I'm going to try to build a rough framework, or skeleton on which to develop and more completely articulate the flesh of my thoughts on minimalist training in general and the structure/philosophy of my 'program' in general. This post is more of just a brainstorming session or initial stab at an outline towards that end. Here are topics that i think are relevant and that can be expanded in more detail --
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| Keegan thinking rough |
- General philosophy/underpinnings. I've already written some blogs discussing some of these ideas so probably won't reinvent that wheel for the time being.
- Using training periods - periodization on three hours per week.
- Structure of a training period
- Structure of a week - based on FIRST principles.
- Structure of a single workout
- Sample training schedules for various goals (Adventure racing, triathlon, long distance running, expeditions...)
- Catalog of my personal favorite workouts (some of which i've already written about)
- Template for 'general fitness' training schedule
- Physical challenges associated with the 'program'
- Mental aspects of these training ideas.
- Balance (of letting go and being anal)
- Nutrition
- Life issues (family, kids, work, excuses)
I'll help you out with a little brainstorming, with a few examples and thoughts of my past training experience. I apologize if I say things you have already mentioned, I haven't read your philosophies for a while, and my reading comprehension is horrible.
ReplyDeleteI am beginning to believe more and more, after looking back to my former training that there were a few workouts that gave me the most benefit. I believe the super high intensity, short duration, explosive type of workouts gave me the biggest gains in my strength and speed. When I first started biking, all I knew was "all out, all the time". I'd only ride one 20 minute lap at our park, but there were three hills that would take about 1-2 minutes to climb. We would finish that lap, then talk about it for the next hour. I'd do that about 3-5 times per week (before I had family life). I was also speedskating too, (short track), which means about 1-2 minutes of all you had because I liked to go fast. I also played hockey on a league, again, all out when I was on the ice because that is what you are supposed to do (learned that by watching Sioux hockey). After each one of those workouts, I would feel light headed and want to puke, so it was high effort. Then, when I really got into cycling, my training coach had us do intense core and plyometric training, along with all out 10second sprints on a trainer. Again, nearly a puke fest. I also put a lot of other intensity effort hours on the bike too, but now looking at it, I think I got the most benefit from the high intensity. I say that because I later quit doing the high intensity because it just hurts. It's way easier to ride below a full effort and "conserve energy". Well, since stopping my high intensity efforts, I have really, really dropped in my performance. I can still go for hours, but I can't go really fast for a minute anymore. Before I started to put in a lot of miles, I did a century on the bike, and it felt easy, so it seems I had endurance before I trained a lot of miles.
I think with your philosophy, it is better to do very high intensity for short periods, giving yourself time to recover (days), but keeping your mental side able to cope with suffering. I've got some more ideas about that, but this is my new thought and approach to training that I would like to pursue. I have been taught the "traditional" way of training... Base building, LT, and VO2 (anaerobic), and I think it works... if you have the time. But like your arguments say, if you need to get the most out of something with the least amount of time or effort, I think this is the best approach.