Endurance training program. [Part 1. Theoretical]

Regular endurance training allows us to resist fatigue during physical activity. Endurance people are able to perform many more sets and repetitions of a given exercise without becoming so exhausted that they quit. That is, the level of endurance is determined by the time period during which our body can cope with a particular task without loss of efficiency.

What types of endurance exist?

Endurance is usually divided into two types:

• Cardiovascular - ensuring long-term functioning of the heart and vascular system during high physical activity. Which is also often called general. To train this type of endurance, you need to include cardio exercises in your training program: running, walking, jumping rope, cycling.
• Muscular, the level of which is directly affected by the number of muscle contractions. Such training consists of repeated repetitions of different types of exercises: pull-ups, squats, push-ups, twisting, etc.

To figure out how to train endurance, you need to know about a number of features of the human body:

• Our body is characterized by the absorption of oxygen and the release of carbon dioxide. This property depends on the rate of gas exchange and the total volume of the lungs.
• Each person has individual characteristics of the circulatory system. Amount of blood, hemoglobin level, blood flow speed.
• It is the circulatory system that is responsible for removing carbon dioxide from the body (including muscles).

What types of exercises help build endurance?

To make your body resistant to physical activity, you need to choose a suitable set of exercises aimed at developing endurance:

• Aerobic exercise. Such loads are a good way to develop the muscles of the heart, strengthen the vascular system, get rid of excess weight and normalize the functioning of the respiratory organs. Swimming and running are widely used as aerobic exercise.
• Speed ​​training involves performing certain exercises as quickly as possible.
• Circuit training is suitable for training not only in the gym, but also at home. They involve performing several cycles of exercises at once. Depending on your physical fitness, you should do from 4 to 8 laps in one workout. The intensity of training increases gradually.
• Special loads are aimed at developing certain muscle groups. As a rule, they are included in the training program by athletes involved in sports at a professional level. This type of training is focused on increasing the endurance of specific muscles.

Burpee

One of the best exercises for developing endurance is Burpee. This is a combination of alternate push-ups and jumps, repeated at a fast pace without a break.

Execution order:

1. Take a lying position.
2. Do 1 push-up.
3. Go into the squat position.
4. Quickly straighten up and jump, raising your arms above your head.
5. Return to the squat position.
6. Take a lying position.

The number of repetitions is determined by the instructor. When training on your own, it is recommended to repeat it at least 20 times per approach.

How and to whom are endurance exercises beneficial?

It is necessary to train endurance not only for professional athletes, but also for ordinary people. After all, a resilient person is primarily distinguished by good health. When performing a set of aerobic exercises, the body is saturated with oxygen, which stimulates intensive breakdown of carbohydrates and, as a result, excess weight loss. And extra pounds are one of the main problems that contribute to the emergence of numerous diseases.

In addition, thanks to systematic loads aimed at increasing endurance:

• In the human body, the number of capillaries through which blood flows to the muscles increases.
• The heart is strengthened, the intensity of blood flow increases, due to which the muscles receive significantly more oxygen.
• The growth of mitochondria, which are a kind of muscle cell factories in the human body, is activated.
• The functioning of the respiratory organs is normalized.
• The level of lactic acid in muscle tissue decreases. It is because of the large amount of this substance in the muscles that pain occurs during sports.
• The active development of red muscles is stimulated (these are slow fibers of small diameter that use the oxidation of carbohydrates and fatty acids to produce energy).

When performing any exercise, a person expends energy. By properly combining endurance training with proper nutrition, you can achieve impressive results: make your body fit, get rid of extra pounds. Selecting a suitable training program depends on your own preferences and physical capabilities.

Training methods according to Seluyanov V.N.

Victor Seluyanov has been studying the processes occurring in the body during the training process for more than 20 years.

During his research, he came up with several principles that improved muscle building results:

• quality of effort principle: all exercises must be performed to failure;

  
  Endurance training according to Seluyanov must be performed to failure.

• priority principle : first you need to work out those muscle groups that are most important for performing basic movements;
• microcycling principle : it is not advisable to work out all the muscles in one workout. You need to divide them into groups and work through them one by one;
• principle of compensation: all muscles, ligaments, and body systems (including the nervous) have their own rehabilitation time. It makes sense to carry out developmental training for a particular muscle group only after its complete recovery.

Training developed in accordance with these principles has allowed Russian athletes to receive top awards not only at Russian, but also at international competitions.

Contraindications

This type of training involves serious stress, so it is not suitable for everyone. So, people with heart and vascular diseases will have to refuse them in order to avoid worsening health problems. In addition, when an athlete pushes himself to the limit, his blood pressure increases greatly. Because of this, it may be unsafe for athletes suffering from hypertension or hypertension to set the maximum load on the body. They are also contraindicated in overly intense cardio training. For example, in order not to harm the body, it is better to replace sprint races with regular jogging.

Those who train endurance using barbell squats or deadlifts must strictly follow the technique of performing the exercise and monitor their breathing. Otherwise, problems will not be long in coming. Intraocular and intracranial pressure, increased load on the spine and various injuries due to poor technique are real consequences that can permanently disable an athlete.

Beginning athletes who plan to train resistance to physical stress must act according to a strictly defined scheme. To compile it, it is best to seek advice from a professional trainer. After all, the main thing is not only to achieve the desired results, but also not to harm yourself in the process.

Before starting endurance exercise, you should consult your doctor:

• anyone who has previously suffered a stroke or heart attack;
• people with joint diseases;
• patients with diabetes mellitus;
• cancer patients;
• obese.

How to improve your performance?

Endurance training will give the expected results only if you systematically increase your performance. Otherwise, the body will adapt to the load and progress will stop.

The load is increased in 3 stages:

• first: development of general endurance through aerobic exercise, cardio training, breathing exercises and exercises to strengthen the musculoskeletal system;

  

• second : increasing the volume of load with alternating exercises of low and high intensity;
• third : training of special endurance through the introduction of interval and cyclic training in aerobic and anaerobic modes.

The third stage includes training in the CrossFit system.

Exercises to develop endurance

Below we present the most effective exercises aimed at increasing resistance to physical activity.

Walking on a treadmill

This type of exercise is best suited for endurance training. A sports simulator makes it possible to change the angle of the track, which allows you to “go uphill”. To increase the load, it is recommended to take additional weight in your hands.

Run

In order for the body to fully recover, you should run every other day. At the beginning of the workout, you need to maintain a slow pace and increase it gradually. You should move on to longer exercises only when the body adapts to a certain load. Beginner athletes should practice fast walking before running. You can find out how to start running correctly in this article. And here you will be able to figure out what this sports discipline helps to develop.

Jumping rope

A very useful exercise for reducing muscle tension. At first, 15-minute workouts will be enough, later the duration of classes should be increased to 30 minutes. Thanks to jumping rope, you can get rid of excess weight, normalize the functioning of the heart and blood vessels, and work out the muscles of the legs, buttocks and abdomen.

Squats

Great exercise for endurance. Initially, you can train by squatting on two legs, but later you should complicate the exercise by switching to one leg (pistol squat).

Pull-ups on the horizontal bar

Another simple but very effective simulator in terms of increasing resistance to physical activity. During classes, you should do as many pull-ups as your level of training allows. Only by giving your all will you be able to achieve the required results.

When performing pull-ups, you must follow the technique exactly: pull yourself up while keeping your body straight. The legs should remain straight. You can read how to learn to do pull-ups in this article.

Pushups

To train endurance with this type of exercise, you need to do push-ups every day and be sure to follow the breathing technique. As part of the daily training program, you will do from 1 to 5 approaches. You can take the classic type of push-ups as a basis; over time, the execution should be complicated (push-ups on one hand or with weights). We wrote more about push-ups here.

Ab exercises

They are very effective in training resistance to physical stress. You can perform the exercises on the floor or a special gymnastic bench. To increase performance, you should supplement the exercise with twisting. It’s a good idea to use a medicine ball as a weight.

Burpee

This exercise, which increases endurance and the level of general physical fitness, is rightly considered one of the most effective. Essentially, it combines elements of jumping and push-ups. To perform it, you need to lie face down, resting on your hands, then do a push-up, quickly rise to your feet and jump up. The more repetitions you can complete without slowing down, the better.

Cycling

This sports discipline is accessible to almost everyone. Thanks to the ability to reduce the load on the knee joints and feet, people who are overweight can exercise on a bicycle. Cycling helps strengthen the heart muscle, increase vascular tone, lower blood cholesterol levels, thereby significantly reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Read more about the benefits of cycling here.

Swimming

Swimming improves overall health, promotes the development of the respiratory organs, and also helps train the cardiovascular system. Regular training is best done in a specially equipped pool (an open pond is not suitable due to the impossibility of using it all year round). Having set a goal to increase the endurance of your own body, you should increase the swimming distance each time.

What does endurance mean?

Endurance is the body’s ability to withstand fatigue and the ability to perform monotonous physical work for a long period of time without loss of productivity. Everyone has this quality, but the level of its development is different for everyone.

There are many forms of endurance that can be roughly divided into 2 groups:

• general – refers to the performance of work of a non-specific nature;
• special – concerns specific types of activities associated with physical fatigue.

Special endurance is divided into 2 types:

• high-speed: the ability to maintain a constant speed for a long time. Essential for long-distance runners, swimmers, and cyclists;
• strength: the ability of muscles to produce intense efforts over a long period of time without reducing the force of contraction of muscle fibers. This is a must-have quality for weightlifters and people whose work involves intense physical activity.

The level of endurance depends on the content of glycogen in the muscles - a polysaccharide formed from glucose residues. During physical activity, its breakdown gives the body more energy than the breakdown of protein. Therefore, high-carbohydrate diets contribute to the development of endurance, and protein diets provoke its decrease.

Endurance training has a positive effect on the cardiovascular system (CVS). During exercise, the force of contraction of the heart muscle and the volume of blood expelled increases, which further reduces the heart rate and breathing at rest.

Also:

• maintain pulmonary ventilation at a good level;
• preserve the contractility of the heart;
• avoid problems with blood pressure;
• slow down the aging process of the body.

General endurance develops through regular physical activity of moderate intensity over a long period of time.

Endurance training program

Below we present an approximate scheme of classes that allow you to train resistance to physical activity:

With the development of modern technology, most human functions have been taken over by machines. Thanks to them, people no longer need to be strong and physically developed enough. However, a sedentary lifestyle, reluctance to spend time on sports and poor nutrition make our body weak and susceptible to various kinds of diseases.

In addition, a weakened body that does not have the opportunity to expend energy in the required quantities ceases to function properly. Because of this, problems with excess weight subsequently appear. Which again has an extremely negative impact on health. This is why playing sports is vital! To make your body strong, resistant to the external environment and always be in good physical shape.

Training Tips

In order for your training to be both beneficial and enjoyable, you need to follow some recommendations from professionals:

• provide quality rest. During intense training, the body needs to recover, otherwise there will not be enough energy for exercise;
• consume at least 2 liters of water per day. Water improves metabolism and helps supply muscles with oxygen;
• don't feel sorry for yourself. During training, it is necessary to achieve the maximum level of overfatigue;
• don't stop there. You need to gradually increase the load level, otherwise there will be no progress;
• know moderation in everything. Excessive zeal can lead to increased fatigue with further deterioration in results;
• be sure to have breakfast. The first meal should contain complex carbohydrates, fiber and protein to energize the body for the whole day.

It is recommended to enhance endurance training by controlling nutrition, providing the body with substances that contribute to the development of this quality.

Sets and reps

The number of approaches and repetitions depends on the level of training of the person and the program under which the training is carried out. In standard exercises to develop general endurance, 3-4 approaches are practiced with a number of repetitions from 20 to complete failure.

Beginner mistakes

As practice shows, in pursuit of results, many novice athletes make the following mistakes:

• neglect to perform one or another exercise. Giving up running in favor of rowing may not be important when training general endurance, but both exercises are important for developing special endurance;
• frivolous attitude towards practicing execution techniques. It is important to remember that one wrong movement when lifting heavy weights can cause injury;
• lack of system in training;
• attitude towards aerobic training as restorative. Beginners do not see much sense in them and give preference to what seems to them the most promising for building strength and muscles.

All these points are not so important for people who train for themselves, but not for those who want to succeed.

Contraindications and restrictions

Endurance training has a general healing effect on the body, but there are certain diseases for which physical activity is absolutely or temporarily contraindicated.

Namely:

• respiratory diseases and cardiovascular pathologies;
• ODA problems;
• fractures and other limb injuries;
• poor or deteriorating vision;
• obesity (before you start training, you first need to lose weight).

It is not recommended to put stress on the body for 2-3 weeks after recovery from colds and viral diseases. If there is a feeling of physical or psychological fatigue, it is better to reschedule the training.

Endurance training for girls is a good opportunity to improve the quality of life, increase efficiency, accomplish more and achieve success in various fields of activity.