It's The Total Load You Place On Your Body, Not Just Training Load

August 30, 2019

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Nathan Waters - Total Health Performance

Recently I tore my adductor and conjoint tendon. Complete tear. Training jiu-jitsu with a mate. 

Now we just got caught in an awkward position as we were transitioning and my groin got stretched and caught under his body weight. I felt the snap immediately and my tendon rolled up into a ball right beside my pubic bone. I wasn't being  stupid trying to resist a submission or anything like that, it was just an accident. 

Most people would accept that as the reason and move on but I have had way too many tears in my days and I look for reasons as to why this is happening. It isn't normal. Maybe a little strain or tear, but not things coming off the bone so easily. I think the biggest culprit is the amount of cortisone shots I had as a rugby league player. I would of had more than 30 in my life. In just one off season I had 11. They tell you they can weaken ligaments and tendons and to rest after getting them done for a few days, which I did do, but I think there has to be long lasting affects. 

In the past I was guilty of over training and pushing too hard. So that is why I thought I was rupturing things. I think it was definitely a massive contributor. Since I have backed off in my training I have been injury free for a year and a half and was getting stronger and feeling much healthier. When this injury first occurred I didn't consider I could be over trained / under recovered, whatever you like to call it, because I have kept my volume low and haven't been training all that much. What I did over look though was the total load my body is under from all aspects of my life, not just training. 

Starting our own gym has been great for us and our clients but it has added a lot to my day. 5am to 7pm takes its toll over time. I knew this but because I love what I do and don't really consider how much drain it can put on my body. I sleep well and have a regular routine, always getting 8 hours a night, my nutrition is good, all those lifestyle things I have covered. There is only so much we can handle though.

The point of all this is to consider the total load you are putting on your body, not just your training load. Many people try to mimic the training of professional athletes but you have to remember that they are being paid to do that and it is there main focus. Most aren't working 9-5 jobs on top of that, they get the time to recover and prepare for the next session. 

Some things to look at are psychological factors (have you had really busy weeks, stressed out, unmotivated etc.), your nutritional/nutrient status, sleep, social aspects of your life (been partying too much, not relaxing with friends family enough), school / work demands, environmental factors, any recovery interventions you may or may not be doing, all of these can impact your ability to recover from training, and just daily life, so consider these when determining how much additional work you can put into your day.

Tags:

Recovery

injury

Injury prevention

overtraining

Combine Fast and Slow Proteins for Greater Results

August 20, 2019

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Nathan Waters - Total Health Performance

We all know about fast and slow carbohydrates and the use of the glycemic index or glycemic load to determine which carbs are burnt more fast or slow in the body. What many trainees don't know is that there are also fast and slow proteins. Body builders have spoken about it for a long time but the average guy at the gym doesn't rally know what it means. 

If we take a look at whey protein and also casein protein, we see a fast protein (whey) and a slow protein (casein). The whey protein is digested much more quickly and spikes amino acid levels in the body quickly, but for only a short amount of time. The casein is digested more slowly and has a more steady level of amino acid release. This is why I would often read to have this before bed in the old bodybuilding magazines I had as a kid. 

Whey protein increased protein synthesis by 68% in one study, whereas casein only increased it by 31%. Where casein was better though was by inhibiting protein breakdown. Casein reduced protein breakdown by 34%. 

By looking at these results, you get the idea that you should combine both whey and casein post workout for greatest results. They whey will increase protein synthesis and the casein can help prevent protein breakdown. 

The only problem I see with this with our clients is that many people don't tolerate casein very well and I am finding more and more people are struggling with whey. If you tolerate these two proteins well, then try and combine them for greater gains in muscle mass. 

For a deeper look into this you can read this article here.

Tags:

protein

protein shakes

muscle gain

muscle mass

whey protein

Double Body Weight Deadlift for 3 at 13 Years Old

August 18, 2019

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Nathan Waters - Total Health Performance

It was another good week at Total Health Performance with many people achieving great results. We had people hitting PB's and others reaching goals of 30kg of body weight lost. One thing that stuck out for me though was Darcy deadlifting 115kg for 3 reps. She is still only 13 years old and weighs 57kg. So she has now pulled double her body weight for reps.

This was her first deadlift from the floor for this cycle as last cycle I had her performing them from a podium. The carry over seems to have worked well. In saying this, next week we will not be going for a heavier load. We will be going back down to 105 or 107.5kg. It is important for her not to lift maximally at a young age and this was getting very close to that point. 

I have spoken about Darcy and her athletic abilities many times in the past. She is going from strength to strength because she is focused and loves what she is doing. Its great seeing her progress along with the rest of the gym. 

Tags:

Deadlift

Darcy Eade