Adding sport to your training program is an extremely valuable concept that will help draw together the training you have done in the other areas and integrate them to increase your overall athleticism. Every sport has differently weighted athletic elements. Soccer is endurance based but also demands explosive power and multi-directional movement skills. Basketball is similar but has a much higher strength element and rugby even higher. Racquet sports demand great hand eye coordination and lateral quickness. Use sports with different athletic demands to build your functional abilities and motor skills that will integrate and support your other training. This will help to bring you to the highest level of fitness.
All sport with no supplemental training
Every sport and exercise has repeated movement patterns and every one of them can cause overuse injuries. If other modes of exercise are not used to counteract the stress involved in the primary activity, some type of overuse injury is almost inevitable. “Tennis elbow”, “shin splints”, “swimmer’s shoulder” and “jumper’s knee” are all classic examples of common overuse injuries that are mostly avoidable if proper stretching and complimentary exercises or training modes are used. Limiting ourselves to one type of activity or exercise will develop imbalances both systemically and muscularly that leave people injury prone and with fitness that is limited to a specific setting. Ensuring to use the other training methods will increase joint stability, build the base fitness, strength and mobility that is necessary for most sport, and prevent muscle imbalances and systemic limitations.
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