Wow, look at me bloggin 2 days in a row! I sort of touched on progressive training in the last post, in regards to my 70.3 training plan, but I wanted to expand on that idea just a bit, to further explain how having a plan can be of immense benefit when training for a Tri-race. Once you begin racking up the mileage in all three disciplines, the danger of injury increases. One way to offset the risks associated with overuse injuries is to gradually increase your mileage at a steady pace (progressively) over a period of weeks. This is something that I have struggled with at times throughout my training days, and not just with triathlon. I've added too much weight to the barbell when lifting weights, maybe tried to over-extend a posture in yoga, and even went with way-too-heavy of a ball in my bowling days. The eventual outcome is always the same.....soreness and some degree of injury. When I began doing endurance sports, my main focus was with running. Like most I did the 5k, then the 10k, then worked up to a half-marathon distance, yet along the way I encountered tons of leg and knee pain. Once I began to focus on triathlon training, the pain continued to my surprise....as I have read tons on how training for 3 different sports will actually increase fitness, yet reduce the likelihood of overuse injuries associated with single sport activities, because you are training within a different discipline each day.... typically. Well, I discovered that running uses my knees, cycling uses my knees, and DARN IT I even feel my knees being taxed a bit in swimming!!!! But what I didn't realize at the time is you can go too far, too fast. Sounds simple and well, quite obvious yet we triathletes are a different breed of knuckle-heads! You see we are all about going farther, and going faster while going farther! A lot of triathletes try to push, push, push without giving the body an opportunity to heal properly. I was driving this morning, and got this vision in my head (I had just come from the dentist and my gums were all puffy from the cleaning) and even though there is a bit of damage to the gums when they are scraped and cleaned.....uuhhh yuck......they regenerate and healthy growth occurs in TIME. Now if I went back and had them cleaned again everyday, well that healing would never occur and if it did, it'd take forever! Same thing happens to our muscles, tendon, ligaments, etc. Exercise in essence damages these areas, yet when recovery takes place, healthy growth occurs. We in the end gain muscular endurance and strength when we allow for healing. But the kicker is allowing that healing to take place before jumping back into the "saddle" and blistering through another intense workout.
So basically, that brings me back to my point regarding progressive training. All research I have evaluated since college (don't ask how long ago that was) is that a 10% increase in duration, intensity or distance per week is about the healthy limit. Maybe those elite triathletes can push a bit beyond that percentage (maybe). I have certainly been guilty of not adhering to that guideline and yes I have had horrific IT Band pains, behind the knee pains, and even lower back pain as a result. Its funny how on a cardiovascular and muscular fitness level we can be capable of finishing a marathon, yet there are all those little connecting tissues and joints that cannot handle the stress of that distance without gradually acclimating to the demands of a marathon! Knowing this going into a serious training routine for my upcoming 70.3 race, I searched for a plan that progressively worked me up to the point (and beyond) the demands of this race distance, using the 10% rule and having regular recovery weeks along the way where there is a 40% reduction in work load that week. I also looked at it this way, I cannot afford to drop a couple hundred bucks to register for a race 5 months out, only to injure myself and wind up not being able to compete on race day! Just some things to think about when trying to decide how far your long run or bike workout is gonna be this weekend!
So trust me I will always push, I will always be all out and wide open, yet as I get just a slight bit older....shut up......I think its important that I (and all of us) train smarter, as well as harder :) I still want to be around beating those kids 10 years or more younger than me to the finish line!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment