one step forward and two backwards.
Also the older athlete needs to allow more time for recovery with more interspersed easy days or recovery days.
Other considerations for the older athlete are that while exercise is good for your health it does not make you immune to illness and is not a guaranteed fountain of youth. Just like non athletes,the older athlete is also subject to heart disease and hardening of the arteries no matter how good their diet and steady their exercise has been. This is even more so for the athlete who began to lead a "healthy lifestyle" after many years of not so healthy habits. You cannot turn back the clock.
I have seen "healthy athletes" drop dead of a heart attack.
Ralph Giarnella MD
Southington Ct USA