Cal recently admitted that negligence of the school contributed, in part, to the death of a football player who died during a conditioning drill. As unfortunate as this event was, it forces us to keep in mind the potential dangers that exist when conditioning athletes.
Dr. Casa out of the Korey Stringer Institute at Connecticut has been very vocal that death due to heat stroke is 100% preventable. If the right policies are in place and adhered to, athletes can have their core temperatures brought under control in adequate time. And, while, the death of this young man seems to be heart related, the same principles apply. Aggressive conditioning with heavy individuals who have not been training adequately can be a deadly combination. The goal of training and conditioning is to apply a load, then recover from that load in order to progress. This means that gains are made over time in a planned manner. Varying the intensity of workouts is a very appropriate mechanism to change that load, but when workouts for any sport or competition significantly exceed a person's ability to handle it, a dangerous situation may exist.
There have been a few deaths in past years that have been the result of excessive conditioning of athletes, not to mention the other issue of rhabdomyolysis. Athletes want to be pushed and many of them excel with the pressure to achieve, but coaches, athletic trainers and fitness professionals need to remember that acute overload can lead to disastrous outcomes and plan accordingly.
No comments:
Post a Comment