Month: April 2019

An important but not much mentioned condition among athletes is Overtraining syndrome (OTS). OTS is a condition that occurs when an athletes training load is high and the recovery is not efficient enough.

The result of this is an opposite effect with decreased performance instead of increased. Proper training and conditioning requires a very fine balance between overload and recovery for the body.

In all varieties of sports, it is meaningful for the athletes to train hard in order to improve their performance. After a work-out the performance usually decreases temporarily, and with the right amount of recovery leads to super compensation.

If a work out is done in the recovery phase overreaching can occur, on the other hand if it occurs during the super compensation period the body will improve to a higher fitness level.

Me myself have many times experienced OTS in my career as a professional kiteboarder where I would spend countless hours everyday on the water. To listen carefully to the body and stay a few days off training can give immense results in performance and save yourself from many injuries.

To know about OTS and it’s presence in the body can be very helpful for all athletes, here are some of the symptoms of OTS ( and I am sure most of you have sometimes experienced them in your life) :

• Feeling overall tired, drained, a lack of energy
• Moodiness and irritability
• Pain in muscles and joints
• Sudden decrease in performance
• Insomnia ( troubles falling asleep)
• Headaches
• Decreased immunity (increased number of colds, and sore throats)
• Depression
• Loss of enthusiasm for the sport
• Decreased appetite
• Increased frequency of injuries.
• An obsessive need to excercise

Overtraining syndrome is regularly divided into the following phases:

• First phase: Acute fatigue, were the athlete recovers after one to three days. Performance decreases temporarily during this phase.
• Second phase: Functional overreaching can last days up to weeks and during these coming periods the performance decreases.
• Third phase: Non-functional overreaching can last weeks up to months and stagnation of performance occurs in addition to decreased performance
• Fourth phase: OTS can last month’s up to years or even a lifetime.

Test yourself if you are in risk of having Overtraining syndrome:

During periods of heavily overload, symptoms can be found that may show signs of overreaching.

These symptoms are usually found through a POMS (Profile Of Mood States) test which contains 65 statements that describes different kinds of feelings where the test person marks one of five choices as answer: Not at all, A little, Moderately, Quite a lot or Extremely.

The scores are further summarized and divided into six factors: Anger, Confusion, Depression, Fatigue, Tension and Vigor. Finally collected data is analysed compared with previous ones from the test person.

In this following link you can perform a POMS test yourself: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/poms.htm

I think I have OTS, what should I do?

• Rest! Your number one priority should be getting your body recovered so you can start training again, right now focus only on doing things that make you rest or calm down.
• Reduce or completely stop your training for a few days and just focus on recovering.
• Take long walks, listen to music you like, watch a movie, go to the beach.
• Attend a restorative yoga class
• Meditate or listen to a guided meditation.
• Drink loads of water to stay hydrated
• Eat a lot of healthy nutrients
• Get a sports massage
• Sleep as much as you can!

Research on overtraining syndrome shows that getting adequate rest should be the primary treatment plan. In addition, low levels of exercise, or active recovery during the rest period can speed up recovery.

Have you also experienced Overtraining syndrome? Please comment or share

Thank you for reading!

Best regards

Mikael Dabrowski

This blog post is for you that wants to get more into surfing or for you who already surf to dive deeper in the anatomy and physiology of surfing.

Please remember now and forever that we are all in this together, we share the ocean together. No one owns the ocean or any beach or spot.

But respect the rules because surfing can get dangerous very fast and a drop in of someones wave can cause collision in the head which in some cases lead to deadly injuries or even death.

If you are unsure about the rules that actually are nothing else but common sense in surfing I recommend reading this following article: https://www.surfertoday.com/surfing/the-basic-rules-of-surf-etiquette

Surfing

Surfing is a dynamic and explosive environmental sport where the surfer is using the energy of the waves the oceans produces to ride the waves .

With the right timing and amount of paddling the surfer is able to stand up and surf the waves using a surfboard. Surfing involves multiple tasks, hence requires some specific demands, including flexibility, strength, power and stability from the surfer.

How to surf

Surfing brakes down into three sequences, paddling, take-off and wave riding. Most of the time surfing is spent paddling, the actual wave riding is a very small time of the session and during the rest of the time the surfer can recover while in position waiting for waves.

The paddling part contains two types of work, long term paddling and the explosive short sprint paddling for the take-off. In surfing paddling is the number one skill for catching waves and be able to ride them.

Performing the paddle a surfer lies down with his stomach prone to his surfboard and swings the arms forward, diving the hands and pulling them through the water so it starts flowing beneath the board and so pulling the surfer in a forward direction. The movement is similar to the classical crawl swim, however with the upper body slightly extended to the board little like a banana shape

The take-off is a short explosive sequence where the surfer paddles as fast as possible to gain maximum speed to get positioned in the wave and then push up the upper body and jumps to a standing position on the board to get into the riding sequence. The take-off is a technical part where timing and the speed from the paddling combines.

In the riding sequence the surfer is standing on the board and while riding can perform various manoeuvres here are 5 common ones:

• Pumping where the surfer is simply bending and extending the legs in a fast motion to gain speed in the wave, uses the anaerobic system and may produce a lot of lactic acid after a couple waves.

• Bottom turn where the surfer is turning up back against the wave backside or front side to make a turn back down a full rotation from head to ankles through the whole body is done.

• Cut back where the surfer makes a figure of eight by turning back in the middle of the wave.

• Re-entry where the surfer makes a last turn before the wave breaks to avoid being taken away by the foam of the broken wave.

• Aerials is when the surfer uses the wave as a ramp to get airtime and this requires strength and flexibility in knees and ankles to better absorb the impact from landings.

Paddle like the best

Paddling is very technical you want to get most out of each stroke while not fatiguing the muscles. There is endless of theories on paddling how to do it in the best way and if we look at Legend surfer and 11 times world champion Kelly slater how he is doing it there are 3 main things the champion does that are to keep in mind in comparison to other “non” pro surfers out there.

1. He is keeping his head still during the movement not doing unnecessary movements.
2. He is keeping his elbows high during the paddle.
3. He slightly roll to rest the arm by the rails of the board while the other arm is in the water.
   

Duck diving

Duck diving is also a specific skill the short board surfer must learn where you while paddling out before and oncoming wave grab the rails of the board, extends your arms, leans the upper body forward and dive the nose your board with a strong determined movement trough the oncoming wave to get through and out to the wave. A back foot or knee can be placed at the tail of the board to stabilize and help the diving.

This skill requires a lot of practice and it can be helpful watch other surfers or videos on how to make it. Believe me the day the days are big out there you want to be 100% certain on your duck dives. It will save you from a lot of stress and a lot time spent under water getting completely smashed. Also hold on to your board because it can be very dangerous if someone behind you get your board on them. A proper set of fiberglass fins can cut skin like butter

Waves

As a surfer you should be well known with the patterns of the sets of waves coming. Timing and positioning in the right spot at the right time in the wave is essential to catch a wave. This is mainly achieved by many hours spent watching and being in the ocean surfing and getting well known with the patterns of waves (sets)

Mental

The mental part is also important for surfers, passion and stokeness will keep you surfer in a good mood and meditation, yoga or mindfullness sessions are be beneficial for the focus of being in the present, and providing the flow which is the main key to have your most epic surf ever and not get irritated by angry surfers or beginners

Recovery

A good night of sleep is of importance for maintaining the body’s hormone balance levels and immune system and the recovery process of muscle tissue. Meditation can influence sleep and the harmony between body and mind. I recommend to include 30 minutes of daily meditation in the morning evening.

Conclusion

Surfing can be a dangerous sport which can lead to several kinds of injuries. Dont go out in bigger waves than you can handle. Show respect to other surfers . If someone paddles for a wave dont even paddle for it !

Wait in the line up there will always come more waves. Keep a good vibe in the water, show respect and you will get respect.

Some people are just not aware of what surfing is and think they own the ocean, dont let these people ruin your surf or become like one of them. They are clearly not happy in their life and most often they are dangerous and unpredictable.

Thank you for reading !

Best regards

Mikael Dabrowski

Elite athletes exercise every day, sometimes several times per day to stay in their best shape, it is as much a big part of their life as brushing the teeth or eating good nutrients to optimise health and fitness in their life.

Just as we can exercise and take care of our body to maintain it in the best shape we can also exercise our mind to keep it in the best shape. A pure mind is clear and sharp to handle any situation, it can be compared to a still lake that’s reflecting perfectly like a mirror.

A busy mind is all over the place and uses a lot of energy overthinking, it is not fully present and like rings on the water, it overlapses other thoughts and ideas and can’t really see so clearly what is.

Meditation can therefore be a tool in our daily life from the moment we wake up to the moment we go to sleep, our life quality enhances incredibly as we now ourselves choose to focus on what we want instead of just finding ourselves reacting to a situation or event.

Worth to remember is that there is people that meditate for 10 years and “still not get it”, just as there are people that never “meditated” in their life but are anyways living in a state of meditation.

It is simply being present in the moment, ever Observing, What am I doing? Why am I doing it ? How can I do it “better”? How am I feeling?

Overthinking is one of the biggest issues in todays modern society, we worry so much about the future and think so much about the past how it could have “went better” that we completely forget how to live Here and Now which is actually the only and only moment that really matters to us.

Here is a VERY good short and simple explanation from a Buddhist monk friend about Meditation and it’s adaptation to daily life:

Just as the elite athlete excercises every day we can meditate every day to make sure our mind is in shape and remain and stay in this state of presence during the whole day. We will become better in controlling our thoughts and emotions, we will be able to perform tasks better at work, we will suddenly experience “we have more time”, we focus more on what we actually love and want in our precious time here on earth and as a result we will feel that we have a greater quality of life.

Remember that this Life is your Story and your movie and Dream of your life where You play the leading part of the star. No one can take responsibility for your actions but yourselves. In a world where you can be ANYTHING you want at least to be kind ! 😉

Here is 10 Science based benefits of Meditation:

1. Reduces Stress
2. Lessens worrying anxiety and impulsivity
3. Promotes Emotional Health
4. Enhances Self-Awarness , Self -esteem and Self -acceptance
5. Increases mental Strength and Focus
6. Improves Sleep
7. Helps Control Pain
8. Can decrease Blood pressure
9. Improves immune system
10. Increases memory retention and recall

Have a great day !!! Thank you for reading !

Best Regards

Mikael Dabrowski