TFC Fitness question
This one is for the fitness freaks on the forum.
So watching the Real Salt Game the other night and I noticed that the boys looked out of shape. I can only assume it was due to the altitude change playing in Salt Lake.
Would it have helped if TFC flew in a couple days prior to train in that altitude or is this something that takes more than a couple training sessions to get over? Is there some sort of training they can do in order to prepare for this?
I noticed the same thing last year - I think we really struggle there. I know I played in colorado once in high altitude weather and it was the toughest thing I've ever had to do - no preparing for that
and yes, I think it would have helped to have the lads spend as much time there as possible prior to the match
There's a clear issue in playing in Salt Lake. I think the team should invest an extra day or so to training there next time.
Paul Winsper is fully aware of the altitude problem... i think the issue is that you need to get there more than a few extra days before the game (like a week or more) to acclimatize to the altitude... OR you show up relatively soon before the game, since the problem takes time to kick in.
Winsper talked about this problem last year in an article that I can't find right now.
RSL has only 1 loss in 7 at Rio Tinto, so I assume it's a problem for all teams coming there.
Time to kick in eh? that's interesting.Originally Posted by rocker
Oh I'm sure its a problem for all teams. It would be nice if there was a solution to rectify that as oppose to just showing up and dropping 3 points. Any idea who beat them this year?
seems like they are still trying to figure out the best way to deal with this.
^^^It's a tough situation...One that teams have, and will continue to take advantage of Azteca and Bolivioa are the examples that come to mind!
Ecuador does the same.
Showing up as close to kick-off as possible won't work either....Just look at Argentina's result vs Bolivia...they got annihilated 6-1 despite showing up only 2 hours pre-match....From what I know it takes AT LEAST 2 days of aclimatiztion to over-come the problems...
you probably sleep & run with a breathing tank that replicated high altitude, do this all year and problem solved.
now does this breathing tank exist? lol
FWIW, TFC now leaves a day earlier to play away matches than they did last year so in this case, they left for Salt Lake Thursday and pretty did all they could seeing as to how they had a game on Wednesday.
It also doesn't help that RSL have strong possession play...having to chase the ball and not being acclimatized is not a good mix
To answer a few questions:
1) What is the problem with altitude?
Essentially, as most people probably know, the main problem with altitude is the difference in O2 pressure. This means the pressure in your lungs is too low, the oxygen has trouble making it into your blood, your blood has a very low O2 saturation, and your muscles don't get what they need. In order to overcome this, the human body has a few ways to respond. It will increase lung volume (to get more O2 into the body), increase red blood cell density and size (to pick up every last scrap of O2 it can from the lungs) and increase the buffering capability of the muscles (so that when lactic acid does build up, it doesn't do as much damage).
2) Should we be flying in right before?
No. Though there is some negative aspects of spending time at altitude in regards to fitness, they are more than compensated for by the physiological changes your body goes through in the process of acclimatization. Even in the first couple of days your body responds to overcome some of the problems with altitude. By flying in right before, your body would not be adjusted at all, and putting a heavy load on the oxygen requirements of it would not be benificial.
3) Should we be flying in much before?
Well, of course the answer is a qualified yes. The longer you are at altitude, the better your body is prepared to play in it. That said, it probably takes 2 weeks (or longer) to really acclimatize to it, and you'd still be at a disadvantage to players who live there. You also have to balance that advantage against the disadvantage of being away from home, in a hotel, not being able to control diet, being away from families, etc for so long.
There are ways to combat altitude sickness, but it's much harder to combat the performance gap you see between teams that live up high, and those that don't. Blood doping would close the gap, but is obviously quite illegal. You could also try to have players sleep in barometric chambers at night to up their RBC count for a few weeks before a match, but I'm unsure of the legalities and cost of such a measure, so it's mainly just a theoretical solution.
I guess the answer is: There's not much we can do. Altitude introduces a very real physiological performance gap, but the problem is much larger than MLS, and the solution would have to be as well.
Yes, flying in a long as possible before the match would have been better, but we played at BMO on Wed., so, you know . . . we had no choice.
This game should have been marked as a loss the minute the schedule was released. It means nothing. We need to just forget it and move on.
These units do exist. Olympic athletes use them when training. But the units are apparently really big and only used when on a treadmill or stationary bike
Those gray shirts really didn't hide the sweat well, Barrett's jersey looked absolutely soaked.
We seemed to really struggle with the heat in Houston as well. Probably our two worst performances of the year.
Yas... that was pretty gross ahah.
Also, Garcia shows a bit of paunch that hopefully can get trained off him.
I think they party too much when they go on the road. Off the plane and into the clubs.
As A fitness professional, I agree with what rocker and Steve have said. It takes 2 - 3 weeks to properly acclimatize one's self to higher altitudes.
Training at altitude has shown to have several negative effects (some of which are listed here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects...tude_on_humans), and I believe much more study needs to be done on the issue.
FIFA recently banned any competitive matches above 2500m for several of these reasons. Many of you may recall Maradona holding a charity match in Bolivia to protest this decision.
You think? I know this is the internet and all, but maybe you might want to back that up before you smear the professionalism of the team. I'd like to hear that.
^ its those damn sky high salaries
they have so much money to burn
FIFA have issues with games being played at high altitudes.
Salt Lake City is only HALF of the altitude FIFA want to ban and look at the effect it has on players.
Salt Lake City 1300 m (last time I measured)
FIFA altitude ban
FIFA attempted to address the issue of extreme altitude in May 2007, ruling that no future international matches could be played at an altitude over 2500 m (8200 ft). The FIFA altitude ban would most notably have affected the national teams of Andean countries. Under this proposal, Bolivia would no longer be able to play international matches in La Paz (3,600 m), Ecuador would be unable to play in Quito (2,800 m), and Colombia could no longer play in Bogotá (2,640 m).
However, FIFA soon backed away from the proposal after international condemnation, and under political pressure from the CONMEBOL countries, first extending the maximum altitude to 2,800 m (9,190 ft) in June 2007, which made Bogotá and Quito viable international venues once again, and then waiving the restriction for La Paz in July 2007. The ban was reintroduced in December 2007 by FIFA for matches 2,750 metres above sea level, unless players were allowed to acclimatize. However, the ban was again suspended by FIFA in May 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIFA
“We changed the entire league’s opinion of the viability of soccer in North America. And then we blew it because we chickened out." —Tim Leiweke
Just a theory! All i'm saying is its possible, but of course I have no hard evidence!
Just a theory! All i'm saying is its possible, but of course I have no hard evidence!
please. think before you talk
“Years have gone by and I’ve finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good football.
I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: ‘A pretty move, for the love of God.’
And when good football happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I don’t give a damn which team or country performs it.”
-Eduardo Galeano
Climbers use these a lot:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altitude_tent
-W.
you know how those damn Mormons love to party in Utah with their 8pm curfews and all
it affects some people worse than other, I consider myself pretty fit, and I have a hard time dealing with altitude. I could barely keep myself awake one time when I went for a hike in Rocky Mountain National park - people were giving me water just to keep oxygen in my blood. If you haven't experianced it - it's a lot worse than you may think
Maybe by training in a bubble they could control the amount of O2 in the air.??
The altitude played a part but TFC was due for a game that brought them back down the Earth after playing NYRB twice and the Thrilla in Montrilla. Four games in two weeks is tough for any football team.
A good indicator of how health affects football players is Football Manager 09. A player can be 100% Match Fit and be as low as 59% after one game. Given a couple days to rest, they can reach back to the 90-ish range, but players are essentially facing diminishing returns at this point.
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