Track and field is one of the many spring sports Conestoga offers its students many students choose track and field due to its variety of activities, such as hurdling, long jumping, and a vast variety of distanced runs. However, it takes a lot for the participating students to get there which is why they do conditioning. Conditioning is basically a time for students to train their muscles so they can do their chosen activity, mostly the measured runs, without having serious muscle pains.

As useful as conditioning is, I hear the occasional student actually state that they believe they could run long distances, such as the 200 or even the 400 meter run without it. The statement is usually taken back after their first track meet, however. I believe that the newer members of the track team should be more informed on why actually showing up to conditioning is actually important. It would greatly benefit many students both on and off the track to understand why muscle training is important when involved in a strenuous sport like running or even long jumping.

According to Island Sports Physical Therapy it is important to keep the entire body conditioned, they also say it’s important to keep up a healthy diet to preserve muscle. According to the official site for The University of Kansas Health System conditioning is also meant to help avoid injuries in many major sports. There are many other reasons that conditioning is needed in all sports and not just track.