Training Tips and Techniques

 

Did you know that the nutrition your body needs depends not only on how long you exercise for, but what type of exercise you’re doing? For instance, marathon runners and sprinters may burn the same calories, but where those calories come from is very different. You can learn about these differences below. 

 

Aerobic vs. Anaerobic

 

When you exercise, there are two potential metabolic pathways your body goes through to produce energy—anaerobic (without oxygen) and aerobic (using oxygen).

Low-intensity activities, such as stretching, warming up, and ceili dancing are aerobic; your muscles require energy, and your body is able to provide them with sufficient energy by breaking down glucose (carbohydrate). This breakdown, which uses Oxygen, creates ATP, which is a high-energy molecule that is your body’s “energy currency”.

During very high-intensity activity, however, your muscles require so much energy that your body can not use Oxygen to break down glucose fast enough. Once your muscles exhaust their immediate glycogen stores (only 2-3 seconds), an alternative, faster pathway must be used to provide energy; this is called the lactic acid cycle, and does not require oxygen.

Examples of anaerobic activity are a the start of a sprint, or the first few seconds of a step, when the energy requirement is greatest.

Most forms of exercise are a combination of these two types. In general, more complicated your steps are, the higher likelihood you experience moments of anaerobic activity.

 

Studies have shown...

 

The Nutrients your body uses depends on your exercise.

 

Depending on how fast you are running your steps, or how long practice lasts, you will have different nutritional needs. If you do endurance drills (such as jump roping) for an extended period, than you burn more carbohydrate than if you were slowly learning a new step for the same duration.

You don’t always know what you’ll be doing until you get to class, so focus on replenishing the carbohydrates you lose from day-to-day. That way if you have two hard classes in a row, you know you’ll be prepared!

 

Think about your activities.

 

Where do your dance classes fit in? Are you always out of breath during class, or do you find it easy to keep going? Depending on if you are taking drills, teams, or solo classes, your requirements vary.