Question

We spoke about the concept of maintenance during our lectures. Please discuss your thoughts on this concept. Does maintenance exist? Is it possible for an athlete to maintain adaptations made during previous training cycles for an extended period of time?

Answer 1

Yes, maintenance in organisms exist as it helps an organism to stay alive and it helps in wide range of production process. One of the major maintenance processes is somatic maintenance is ability to keep a constant amount of structural mass which includes proteins and maintenance of system which helps in proper functioning of the body. It is possible for an athlete to maintain adaptation which they made during previous training cycle for extended period if they maintain their training considerably. However, when they make changes in the schedule and training, it tends to change the protein and mass concentration along with making certain changes in their internal regulatory process like respiration, heart rate, blood circulation etc. with help of periodization, it helps in improving training adaptations and this helps in optimization of wide range of training response. The progressive training and systematic planning helps in adapting the individual and maintaining the adaptations.