
There are three fundamental fitness principles you need to stress, encourage, and manage to maximize the growth and performance of your players: [proper sleep hygiene](/article/sleep-hygiene-for-performance), [sound nutritional habits](/article/nutritional-habits-for-performance), and physical fitness. This article will describe the fundamental exercise habits to better enable your capacity to take on and overcome tasks without performance degradation.

## Primary Concepts

- An exercise plan should meet you where your fitness is. Jumping into an advanced routine, or worse yet, a program built based upon the needs of someone else will at best leave you with mixed results and at worst leave you injured.
- Consistency is key. A single workout will not make a great competitor out of anyone. It is the dogged pursuit over time (weeks, months, years) that creates the desired change.
- Progressive overload. You must continually stress your body to do a little more (distance, resistance, frequency, etc.) to continue to change your capabilities and conditioning.

## Proper Exercise Habits

1. Train for balance
2. Start with structural exercises
3. Obsess over proper movement and form
4. Daily movement/activity
5. Prepare and Recover

## Why

1. **Train for balance** – A football player must attain a certain size to be effective. A tennis player’s serving arm will have performance accommodations necessary to succeed. Esports competitors need cardiovascular fitness as they get none in practice and competition. Regular rigorous exercise shows drastic improvements (acute and over time) in executive function (decision making and mental agility). They need posterior chain strengthening to combat the demands of long hours sitting at a desk. Anterior lengthening (stretching) is beneficial as well.
2. **Start with structural exercises** – Exercises that demand neuromuscular coordination, multi-joint load, and typically have a postural element provide the most effective and efficient change. These exercises include but are not limited to squat and deadlift. These primary exercises should be completed first in any given workout as they condition the body to move effectively since the stress is dispersed over many muscle groups.
3. **Obsess over proper movement and form** – This is simple. Exercise should enhance your life and gaming endeavors. If you are not proactive in ensuring your movements and form are correct, you could find yourself injured. The benefits of exercise outweigh the risk of injury but do not haphazardly go about exercise. Haphazardly going about anything is a recipe for disaster.  
4. **Daily movement/activity** – Low level cardio/activity plays a dual role. It benefits your cardiovascular conditioning for health, and it serves as a break from obligations, expectations, and stress. Taking a 30-minute walk daily pays dividends on the psyche.
5. **Prepare and Recover** – Prepare your body for exercise. Slowly ramp efforts ensuring the body is ready for your anticipated tasks. Preparation should include being rested, hydrated, and fueled with energy. On the other side of a workout, you should ensure that you allow for proper recovery. You should work down from your heightened state (heart rate back to normal) and then sufficiently stretch your muscles. Most people will need to replace energy and hydration loss from the workouts with a post-workout meal. Sleep is also a huge component to recovering.

Improving your fitness is a great way to improve your capacity to overcome tasks, self-confidence, and cognitive functioning to allow you to make decisions quickly and correctly. Make sure your exercise program is designed for you and your needs. Be diligent about safety and enjoy the process!

### Bonus Tips

- Team up. Have an accountability partner. Use a coach, friend, or teammate.
- Pre-plan your activities (utilize a professional until you are comfortable with your exercises)
- Journal your fitness progress

If you have any questions, thoughts, or concerns do not hesitate to reach out to me, Nathan Berggrun at productivegaming@agamersadvantage.com


Physical Fitness for Performance

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