(205): Improving Athletic Performance through Functional Neurology

Description

Improving Athletic Performance through Functional Neurology.
Fitness can be broken down into different components or parts.  These fall under health-related components and skill-related components. The nervous system plays an intricate roll in all of these areas… This module will cover the neurological mechanisms involved with each area and provide examples of ways to improve athletic performance.

We will cover the following topics:

Agility
The ability to change the position of the body quickly and control the movement.

Example:  A badminton player moving around the court from back to front and side to side at high speed and efficiency.

Balance
The ability to maintain the body’s centre of mass above the base of support.
Example:  A. sprinter holds a perfectly still sprint start position and is ready to go into action as soon as the gun sounds.

Coordination
The ability to use two or more body parts together.
Example: A trampolinist timing their arm and leg movements to perform the perfect tuck summersault.

Power
The ability to perform strength performances quickly.
Example:  A javelin thrower applies great force to the spear while moving their arm rapidly forward.

Body composition
The percentage of body weight which is fat, muscle, and bone.
Example:  The gymnast has a lean body composition to allow them to propel themself through the air when performing on the asymmetrical bars.

Cardiovascular fitness
The ability of the heart, lungs and blood to transport oxygen.
Example:  Completing a half marathon with consistent split times across all parts of the run.

Flexibility
The range of motion (ROM) at a joint.
Example:  A gymnast training to increase hip mobility to improve the quality of their split leap on the beam.

Muscular endurance
The ability to use voluntary muscles repeatedly without tiring.
Example:  The ability to perform prolonged, dynamic exercise using large muscle groups at a moderate-to-high intensity level.

Reaction Time
The time taken to respond to a stimulus.
Example:  A boxer perceives a punch from their left and rapidly moves their head to avoid being struck.

Speed
The ability to put body parts into motion quickly.
Example:  A tennis player moving forward from the baseline quickly to reach a drop shot at the net.

Cerebellar control, corticospinal responses and muscle physiology.

Zone training and heart rate variability.

Duration:  3 hours

CPD:  3 credits- after passing Hot Potato quiz with 85%