If the science of sport has taught people anything, it’s that there are several things besides how much weight is moved in training that actually enables athletes to perform at higher levels. It’s complicated; you have to have the right intensity, volume of exercise, biomechanics, rest, nutrition, and so much more. A ton of effort is required to actually get it all right and perhaps the worst (and most common) way to mess it up is the dreaded “off day,” (not to be confused with “rest days,” which are vital to recovery). “Off day” here means a day that you do not have it in you to perform your best. You may notice it as soon as the alarm goes off in the morning or you might not realize it until you get to work. There may even be days that you don’t even realize it was a bad day until the day is over, and you’re about to go to sleep and you realize “I just was not productive today.” Nobody likes those days; not you, not your spouse, not your boss, and certainly not your performance coach. Many times, especially in the fitness industry, it’s common to hear phrases along the lines of “if you put the work in, the results will follow.” While hard work certainly is important, it’s also important to make sure that the work is taking you as far as it can. You have to put in the right work to maximize the return on investment, especially with increasingly specialized training programs. Everyday when an athlete “doesn’t have it” and has a subpar performance in the training session is a day where they don’t maximize the return for the work they put in, which means they end up worse than they could have been if they did “have it.” The difference between gold and silver in the Olympic Games, on average, is only 2% of overall performance. Imagine training for years to be the best in the world, only to come up short by only 2% of your competition, and having to wait four more years to get another chance! It would be a shame to go home with silver simply because you had a couple more “off days” than the competition. So, how do we avoid “off days”
One obvious determinant of the effectiveness of a training session is nutrition. It’s common knowledge that you have to fuel your body well in order to make it perform well. It turns out that this relationship actually effects everything in a person’s life. One study showed that a 100 minute run at 64% VO2 max actually impaired decision-making time in subjects (Karelis). Interestingly enough, this effect wasn’t observed if subjects ingested sugar during the run. This means that your post workout meal is important not just for your own recovery, but also for thinking clearly; every decision you make following an exhausting workout is somewhat impaired until you fuel back up. It’s not just cognition either; recovery, immune system, everything is faulty without energy. You literally are a worse version of yourself across the physiological board without replenishing your energy stores, and you don’t get better by training at a worse level than you actually are.
Another reason for having lower performance days is a lack of sleep. It has been shown that failing to get adequate sleep severely hinders an athlete’s ability to coordinate skilled motion (Fullagher). This means that it is near impossible to train the dynamic, skilled movements in any athletic contest without compromising form, which can be both dangerous and counterproductive for performance. Inadequate sleep also results in increased levels of cortisol in the body, which is already increased after exercise, and can lead to the breakdown of lean mass. High levels of cortisol in the body also can weaken the immune system and the ability to heal/recover from an intense training session. Not only will your training suffer, but prolonged elevation of cortisol levels also make you 1) hurt more due to increased prolactin levels, 2) feel restless, since cortisol is actually part of the “fight or flight” response and not meant to stay in your body at high levels, 3) get sick easier, and 4) lose your sex drive via inhibition of libido-related hormones (Bennington). The take home message here is that if you don’t fuel your body correctly with food and sleep, it brings on a flood of other problems that can make it impossible to do anything, let alone improve performance.
The fact of the matter is that doing “the little things” right is actually what enables you to get better, especially if you want to perform at a high or elite level. Eating and sleeping are two factors to analyze, though there are certainly more. One study even showed that training performance can be increased with “self-talk” coaching: your body will actually respond to the little voice in your head if it says “I’m not tired; I can do this (Blanchfield).” Training is never done if you are focused on performance. There is always a way to get better and something that can be done to better prime the body for performance. Doing the little things and understanding the importance of the process will allow you to avoid unproductive days and maximize your training.
References:
- Bennington, V. The Ups and Downs of Cortisol: What You Need to Know. Web. 27 February 2016.
- Blanchfield, A et al. Talking Yourself out of Exhaustion: The Effects of Self-talk on Endurance Performance. October 2013. Web. 29 Feburary 2016.
- Fullagher, H et al. Sleep and Athletic Performance: The Effects of Sleep Loss on Exercise Performance, and Physiological and Cognitive Responses to Exercise. 15 October 2014. Web. 27 February 2016.
- Karelis, A et al. Carbohydrate Administration and Exercise Performance. 21 November 2012. Web.25 February 2016.
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