Getting Through Big Blocks of Training

I am thrilled to have finished my 14-day “overload” period of training with a stretch of extremely strong workouts. Now, as my training phases down prior to a stretch of races in late April and May, my focus shifts from “get through monster weeks,” to “recover smart and stay sharp for key workouts.” While the latter is still ahead of me and requires a special kind of discipline and focus, I’m happy to be done with the former! To that end, while things are still fresh [in my mind, certainly not my legs], and with Spring "peak-time" here for so many athletes, I figured I would share a few thoughts on getting through big blocks of training. I lead by giving a brief rundown of my recent training [and the birth of these insights] and then offer some tips in two categories: physiological and mental. If you're short of time or attention, feel free to skip to the latter part of the post for top value!!

First, to set some context: My training program is built to peak three weeks prior to my first big race. The two weeks leading up to that point are “overload” weeks, in which both volume and intensity reach high points of the training cycle, and in this case, of my athletic life! To give you a brief sense of what that looks like, I’ll share my schedule from the last four days of the 14 day block:

Thursday Morning - 5x1 mile [running] repeats at max effort
Thursday Afternoon - 1:45 ride with 2x20 min at threshold
Friday - 35 min run, 1:30 transition ride [all at recovery exertion]
Saturday - 80 mile bike [with the last hour at threshold], 35 min transition run
Sunday - 1:30 bike ride [including power intervals], 1:30 transition run [last 40 min at tempo pace]

It’s all relative, but for me, this was pretty enormous, and while the [above] final stretch was the “biggest,” the 10 days preceding didn’t look all that different. As I mentioned in opening, I couldn’t be happier with how things went, as [I must admit, somewhat surprisingly] I posted some of the best numbers of my life in those last few workouts!

So now that you know where I’m coming form, a few thoughts on getting through big blocks of training: Physiological aspects first
Sleep: A majority of recovery happens during sleep. If you don’t sleep, you don’t recover, and you set yourself up for a pretty vicious cycle. Listen to your body, and don’t be embarrassed to check-out at 9:30PM if that is what it’s telling you to do. Of course, sometimes other obligations cannot be moved, but if you’re fighting to keep your eyes open so you can watch Jersey Shore, or even Anderson Cooper, hit the sack instead.
Nutrition: Always important, but especially when pushing limits. To make it simple, you are going to need to eat a lot of high quality foods to support the work! That said, you may not have the energy to cook a lot of high quality foods. My advice here is cook in bulk and store. I started off my week by making 14 cups of brown rice, and about the same in pasta…you get the point. Stock up on Powerbars, Gus, etc [at RunningFit of course] so you won't have to worry about running out and needing to do additional errands during the week. Also worth mentioning, “peak time” generally means “race-weight time.” If you need to drop a pound over two weeks, that will probably happen naturally given the increasing volume and intensity of training. But, if you are trying to make up for lost ground by cutting significant weight, now is not the time. If you skimp nutritionally during these periods, you set yourself up for low quality workouts, and worse, injury. Most people are much faster at 155lbs than at 150lbs with acute injuries and chronic fatigue.
Keep the parts up: While sleeping enough and eating right does wonders for the “whole,” it’s pretty inevitable that the “parts” may need some extra attention. I know it’s a huge pain, but ice the sore spots regularly. Bags of frozen peas are cheap, work great and last for months. Prioritize stretching. Trust me, the last thing I want to do after a 5 hour workout is spend 15 minutes stretching, but think of it like this: at that point, the marginal value from 15 minutes stretching is probably greater than any of the prior 300 minutes! Remember how nervous you get when sore spots arise during a workout [e.g., your IT tightens up around your knee], and then think twice about skipping stretching. Get a massage. I’m a huge believer in the power of massage to expedite recovery and prevent injury.

Just as important, the Mental aspects
Think workouts, not days, and definitely not weeks: Plan your schedule [for logistical matters] around the week, but after you do that, try to forget about everything but the training session in front of you. This type of thinking is hard to engender, but the approach a) makes the challenge of an overload period much more manageable and b) allows you to be fully present and focused on the current workout.
Remember, training and its effects are cumulative: Not every workout is going to be your best. As a matter of fact, it is likely that you may have some pretty crappy ones. Who wouldn’t after training so hard for a consecutive stretch? A whole manner of research shows that fitness gains take anywhere from 10-21 days to set in. “Get through,” the monster training blocks, and then let everything sync-in as your body adapts during your phase-down/taper/etc. Your performance at priority races [when you are well-rested] is the best standard by which to judge your training. Do not try and judge each and every workout [for more on this, see my prior post “The Unimportance of Speed.”] This isn’t to say just go through the motions! Give training sessions the effort they require, but don’t stress over the pace on your watch.
Keep the goal(s) in mind: Insert little reminders of big races into your training routine. This helps maintain motivation, and also balances a “thinking workout” mindset with one that remembers that “training is cumulative.” Each individual workout has a purpose, which in aggregate, compounds over time to set you up for success on race days.
Celebrate little victories: Create some “checkpoints” [for instance, after a tough stretch of workouts, or maybe at the end of a week] during overload periods, and use them to not only evaluate your progress, but just as important, to celebrate the work you have done. Crack your favorite bottle of wine. See what those Lobsterfest commercials are all about. Get the strawberry cheesecake pancakes at Ihop! Don’t go overboard, but do unbutton a bit. All of a sudden, if you move from workout-to-workout, and then checkpoint-to-checkpoint, the monster training block actually goes by kind of fast.

I hope you enjoyed reading, and maybe even picked up a thing or two to implement in your own training. While there is no single equation for how to get through big blocks of training, there seem to be a few overarching principles that center on supporting the training physically and mentally. Figure out what works for you, and do your best to stick with it. As for me, I’m planning on ending this recovery week with a small Duathlon race in Ohio. It will be a great chance to work through transitions and identify any kinks that need to be worked out. Look for a race-report update early next week!

Stay tuned, and until next time, Train Hard, Live Hard!