RECOVERY TIME OFFERS SOME TOP CLASS INPUT

With a fair few weeks' Autumn grind behind them already, a scheduled recovery week for Trackspeed1-UK athletes offered the perfect opportunity for some expert assessment on progress so far.

Almost the whole squad attended two classroom sessions at Crystal Palace this last week hosted by sports scientist Mark Stanton on Tuesday, and England Athletics National Coach Mentor for Strength and Conditioning, Rob' Thickpenny, on Thursday.

Mark Stanton talks nutrition on Tuesday

Rob' Thickpenny talks S & C on Thursday

Mark took the group through some basic calculations reading each athlete's diet, and made a lot of recommendations on how they could improve their nutrition plans, improving their lifestyle, and hence potential performance on the track.

Rob' combined with Trackspeed1-UK Head Coach, John Powell, to host a discussion on mainly strength and conditioning issues, which proved quite thought provoking for some, and triggered some very enthusiastic discussion.

"I doubt many groups do this sort of thing," said John, "but I thought it would be an excellent learning opportunity for the majority, and I think it turned out to be just that.

"As I said to the group at the beginning of the Tuesday session, I have purposely scheduled this recovery week for bodies to rest up a bit and recover from a pretty hefty workload this last few weeks.  It is definitely a case of 'less is more'.

"Rather than have everyone lazing around at home though, these two sessions really opened a few eyes to some key issues, and I am indebted to Mark and Rob' for facilitating the discussions.  You can train as hard as you like, but if you don't entertain a decent lifestyle then a lot of the effort is wasted.

"From experience, if people aren't encompassing the whole fitness agenda - nutrition, S & C, and general lifestyle issues, we hit the hamstring season and injuries or niggles start creeping in, and I've made it quite clear that isn't an option this winter!"