21/06/2022
There are two big sides to the conditioning equation: energy production and energy expenditure.
People often focus their conditioning workouts entirely around trying to produce more energy.
They believe that the more tired they can make themselves, then the more their conditioning will improve.
But the big problem with this approach is that all too often, when people make fatigue the main goal, they also let it compromise their technique and movement efficiency.
The more tired they get, the worse and more inefficient their technique and movement becomes.
This means what they're actually training themselves to is expend more energy than necessary.
They're developing really bad movement habits that waste energy.
This is the exact opposite of what good conditioning is.
Good conditioning is learning how to be incredibly efficient with your energy. To only expend as much as necessary to get the job done.
You want the lowest energy cost of movement because this means you can sustain it for longer.
The only way to develop that is to always focus on building and maintaining efficient technique, even as you do get tired.
Fatigue is a byproduct of training hard, but shouldn't be the goal itself.
Higher heart rates and greater fatigue is simply an opportunity to work on your ability to stay composed.
To focus on movement, technique, and controlling your pace and energy.
If you can develop this skill set, your conditioning will be far better than if all you ever do is focus on the energy production side and making yourself tired.
So the next time you do a conditioning workout, work on becoming more aware of your technique and movement quality throughout.
Don't let yourself sacrifice either one just to get in a few more reps or a few more seconds of work.
You might be making yourself more tired...but that doesn't mean you're making your conditioning any better.
