I’ve been debating on the subject of high intensity training vs lower to moderate intensity training otherwise known as  continuous training(click link training programs). There is a time and a place for both. Control the amount of intensity and you’ll be much better in the long run. High intensity interval training (HIIT) can produce to many mistakes that lead to illness,  injury and burnout. Sure, the majority of  athletes are time crunched. They have families, careers and other obligations. What happens to lost training time do to illness, injury and burnout?

The Pareto Principle is a good example of how to train. Spend 80% of your time below 70% max heart rate. Another way to look at it, and be on the safe side, is to take 180-age and train around this heart rate 80% of the time. How do you spend the 20%? That is the finesse part of training. There is a fine line between to much intensity.

Marc

Posted by admin as Training, intervals, performance, power at 1:36 AM MST

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If you have limited time to train there is a technique that increases endurance as described by Dr. Gabe Mirkin in this article Why Sprinting Improves Endurance. This involves short, 30 second, intervals at maximum power. I mentioned, in the previous post, that I recommend this type of interval session to fine tune your criterium/cyclcross fitness. Seems like it also boosts your endurance.

If your event is anything over 1.5 to 2 hours, I would recommend still putting in time at over 1.5 hours. You still want to be specific to your event by building up time in the saddle and developing the pathways associated with longer durations.

Finally, as a beginner you should have a good base of 3-4 months before attempting these. There is a greater risk of injury if you don’t have a good base built up.

Marc

Posted by admin as Training, intervals, power at 9:56 AM MST

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