Also, as someone who has been both an endurance athlete and is now a strength athlete, I have to go with the whole “it depends” cop out regarding mentality. Some in the endurance world are “more is better” for sure. And I happen to be very close with someone who struggled immensely with an eating disorder (initial cause not related to sports) who is an incredible runner, and both she and I used running more as an escape. To get away from the day’s BS and improve ourselves, much like I still do with the weight room now.
HOWEVER, whereas I ate like it was going out of style, she had the underlying eating problems (and emotional stress) that weren’t as easy to deal with, and the results are visible (BOOM Female Athlete Triad). Luckily she has come a long way on recovery and is doing so much better.
But just as you say the endurance crowd goes for more, I’ve seen the exact same trend amongst some of my training partners. When they fail a rep, instead of analyzing what went wrong and correcting it, they’ll keep trying over and over. And then say they need more accessory work (obvi) and go do a ton of extra stuff and completely crap on any chance of recovery.
I think you make a very good point, but I also think it may be largely based on individual attitudes and how they carry themselves otherwise that may lead to that behavior in sport. Or it may simply be lack of guidance and education. I was coached in running to choose quality miles over quantity of miles. Someone with more experience than I and more knowledge can likely shed more light on this.
Cool idea though, thanks for getting me thinking on a Sunday, haha.
/derail
