Specialized Training Course Offered

Published: October 27, 2009 08:41 pm EDT

Conditioning world class athletes and their equine counterparts are so similar that some of the advances made to prepare the stars of track and field may be applicable to the stars of the racetrack

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A program devoted to testing equines and applying the techniques used with human athletes to improve their performance is the focus of the Racehorse Exercise Physiology Seminar [REPS], which will be presented on December 4 through 6, 2009 at Rutgers University’s Equine Science Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

The course is being conducted by FaCT Education of British Columbia and Racehorse Conditioning Systems Inc. of Albrightsville, Pennsylvania.

“We are not teaching racehorse exercise physiology, we are sharing the means of testing racehorse physiology and how these tests can be applied to any training program,” said Joe Geiser, president and CEO of Racehorse Conditioning Systems Inc. "Participants will go home with a ton of new training possibilities, things that can be used every day. We will discuss ideas and work with tools, which may help your horses go faster and remain at top speeds for longer distances."

“We look forward to sharing the newest understanding of lactate as a potent biomarker to help with exercise and training prescriptions,” said Dr. Andrew Sellars, MD, who will conduct the course. “Our hands-on approach to the testing of horses is not difficult. I bring expertise in training humans and using these tools. You all have the expertise in training racehorses. We are building some very interesting bridges.”

Dr. Sellars is director of FaCT Education, a practicing anesthesiologist, and a world class tri-athlete. FaCT stands for Feldmann and Chlebek Test, a unique approach to testing and training athletes.

“We see remarkable similarities between the horse and the human athlete, and our tools and tests are in parallel,” Sellars noted.

The three-day program will offer demonstrations and discussion on the topics of:

  • Understanding aerobic [oxygen dependent] and anaerobic [oxygen independent] muscle fiber development.
  • Learning about lactate as a fuel source for working muscles as well as a fitness test to set training intensities.
  • Understanding the difference between lactate and lactic acid.
  • Using the Lactate Balance Point [LBP] system, a simple and safe testing method for measuring lactate.
  • Employing methods for testing fitness and the foundation to create performance lines – Fit Lines – as a tool to evaluate a horse’s overall development.
  • Utilizing the newest technology in measuring speed in combination with a horse’s heart rate.
  • Discussing how to build an inexpensive and portable testing lab, using the Polar Heart Rate Monitor System, the Lactate Pro Analyzer and FaCT software.
  • Reviewing the Central Governor Model for racehorse performance, resistance conditioning, glycogen depletion and refueling and spleen dumping.

The course, which costs $500, begins on Friday evening, December 4 and will include field tests at Gaitway Farms in Englishtown, New Jersey and at the Equine Science Center at Rutgers.

Click here for more information or contact Joe Geiser at [email protected] or by calling 570-722-2658.

(Racehorse Conditioning Systems Inc.)

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