Why Should You Take the Time to Train?
Being a part of motocross you meet a huge variety of people.
There are just as many different levels of racers. Each one of which will
approach the racing scene differently. What I am a part of mostly is
amateurs at the national level and their training habits. Again, each one
has their own routine of fitness and health. Why do they train? Why do they
eat properly? There is more than one reason. These reasons are for every
level of racer.
Benefits of being healthy and fit go way beyond just being able
to run the race for a full 20 minutes without slowing down. When you decide
to take the time to train and eat food that is nutritious you will have more
energy throughout the day. The cardiovascular system improves immensely
with proper training, which contributes to better endurance. Eating healthy
food rather than candy or junk will lead to an overall wellness. Your body
will fight off infections more easily, which means illness will have a
harder time slowing you down at that next race. Another major benefit is
you will have improved mental function, better concentration, and alertness
on the track. You will be able to make better decisions faster.
Unfortunately crashing is inevitable, but being strong and flexible will
help you take a crash a lot better.
When you have made up your mind to train and get fit,
consistency and commitment are important. Bad eating habits are hard to
break, but once you start picking up a piece of fruit instead of the candy
bar, you will start feeling less sluggish. An overall diet of fruits,
veggies, and complex carbs will kill those sweet cravings that we all have.
Along with the healthier way of eating, cardio workouts and calisthenics
should be added to your routine.
There are 5 fitness goals:
Flexibility-it is very important to be flexible to be able to
move that bike around where you need it and to be able to move yourself
around when needed. Stretching keeps muscles from holding tension while
also helping to protect against strain or tearing.
Endurance-it is not just about the heart and lung strength, it
also is muscular strength it takes to sustain a lengthy session of exercise.
Muscle power-you still need muscles in motocross, without them
there's no way to handle the bike. If you are to lift any weights, they
need to be low and done with high reps.
Proper nutrition-it takes a healthy diet to be able to perform
at your peak performance.
Relaxation-yes your body needs this, too. Children all the way
through their teens are not getting enough sleep. 8-10 hours of sleep is
recommended for growing bodies and that's without considering the many hours
of training and bike riding that can be put in a day. Without enough sleep,
your motor skills (hand eye coordination) can be effected negatively.
Being around so many different types of people, I have many ask
why they actually need to have their child train. Does it really make a
difference? The answer is yes it makes a difference. Not only in your
racing abilities, but your everyday life as well.
Take care and ride safe,
Sheila Niday-physical trainer for Shannon Niday Mx Schools
