Written by: Christine Lundkvist, Physiotherapist at Volvat Medical Center
There is a lot of focus on training towards spring and summer and people often intensify their training at this time of year. Soon it is a holiday and for many there are no regular daily routines and most people train less.
A review article showed that oxygen uptake is reduced between 6 and 14 percent for trained athletes after a training stay of four weeks (1). Then we can imagine that something happens to the form of exercisers as well.
What can you do to stay in shape through the summer?
Summer can be a great time to do something other than the usual habit and the body can respond well to it. It's a perfect season to move your workout out of the gym.
Use nature
If you are going to stay in the mountains, in the woods or by the coast, it is great to use nature as a training arena. On the mountain you can use the climb as resistance and this is super interval training. If you are going on holiday by the forest or by the coast, this is a very good surface to run on, at the same time it also places greater demands on stability when you run.
City break
Use the parks to run when there are often fewer people in the middle of summer. In addition, benches, trees and stairs are great for strength training. It is also easy to carry an elastic band in your pocket when you run, such as resistance and strength training.
Use the light and vitamins D from the sun
Now you have free time and you can make use of the daylight. This is one of the most important sources of vitamin D, and can give you lots of energy for further exercise. Try to schedule your workouts during the day when you have time.
Work out with friends and family
In the summer you may have several days off at the same time and you can benefit from a training buddy. Exercising with someone can have a great effect, you often perform more and it can act as a motivator.
If the children are at home during the holidays, you can, for example, run with a pram, the children can cycle and you run next to them.
Intensity
How much you should train depends on several factors such as age and goal of the training. Research shows that intensity is the variable that is most important to keep if you reduce the number of sessions during the holidays. Therefore, interval training is a good form of exercise, for example 4 × 4.
For those of you who are going to participate in a race in late summer, it may be a good idea not to turn on the "pause button" during the holidays.
Try to let exercise become a lifestyle, all year round. You avoid skipping both before and after the summer.
Good summer and good luck with the training!
Regards
Christine Lundkvist, Physiotherapist at Volvat Medical Center
Source:
- (Report) Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2001
