One of the most common mistakes that runners tend to make is running at the same pace all of the time. In fact, the same can be said of cycling and swimming. Physiologically speaking, the body responds exactly as it should to the challenges that you ask of it. In essence, when we train we are “teaching” our bodies to become increasingly more capable of handling a certain volume at a certain pace.
Most of us understand that slowly increasing volume results in a gradual increase in the ability to run for a longer period of time. The problem is that many people don’t get a whole lot faster during this process. Why? A simple answer….they are not practicing running at a faster pace. The goal, then, would be to increase endurance over time, while inserting brief periods of faster paced or goal-paced running within several runs throughout the week. You may be wondering why you would insert intervals into a Base Period, when you are supposed to keep your heart rate in your aerobic zone and build endurance. Again, simple answer…. these are AEROBIC intervals, and serve the purpose of teaching your muscles to adapt to a more difficult load.
It is not necessary to muddle through months of training exclusively in zone 1 and zone 2 in an attempt to build a monster base. While the base period is crucial to success, it is also crucial to practice running at a faster pace several times throughout the week (goal pace sessions inserted into longer runs, tempo runs, or aerobic intervals on the track). This way, at the conclusion of your base period you will be more prepared to jump to the build phase of your training, which DOES involve the completion of more difficult anaerobic intervals. Jumping from zone 1 and 2 running for several months to zone 4 and 5 zones without anything in-between can be a recipe for injury, burn-out, and added stress to the body.
Depending on your current level of fitness, the perfect base building would involve 4-6 weeks of zone 1-2 training, followed by 6-12 weeks of zone 1-3 training, followed by a jump to the 1st build phase in zones 1-5. It is important to allow your body to adapt to the new demands you are asking of it. With this in mind, begin your base safely, and continue on with caution by adding short bouts of speed no higher than zone 3 (1-5 minutes). Gradually increase these bouts to up to 30 minutes of tempo running by the end of your 2nd base period.
Armed with these tools for success, you are sure to have a great Fall and Winter for running and for building that so-called MONSTER base! Good luck!
The off-season is great time to begin reflecting on your strengths and
weaknesses as an athlete. It is also a good time to review your prior
year training plan, while identifying what needs to be tweaked, removed,
or added. When identifying your weaknesses, it is important to take a
look at prior race performance, performance in training and tests, and
your general knowledge of each sport. One of the best ways to improve on
your weakness(es) is to immerse yourself (no pun intended) in the sport
that you wish to improve. For example, if you desire to improve your
running ability, then the off-season is a good time to “become a runner”.
In doing so, you may decide to begin training as a runner (single sport),
rather than a triathlete. Naturally, this approach would require that a
greater percentage of training time be devoted to a single sport.
There are three benefits to this approach. First, by spending more time
in a single sport, you begin to more fully understand the physical and
mental demands of training and competing at a different level.
Essentially, you LEARN the sport from the ground up by experiencing it
through a runner’s eyes, rather than a triathlete’s eyes.
The second advantage to this approach is your ability to focus more on the
efficiency of movement for the sport. This is especially true of
swimming, where form is critical. Simply put, more time in the pool
translates to more time for drills and developing a “feel” for the water.
The third advantage to single sport emphasis in the off-season is simply
taking a break from the same routine you had during the racing
season….keeping your excitement and motivation for the sport at a high
level for next racing season. Fitness will also naturally improve due to
the greater frequency of the sport in your training schedule. Improved
fitness also helps keep us all motivated!
I like to take three or four months in the Fall and plan single sport
“emphasis months”, where I will do a greater percentage of a given sport
for a period of 6-8 weeks at a time. This Fall, I am starting with a Run
Emphasis Period where I will run 6-7 days a week as I train for the GR
marathon. From there, I will transition to a swim emphasis period,
followed by a bike emphasis period in late winter/early spring.
If you decide on this approach for the off-season, be careful to
transition slowly - not packing in too much volume to quickly. The idea
is adding frequency, not volume, to start. After the 3rd week of the
emphasis period, begin to add volume at about 5-10% per week. Good luck!
Tri Tip of the Week (August 7, 2006)
>>
>> I’ve enjoyed moving to a new level in swimming this
>> year, which I believe
>> is due (in part) to a few minor changes to my swim
>> training. First, I
>> have incorporated a new swim device into my drills.
>> The device is called
>> a “TechPaddle”, which assists swimmers with
>> developing what is called a
>> “Early Vertical Forearm” or EVF. EVF allows the
>> swimmer to keep their
>> elbow high in the water when beginning their pull.
>> In doing so, more
>> surface area from the arm is used in the
>> pull…allowing for a more
>> efficient and more powerful stroke. By practicing
>> EVF with and without the
>> TechPaddles, I have become more efficient and more
>> powerful in the water.
>>
>> In addition to devloping my EVF, I have changed my
>> normal practice of
>> doing longer sets (5 x 500, 4 x 1000, or 1 x 5000)in
>> the water. I became
>> accustomed to doing longer sets when preparing for
>> Ironman events. What I
>> learned is that going long has its purpose, but
>> should only be done
>> sparingly. For me, going long usually meant going
>> at a fairly
>> “comfortable” pace, which was usually slower than
>> the tempo I wanted to
>> hold in the actual race. This year, I switched my
>> workouts around a
>> little bit. Instead of going 5 x 500 for my main
>> set (averaging 1:20-1:22
>> per 100), for example, I would do a ladder and hold
>> my tempo or “T” pace
>> throughout the set (1:15-1:17 per 100). The ladder
>> would look something
>> like this: 100-200-300-400-500-400-300-200-100
>> totaling around 2500
>> yards (+ WU and CD).
>>
>> I hope this edition helps you with your perspective
>> on swimming. To learn
>> more about TechPaddles, you can go to
>> www.techpaddle.com
