Game Fit

What is game fit? In games that require quick starts and stops that are classified as intermittent sprint or transition game sports what do you have to do to be game fit? Watch the game, watch closely what happens in the game. The problem arises because there is a disconnect btween what you will see in the game and how players are trained and tested. If you believe what you see in testing then it would be the ability to cover as much ground as possible in a twelve minute run or the ability to run three miles in a certain time. This is where the problem originates, to be game fit requires the ability to start and stop quickly and repeat quick movements in a climate of fatigue. There is no question that in sports like soccer, rugby, basketball and similar sports that having a good aerobic capacity will help with recovery between intense bouts of exercise. You raise that aerobic capacity not by distance running but by doing interval at the velocity of VO₂ max and the accumulation of all the other training that is taking place. Just because a player runs six or eight miles in the course of the game does not mean that they should run six miles continuously in training. Look at how they accomplish that distance in a game. A great majority of it is walking or slow jogging! However it is during the quick bursts and the explosive actions that the games are won or lost. This should be a huge clue. Training slow will make you slow and not necessarily fit to play the game.Go to www.gambetta.com downloads and look at the sample soccer program to see how I propose doing it. You can get game fit for soccer or basketball by seldom doing anything over 30 seconds in duration!