very long warm up time??

[kwun]

ate some dumplings for lunch yesterday, oh, like 15 of them, i went off to the gym after that. got there at around 12.30pm.

played the usual game. the usual lousy game. terribly inconsistent, not too fun, not particularly enjoyable. you know, the usual stuff, happens everyweek. but despite that, i always end up in the gym on Sunday afternoons. always playing lousy. just like an addiction.

anyway, i digressed.

so i played full afternoon of games. still not getting the "feel" and "touch". still playing lousy. but getting a little bit better, i'd say, that's around 5pm or so. i was starting to have my touch.

and then this two guys challenged us for a game, i'd say that's just before 6pm. then suddenly, i woke up. i was very much hitting most of my shots correctly and in time. my legs are moving fast and i am moving to place. my jumpsmashes smashes are timed correctly, and are steep and hard, and even my strokes feels like what my coach tells me to do.

but that's only after 5 hours of play.

how can that be? i had a lot of strength and energy left, but my knees at that point was about to fall off.

anyone has similar problems? are there anything that i am not doing correctly? i always try to warm up and stretch and stuff like that. but none of those ever helps. well, ok, good warming up helps, but not enough most of the time.

[viver]

Focus grasshoper Kwun!!! You may not paying/focus your attention until somebody came and challenged. And then probably you started to playing a little bit more seriously.

Would you think that was the case?

[cooler]

kwun, in this case, i think it has to do with playing badminton after a meal. I alway play lousy after or soon after a meal. I tried several incidents where I skipped supper after work and go play badminton. I was much more nimble and have more energy.

[Mag]

I agree. If I don't have at least two hours to digest, I don't eat before I play. It just doesn't work for me. It's hard to concentrate and focus well -- it's not just because it's physically hampering... (and I hate jump smashing on a full stomach -- usually food tastes good only the first time you eat it).

But even on an empty stomach, I usually don't peak until after 2 hours... Before any important match, I always have to play one or two full-out training matches. I guess I'm just a slow starter.

[ayl]

G'day,

I am not an expert on this topic but I have had similar experience in the past and am keen to share some information I recieved from a professional dietitian.

I used to eat a bowl of pasta noodle or rice dish before my competition night, thinking it would be good for me as pasta / rice is known as good source of sustainable energy. However everytime I had a good meal (usually an hour before I step on court) I struggled to move well on court.

Basically it comes down to how our body works. Without going into too much technical details, after we eat, our body diverts lots of blood into our stomach to digest food, and transport nutrients back to our cells. In doing so, our body is in a state of recovery and replenishment about an hour or two after we eat as our blood is busy refueling our body, instead of supplying oxygen we need during exercise, which contribute directly to feeling lethargic on court.

Since then, I've tried drinking pure orange juice, eat very lightly or basically eating small chocolate bar instead of big meal prior playing, with great effect. I found pure orange juice great for energy replenishment as well as keeping your body hydrated which is vital to keep peak performace on court. Also eating lightly means our body has less mass to lug around on court. I was surprised how much weight a bowl of pasta and glasses of orange juice had when I put them on scale one day, just out of curiosity.....And THAT was the last time I had a big meal before playing competition!

[kwun]

diet: yes. i found that if i eat a powerbar a couple of hours before heading to the gym, it really helps me concentrate. perhaps it is the extra sugar in the body. i also found that a nice juicy piece of steak the evening before helps as well.

responding to viver's post. yes. perhaps. i have found that i always play with the same people all the time. we have a circle of 8-10 people whom we play with regularly, other than the new shots that people experiment with, we basically knows each other inside out. although i think that is great socially, i sometimes finds that a bit monotonous. while still a great workout, there seems to be less will for me to go for the shot, or just simply concentrate on the game.

but yet. i still find that i play much better after a few hours, despite the fact that it is always the same people, perhaps being in the gym so long has changed my mindset and make me concentrate?

[adelina76]

Hi Kwun,

IMHO (and from aerobic instructing) I can tell you that you normally need at least 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours for your food to digest before you should be doing any high impact cardio vascular activity, such as badminton. The other reason you're feeling sluggish for the first few hours of playing badminton after a big meal because our body is programmed to rest after being fed, especially if you eat heavy food or oily food, such as dim sum! When you have a full meal, your body automatically assumes that you are resting so that to allow it to digest the food and so it goes to slow-motion mode. That's why ppl take naps normally after lunch, it makes one sleepy (hence, the idea of siesta in mexico and spain)

So, if you want to feel energetic b4 badminton, best, to eat at least 3 hours b4 your badminton games, and perhaps an hour b4 playing, have one banana (or drink Powerade / energy drinks) to give you that boost. And of course, don't have to tell you that sugar = energy so yeah, eating anything sweet will give your an immediate rush. Be careful, because like the saying, easy come, easy go.. just as you get this energy surge, it also doesn't last as long (it burns too quickly). Therefore, eating banana or sports energy drink is better because they release energy slower in your body and it also doesn't make you go too hungry.

Have any of you experience before running around the court feeling energetic and then in an instant, suddenly feel like your knees have gone weak and you are collapsing? That's due to sudden sugar level drop in your body..that's why having sweets, cakes etc b4 badminton game is bad for you..so have a banana instead, because it will give you the energy you need and it will not suddenly rob you of your energy half way through your game and keep munching your bananas between games

[kwun]

yes, pure sugar like candy is really bad. after the sugar high, all is spent. (i think Cheung posted something about that before, something to do with the insulin level, some doctor-speak that i didn't completely remember)

the best thing i have found for fast refill is actually powergel. i used to take them during long bike rides. starts to take effect in 15mins and it stays in your body for around 1/2 hour. eat that in conjunction with slower fuel like powerbar. and you willl be completely energetic for the next two hours.

but that's physical energy, i was more talking about mental focus. i am not sure how they relate, but my guess is that they equally needs plentyful energy to function well.

[Mag]

Indeed, but fluid is actually more important from a mental aspect. While the body can perform acceptably under slight dehydration, brain functions will be affected by a loss of as little as 1-2 % of the body fluid... According to a danish survey, most competitive badminton players actually drink too little during matches...

[Mikie]

When I was a kid I was keen on skiing (actually a lot of my friends too). We've got a good coach and trained a lot. We did it mostly after school but through home where we had dinner. In fact there were less than an hour between a dinner (rather a good one - winter, you know ) and a drill session.
This sport resembles badminton a bit (e.g. requires a lot of legs and endurance).
So one day I came right after school (I was late a bit) without usual stop at home in the middle. And... I fainted. We didn't have much that day - just ordinary 20 km to run - often we had more.
So NOW (didn't like it you see ) I always eat sth before an energy-draining activity and strongly recommend this to all of you. Even if you are not hungry - eat a fruit (e.g. a bannana) or sth.
Ups, a bit offtopic, sorry!

[AKFT]

I have the same problem on a regular basis. It usually takes me 45 min to an hour to get my strokes and my timing into gear. According to my coach, it has to do with the long travels of my strokes. If I shorten my strokes before I hit the shuttle, and use more wrist and less arm movements, then it's easier to hit the bird before I am "warm" since that would be less dependent on timing.

[kwun]

the other extreme, eating too much is also bad, especially when you need to do endurance exercise like badminton (you all play for 5 hours in a stretch as well, right? ) on constant endurance exercise like biking, all the energy/blood are drawn to muscle movements in the arms/legs, and as a result, the digestive system is starved with blood. this results in food being poorly digested in your body and then you have...... well, you know. (this has happened to me and my biking buddies many times...)

[Cheung]

Did you drink Chinese tea? That can act as a diuretic leaving you slightly dehydrated.

Another alternative idea in addition to the others is that Chinese dumplings contain additives like MSG which might have any effect on performance.

for myself, I feel real sleepy after Dim Sum and make sure badminton isn't on afterwards!

[TiPwR7]

Kwun,

Try taking some vitamin B12, that really helps your concentration and clears your mind. I would always fall asleep in my afternoon classes becuz the weather was so hot and humid so I took some vitamin B12 in the morning and I stayed awake the whole day and actually listened to the lectures. When I tried taking some before playing badminton, I found myself more able to concentrate on my shots and I was more aware of my opponent's shots without knowing it. Maybe it'll work for you too...

What is Powergel by the way?

[kwun]

TiPwR7, thanks for the great advice. yes. i do have problem with concentration, both on and off the court. i will definitely go try some Vit B12.

PowerGel is the Gel version of Powerbar, an energy bar which is very popular among endurance athelete. basically just a pack of goo-wie stuff that is very easy to absorb.

[Cheung]

It might be placebo effect.....

[kwun]

what's placebo effect?