PRESSING THE RESET BUTTON OCTOBER TRAINING
One of the keys to success as a Triathlete is balance. It is also true that failure to achieve balance is one of the most common mistakes most of us make. As a sport that demands fairly high levels of training it is easy to forget that more is not always better and well-focused training and good recovery is what is needed for Personal Bests. As the race season comes to an end we should be focusing on recovery, reviewing where we are now and thinking about our goals for next year.
Dave Savage
Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................... 2 Time for reflection................................................................................................... 2 Next season’s goals ................................................................................................. 4 Deciding which distance .......................................................................................... 4 Swim Sessions - October. ............................................................................................ 5 Swim Session 1 ........................................................................................................ 5 Swim Session 2 ........................................................................................................ 7 Swim Session 3 Notes - Part 1 of 2 (Part 2 is done in Session 4) ............................... 9 Session 4 ............................................................................................................... 11 Bike Sessions October. .............................................................................................. 12 Cadence ................................................................................................................ 12 Control .................................................................................................................. 13 Bike Session 1 ........................................................................................................ 14 Bike Session 2 ........................................................................................................ 15 Bike Session 3 ........................................................................................................ 16 Bike session 4 ........................................................................................................ 17 Run Sessions – October ............................................................................................ 18 Run Session 1 ........................................................................................................ 19 Run Session 2 ........................................................................................................ 20 Run Session 3 ........................................................................................................ 21 Run Session 4 ........................................................................................................ 22 Recovery – the 5th Triathlon Discipline ...................................................................... 23 The “How” of Recovery ......................................................................................... 23 The Why ................................................................................................................ 24
Pressing the Reset Button Introduction As we come to the end of the racing season it’s time to start preparing for next year. This should include: • Reviewing this year’s performance • Setting goals and planning for next season • Ensuring we are fully recovered from the exertions of the last 12 months If you’ve had a busy race season with intense training sessions to build top-end speed on top of the earlier endurance work you are likely to be fatigued. If you are comparatively new to the sport, with perhaps one or two seasons under your belt you’ll still be getting used to the training demands that Triathlon imposes on us. But chronic fatigue is not the purpose of training. Nor should we allow it to become a natural consequence. It’s also true that it is not just physical fatigue that we must recover from but psychological stress of training. The psychological stress should not be under-estimated. As amateurs, we must fit high volumes of training around busy work lives and, in many cases, the demands of family life. We can sustain high levels of work; the body produces hormones that make this possible for protracted periods but we must give it a break or we will burn out and lose our enthusiasm for the sport. So, this month we are going to focus on getting the mind and body relaxed and fully recovered so we can begin laying the foundations for more PBs next year. Time for reflection Before you begin training for next season you should have a clear idea of what you want to achieve. It makes sense reflect on: Last year • What you enjoyed • Your strengths and weaknesses • Your life in general Where you are now • Current state of training
• Any “niggles” • Any equipment issues Where you want to get to in the sport – next year and long term • Distances • Specific Events • Positions We have put together a little questionnaire to help you reflect on these in more detail. It is a good idea to write down your answers to these and then revisit them several times at the start of the during the month. It is also good to revisit them from time to time during the season Thinking about last season past • What were your aims, did you we achieve them? o If so, how will you raise the bar for next year. o If not, why not. • Did we remain injury free? • Did we have an DNF's? o If so what caused them? o Do we need to improve ? o Strength o Flexibility o Adjust our training • Did we achieve a healthy training/ working/ family life balance? • Have we improved our weakest discipline/s? • Did we race frequently enough or too little? The Present • Do we have any niggles or injuries we need to address? • Do we need to upgrade any equipment? • Equipment serviced and in good working order? • Thought about planning your priority races for next year yet? • How about some yoga or Pilates? • Are we managing our expectations? Realistic or too ambitious? • How about starting a training diary? • Are we showing our families and bosses we haven't entirely forgotten about them?! • Is our training intensity, frequency and duration low? • Time for a change of winter tyres on the bike?
The Immediate Future (i.e. autumn/ winter) • How about some cross training such as a winter cross country run league or trying Cyclo-cross? • Considered being individually coached to improve technique? • How about following a dietary plan? • Education = speed so how about attending courses / seminars? • Wanting to join a Tri Club for social scene and group coaching? Next season’s goals In the light of our answers to these questions we should be setting some realistic goals. To quote the Cheshire cat in Alison in Wonderland; “Where do you want to go?” “I don’t know,” Alice answered. “Then,” said the cat, “it really doesn’t matter, does it?” Probably the first thing to decide is what distances you want to race. If you feel you have accomplished all you wanted this year and you want to continue at the same distance then it is you can go ahead and start selecting the races you want to compete in. However, if you are considering stepping up the distance or you were disappointed with your performance it would be worth reviewing the training demands of the various distances. • What distance(s) are we targeting? • What are our top 3 races next year? What are out top 3 aims for next year? To do first open water race?, to beat our previous time?, to finish in top half?, to finish?, to podium?, to qualify for age group racing?, to get close to the 'perfect' race? Deciding which distance One of the major limiting factors for the amateur is the time available for training. Longer distances require more training time since a major aspect is endurance and there is simply no short cut to building endurance – you must cover longer training distances. The table below gives a reasonable guide to the time you will have to devote if you are going to complete the various distances comfortably and enjoy the event.
Training hours per week:
Novice
Super Sprint
Sprint
Standard Half Ironman Ironman
Swim
200m
400m
750m
1500m
1900m
3800m
Bike
5km
10km
20km
40km
90km
180km
Run
1.5km
2.5km
5km
10km
21km
42km
1-4
*
*
4-6 6-12
* *
12-16 16+
* *
If you have 16 hours a week and your preferred distance is standard it will mean you need to spend proportionately less time focused on endurance one you get to the race season and can devote a greater emphasis to building speed. This will tend to mean that you are likely to finish higher up the rankings, however, if you are naturally an endurance oriented individual you may still do better at the longer distances.
Swim Sessions - October. During October we will be reducing both the duration and intensity of our swim sessions. Swim sessions should be relaxed but focused on aspects that will improve our stroke, make us more efficient in the water, saving energy and ultimately giving us greater speed. Now is also the time to think about developing bilateral breathing if you do not already do it. There are a number of significant advantages to bilateral breathing and it only takes six or seven sessions for it to start to feel entirely normal.
Swim Session 1 Purpose of this session To ‘feel’ the water whilst reducing hand surface area. What do we mean by “feeling the water”? For those who want to get technical there are two senses involved in this: kinesthetic and proprioceptive. The Kinesthetic sense is the ability to sense movement and proprioception is the ability to know where the different parts of the body are – being able to touch your nose with your eyes closed.
What’s Session 1 What you will need • Hand paddles are really an essential – if you don’t have them you can buy the here: • It may be useful to have either fins or pull buoy available 2 or 3 sets of 800m broken down as follows: • 200m with Hand paddles • 200m Full hand (i.e. normal swim) • 200m Splayed fingers • 200m Loosely clenched fists. • Total distance 1600 – 2400m Coaching points The key to this session is concentration on the position of your hand and arm throughout the stroke while at the same time focusing on accelerating your arm during the pull. • • • • • •
Keep arm cadence slow Keep stroke length long Relaxed and constant breathing Breathe to both sides Make sure arms don’t cross over centre line during underwater ‘pull’ phase Keep intensity low and concentration high
Remember: the objective is getting the stroke right not building speed power or endurance so: • Plenty recovery between sets. Adaptations • Increase or decrease distance swum per set • Use pull buoy OR fins if legs hamper upper body. Impact on your training These drills promote efficiency in the water so your training will be done with maximum energy saving. Effect on your racing Efficient movement will result in energy saving enabling you to perform at a greater speed for the same level of energy expenditure.
Swim Session 2 Where Are We Now This month of recovery is the time to re-connect with technique. During the last session, we were slowing our speed down to help us get the “feel” of the water. Now we are going to focus on developing our breathing techniques. Purpose of this session Control speed and force of exhalations. While breathing is something we do naturally without giving it a thought the processes that are going on are remarkably complex even on dry land. When swimming they become more so – both in terms of the biology and the physics. Since swimming almost invariably requires some element of breath holding, there are interesting effects on the relative partial pressures of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide in the lungs and the blood stream. In addition, the volume of air in your lungs affects your body position. Both have an impact on performance. You may want to explore these in more detail but it is enough to understand that the ability to control your breathing while staying relaxed will have a huge impact on performance. This session has sets of both unilateral and bilateral breathing as well as extending the number of strokes between breaths. What’s In Session 2 Swim sets of 100-200m breathing: • Solely to the left • Solely to the right • Every 3rd stroke (bi-laterally) • Every 4th stroke • Every 5th stroke. Coaching points The key to good front-crawl is exhalation! You should be exhaling continuously except when you turn your head to breath. Few novices do this, and while most intermediate swimmers think they do many actually hold their breath for at least one stroke. Really concentrate on the breathing: • • • •
After each stroke, rotate shoulders so they return facing bottom of pool Timing of the exhalations is the key. Inhalations are short and sharp Avoid holding breath
• • • •
Experiment exhaling from nose/mouth, nose and mouth. Plenty of recovery between sets. Keep that body rolling! Keep side of face on surface of water when inhaling / in side-on position.
Adaptations If technique suffers during the higher numbers, stick to the shorter distances. Impact on your training Effortless and controlled breathing is at the centre of any good stroke and provides a base from which to practise all other technical elements.
Effect on your racing While bilateral breathing will help you maintain a better stroke various having the versatility to breath in different patterns and intervals will make it easier to swim in any water conditions, be more aware of fellow competitors, take the shortest route through improved ‘sighting’. Your body position will improve and you will swim in a more relaxed manner, saving both time and energy.
Swim Session 3 Notes - Part 1 of 2 (Part 2 is done in Session 4) Where Are We Now We are continuing the end of season recovery training at low intensities with the focus on technique. Purpose of this session Concentrate very closely on specific aspects of the stroke, breathing, leg kick, stroke length and arm recovery, while swimming as slowly as possible. Do not underestimate the challenge! Slow swimming looks easy, you should be gliding through the water with a long easy, “effortless” stroke, really feeling the water. It is difficult to resist cranking up the intensity. Don’t! Giving yourself time to focus on each stroke will have a radical impact on your technique. What’s in Session 3 Swim each of the following drills for between 2 and 10 lengths focussing on each of the following technical aspects. (Full stroke as slowly as possible): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Relaxed & continuous breathing. Narrow and continuous leg kick. Maintain long stroke length. High elbow on recovering arm. Follow the first four drills with 6-20 lengths combining all the above.
Coaching points • All these drills to be done with extremely minimal effort • Perform all the drills slowly and with precision • Don’t use swim aids • If, when you are combining the drills, your stroke starts to deteriorate, try combining just two. Adaptations Amend distances, sets and repetitions according to current fitness level and technique proficiency. Impact on your training Swimming slowly will enable good stroke control and is the perfect platform from which to improve technique. Effect on your racing Technique = speed.
A comment from one of the training squad “At the end of the session Dave asked how we were feeling about our swimming we all commented on how we felt we were actually moving through the water faster. In addition, I commented that I thought I could carry on all night. Funny thing was that the following morning my back and shoulders where stiffer than they had been even on the days of high intensity with hand paddles. What did this tell me? My technique had started to drift and swimming slowly got it back on track using the muscles in the way they should be used – which was a shock to them! A really brilliant session that I will make a point of returning to throughout the training cycle.”
Session 4 Second part of work done in session 3 All the same notes and adaptations listed in Session 3 apply here. What’s in Session 4 – Swim each of the following drills for between 2 and 10 lengths focussing on each of the following technical aspects. (Full stroke as slowly as possible): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Apply even force through both arms’ ‘pull’ phase. Drag finger tips across water surface during arm recovery phase. Alternate 3 single arm pulls - left arm, then right arm. Finger-tip first entry with relaxed fingers. Follow the first four drills with 6-20 lengths combining all the above.
Bike Sessions October. The emphasis this month is on: • Cadence • Control • Recovery
Cadence Cycling is at first site a fairly simple process; the speed you achieve is related to the speed you turn the pedals (cadence) and the gear(s) you select. And we all tend to select what we feel is most “comfortable” combination to achieve the maximum speed. And we tend to train on that basis. Unfortunately, it is not as simple as that and the scientists are still trying to get a complete understanding of all the factors at work. Since we are cycling considerable distances – even a sprint triathlon can be considered an endurance activity for many competitors in age group events – we are concerned with power, energy consumption, oxygen consumption and endurance (time to fatigue), which can conflict with one another and vary with the nature of the course; inclines, wind and road surface. Added to that is the fact that our muscles are much more complex than most of us appreciate. Amongst athletes in different sports but with apparently similar sized muscles we find that the speed at which the muscles can contract will vary. Research has shown that novices can ride longer distances before fatigue begins to set in if they cycle at a lower cadence (50) rather than the 90 – 110 found amongst professionals. Research has also shown that lower cadence equals lower oxygen cost but higher cadence (for the same speed) results in lower muscular fatigue. And finally, before we attempt to draw conclusions about how we should train, research using infra-red sensing technology, calculated that at lower power novices attempting to achieve high cadence were expending up to 60% of their energy simply overcoming muscle resistance. What do we know? If science hasn’t come up with all the answers how can we approach the problem. So, what do we actually know. • The higher up the rankings, the higher cadence cyclists tend to use • Cycling at higher cadence delivers more oxygen to the leg muscles • Cycling at higher cadence develops more fast twitch muscle
• Higher cadence delivers a very good Cardio-Vascular work-out We may also surmise that novices lack the muscular development that makes it possible to ride at higher cadences without wasting energy. Conclusion Developing the ability to ride at a higher cadence should be one of the foundations of our cycling.
Control Good bike control essential for effective competition in triathlon. It contributes not just to faster times but also to economy of effort/energy. The cycling phase of triathlon burns energy faster per minute than either swimming or running and it lasts longer. The simple business of turning corners slows you down which costs you time. If you are proficient at cornering fast it will obviously save you time but what is probably not so evident is the amount of energy it will save. Keeping the bike moving once you are up to cruising speed is fairly economical on energy. The really big expenditure is in accelerating to that speed. I am not aware of any research into the actual amount of energy that is consumed but you only have to look at the fuel computer on a car to see how rapidly the fuel consumption increases as you put your foot down. If you haven’t watched it, and your car has the facility, have a look next time you’re in the car. Quite simply put, the less speed you lose going into the corner and the faster you exit the less energy you will expend. Which means that developing good bike handling skills will improve your cycling splits and save energy for the run.
Bike Session 1 Where Are We Now We are in the recovery phase of our training. Purpose of this session Keeping bike control at varying cadences. What’s in this session Perform sets of the following: 5 mins each at the following cadences: 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105,110 rpm. A single set will take 45 minutes Coaching points • Use easy gears to achieve the cadences specified • Focus on keeping upper body still, especially at the higher cadences. • When you’ve hit the 110 rpm, start again from 70 rpm. Remember the aim is to develop your ability to work at a higher cadence, not to have a hugely intense session so keep the gears low. Adaptations • Can be done on indoor ‘spin’ bike. • Spin at a higher cadence (i.e. beyond 110rpm) • Increase or decrease the number of repetitions performed • Increase or decrease the duration per cadence. Impact on your training • Better bike control • Improved cardio vascular capacity Effect on your racing Your bike and splits will be significantly improved due to an efficient cadence that minimises muscular fatigue. The impact of riding at a higher cadence is complex. It demands greater aerobic capacity but preserves glycogen. It also increases blood flow to the legs which helps to clear lactic acid.
Bike Session 2 Where Are We Now We’re at the beginning of a phase of low intensity and ‘finding our fun’. Purpose of this session • Bike control at low speeds • To develop spin capability • To recover our legs using spin. What’s in this session 1-2 hour ride in front chainring ONLY. Coaching points • The front chainring is often referred to as a number. E.g. 34T. This means the small chainring on your bike would have 30 teeth. • Perform the entire ride at 40-60% of your perceived maximum effort. (I.e. very low intensity) • Prepare for hills in advance by increasing cadence. • You may need to ‘freewheel’ whilst descending! Adaptations • Can be done on an indoor spin bike. • Reduce or increase overall duration. • Try this on both flat and undulating roads. Impact on your training • Better bike control • Improved cardio vascular capacity Effect on your racing Using spin as a recovery aid whilst racing will help shake off any muscular fatigue.
Bike Session 3 Where Are We Now The race season is behind us so now so it’s the perfect time to have fun by experimenting with different types of riding. Purpose of this session Bike handling. What’s in this session 1-2 hour off road mountain bike ride. Coaching points • Flat but technical course. • Practise leaning the bike into corners. Start at low speeds and increase as you gain in confidence. • Remember to keep the outside leg straight and push down with it to counter balance. • Knee and elbow pads, helmet and long trousers strongly advised. • If riding with a mate, keep good distance between bikes. Adaptations • Can be done on quiet roads using road bike. • Could use full-suspension bike. Impact on your training • Better bike handling skills • More confidence • Lots of fun. Effect on your racing These skills will save you time by navigating a safe course and cornering at greater speeds.
Bike session 4 Where Are We Now You’re training at low intensity and developing a few technical aspects of cycling. Purpose of this session To develop smooth pedalling action. What’s in this session Turbo trainer and clipless pedals needed. Format: Left leg, right leg, both legs. • • • • • • • •
Left: 90 secs / Right 90 secs / Both 3 mins. 3 mins spin @ 90-100rpm. 2 mins recovery @ 60-70rpm. Left: 2 mins / Right 2 mins / Both 4 mins. 4 mins spin @ 90-100rpm. 2 mins recovery @ 60-70rpm. Left: 90 secs / Right 90 secs / Both 5 mins. 5 mins spin @ 90-100rpm.
Coaching points • Place the foot of non-working leg on top of turbo trainer behind you. • Aim to create a smooth pedal action with no ‘clicks’ at the 12 o’clock position. • Use mild uplift on pedal between 7-12pm. • NOTE: uplift will not be possible if you have flat pedals/trainers so just focus on the downward pressure on the pedal through the 2-5pm position. Adaptations If you don’t have a turbo trainer, cycle normally using both legs and simply apply more pressure through one leg for the durations shown. This can be easily done on a spin bike. Impact on your training A smooth pedal action that applies equal pressure through both legs will create an economic and balanced technique and improve bike handling. Effect on your racing Speed will increase as no part of the pedal rotation will be wasted.
Run Sessions – October As with swimming and cycling we are in the recovery phase. This means lower intensity and shorter distances and durations. We will also be focusing on running skills, developing “lightness” and on stretching the muscles. During the year we will probably have been devoting more time to cycling than to running and during the latter part of the season we will have been focusing our running training on developing top-end speed. Both these types of exercise develop our fast twitch muscle fibres as well as tending to tighten and shorten them. However, as endurance runners, we need to call upon our slow twitch muscle fibres to sustain us during the run. The contrast in the demands of the various disciplines in our sport is one of the major challenges. Cycling tends to give us legs that look more like Usain Bolt’s while for the run we want Mo Farah’s. This tightness of the leg muscles also tends to make us more prone to injuries to the tendons of the knee and the Achilles tendon So, this month our running is going to focus on relaxing the legs, lengthening the muscles and generally building a relaxed running style again.
Run Session 1 Purpose of this session • To give body and mind a recovery boost • To develop balance and lower leg strength • To practise run control at slow speed. What’s in this session 1-hour off-road run (30% intensity) Include 6 x 2 mins increased efforts (60-70%). Coaching points Aim to feel as though you are “floating” across the ground - light impacts and cadence range of 160-180 impacts per minute. Focus on light impacts with the ground and relaxed upper body. Keep everything loose – including the hands. Adaptations Increase or decrease overall duration Increase or decrease time and intensity of the increased efforts. You could do this (but not ideal) to do on a treadmill; you will miss the psychological benefits of running in the countryside. Impact on your training Running at a low intensity in a pleasant environment will create a feel-good factor. Running on surfaces of varying angles will strengthens ankles and knees which will help to reduce injuries as we begin to power up later in the programme. Effect on your racing You’ll have the ability, balance and strength to race on varying terrain without having to compensate your technique in any way.
Run Session 2 Where Are We Now You should be starting to feel the benefits “recovery” from the race season and enjoying the more relaxed approach to training. Purpose of this session We are going to focus on descending in a relaxed and controlled manner. What’s in this session 30-90 min light jog on rolling terrain focussing on descending skills. Coaching points During descent phase: • Impact ground with fast feet and 'soft' knees. • Keep cadence high. • Keep body relaxed throughout. • Use arms to help with balance. During the flat and incline phases: • Keep effort levels low but with good posture and light foot placement. Adaptations • Increase / decrease overall duration • You can practise descending techniques on a treadmill. Impact on your training The skills learned from the session will meant you can train with improved balance, strength, poise and control. Effect on your racing Whilst your fellow competitors may see a descent solely as a means of recovery, you’ll be skipping downhill with minimal effort and maximum time saving gains.
Run Session 3 Where Are We Now You’re performing active recovery sessions during ‘down time’ at the end of the season. Purpose of this session To run whilst maintaining good muscle length. What’s in this session Perform a series 400m (or 2 mins) jog followed by 2 mins of static stretches of the following: • • • •
Calf’s Hamstrings Glute Quads.
Coaching points • Runs at low intensity / maximum efficiency • Stretches both static and dynamic. Adaptations You could increase duration or distance of runs and subsequent stretches. Impact on your training Stretching will greatly help keeping injuries at bay meaning no injury lay-off and disruption to your training program. Cycling and run speed training tends to shorten and tighten the leg muscles. This imposes additional strains on Achilles and knee tendons in particular. By working to increase suppleness at the start of our training year we will set ourselves up for an injury free season
Run Session 4 Where Are We Now Its end of the race season and you’re recovering in preparation for the autumn / winter season of strength and endurance. Purpose of this session You may have noticed the top runners all make it look effortless. That’s because they manage to stay loose. In this session we’ll perform a series of ‘limbering’ exercises to do just that. What’s in this session Alternate light jog for 6 mins / limbering exercises for 2 mins. • • • • •
Side steps (left and right) High knees Heel flicks Rolling shoulders forward and backwards Skipping (no rope)
Coaching points • Stay loose at all times throughout this session • Keep effort levels low throughout • Keep stride length short. • Adaptations • Amend durations according to current fitness levels • Easily done on road or track. Impact on your training You will be less injury prone because of the additional lower limb strength gained by exerting force from different angles. Effect on your racing Staying lose during racing will ensure your energy gets channelled into productive movement.
Recovery – the 5th Triathlon Discipline Arguably, if you are training seriously, this should be the first! Why? You don’t actually get stronger during training. It’s during recovery afterwards that the body (and mind) make the adjustments driven by the training and if you don’t take it seriously your training will have been wasted. In some cases it may even be counter-productive. Over the coming months we will look at the body’s recovery mechanisms, look at specific recovery techniques and help you to understand it in detail so you can tailor your own recovery to meet your goals. In this first article we’ll take a quick look at how and why and to recover in general.
The “How” of Recovery Post Training Session • Have some carbs and protein immediately available. You can buy proprietary shakes or bars but you can also make them up yourself for a fraction of the price. • Warm down. You want to maintain the blood flow but without putting any strain on the muscles. This will help to clear lactose and other metabolites from the muscles. • Get the legs up after running or cycling, once again this will help drain unwanted by-products from the muscles • Good static stretches of the muscles you have been using. • Get a good night’s sleep; a “quiet” time before bed, cool dark room free of distraction – TV, iPad etc. Weekly One rest day a week. You may feel you need to train every day but believe us, it is counter-productive. It does not mean you must do nothing, gentle spinning, a really relaxed swim or a walk in the country are all perfectly acceptable. • Sleep in – Get an extra hour of sleep • Nutrition – Eat nutritious, anti-inflammatory, and muscle building foods • Mental recovery – find something that challenges you a little mentally and something else that with make you laugh, feel good. Reading a book that is not simply pure escapism, watching an amusing or uplifting film or play, gentle socialising with friends or family. Monthly
One “Recovery” week in every four. During the fourth week the objective is simply to maintain fitness and the emphasis is on being relaxed and enjoying yourself. • Volume and intensity is reduced. Simply in place to keep you from losing fitness and form. Keep your feel for the water/rubber/pavement and mentally excitement. In the pool focus on drills done gently, bike and run reduce the distances and high intensity phases short and focus on skills. • Sleep in excess. Instead of 6 am work out, sleep an extra hour. Don’t set an alarm on the weekend. Try a ‘power nap’ in the middle of the day. • Eating. Enjoy it but make sure that all of your food has the highest nutritional profile possible. Work to reduce inflammation, build muscle, help your sleep, and top-off micronutrients. • Physiological recovery. Consider massage, replacing the odd Tri session with some yoga and lots off stretching. • Mentally. Relieve yourself of the stress of having to fit in that training session. If work or family pressures make it difficult then distance yourself and let it go. Do things socially, physically, mentally that make you feel good. • Consider starting to practice mindfulness or meditation to learn how to relax completely.
The Why Three components of recovery During training – and competition - we deplete the body’s fuel resources and stress it both physically and mentally. During recovery we must refuel, respond to the physical stress and relieve the mental stress. Unfortunately the complexity of the body is such that nothing is ever quite as simple as it seems at first sight. Recovering effectively means taking on the right nutrition, resting in the right way and getting the mind into the right state. Right Nutrition During recovery we require two things from our food; fuel and the building blocks required for new muscle fibres and nerve pathways. Fuel can come from a mix of carbohydrate and fat but we need protein for the muscle and nerve fibres. It is also important that we get them in the right proportions. While the body cannot build muscles – which are proteins themselves – from fat or carbs it can utilise protein as fuel. When we are exercising hard we actually put the body into fight or flight mode so all its energies are focussed on activity rather than building or rebuilding. So if we take
on protein without taking on carbs and fat to replenish the energy we have consumed it will simply use the protein as a source of energy. Resting the right way Sleep is a pretty good starting point. But we can also include stretching, massage and “active” recovery. Sleep is a vital part of recovery for the athlete. During sleep Human Growth Hormone (HGH) is and Prolactin are released. The blood flow and the volume of oxygen to the muscles increases and we also show Brain Wave Patterns associated with muscle memory. HGH is the hormone that stimulates the development of new muscle fibre and strengthening of existing fibres. It also results in changes to the nerves helping more of them to fire simultaneously. Prolactin is associated with reducing inflammation but it has many other complex reactions associate with homeostasis (balance of body functions). The increased blood flow results in more oxygen being available for the conversion of food proteins into muscle and nerve fibres and it helps to clear lactose – which is one of the major contributors to muscle tightness. Stretching, massage and light physical exercise are also good. They promote relaxation of the muscles and better blood flow with the attendant benefits outlined above. Overtight muscles are also a major contributor to injury. Tight hamstrings and calves are associated with Achilles injuries; add in tight quads and knee problems can develop. Lack of flexibility in the core and back inhibits swimming technique. Mental recovery Hard physical exercise in itself promotes the release of the stress hormones; adrenaline, cortisol norepinephrine. The time constraints of normal living; work, partner and family, coupled to the training demands of a triathlete further elevate these. It is important that we allow these to return to “normal” levels since they eventually result in us staying in a permanent fight or flight mode, suppressing processes need to rebuild and strengthen the body as well as reducing our immune responses making us susceptible to illness. They also tend to make us anxious, introverted and depressed, ultimately resulting in lethargy, loss of interest in training and in the sport.
Even worse this can put you on a downward spiral that simply elevates the stress hormones further. Future Articles We will be taking a look at all aspects of recovery. These will include helping you understand the physical processes, the psychological processes and their interaction. We are familiar with the idea of sports psychologists who help athletes to visualise outcomes to help them perform better. What you are probably unaware of is that these “visualisation� techniques also affect us at the cellular level and, as scientists have now identified, at the genetic level. We are firm believers that it is great knowing what to do but if you really understand why you can tailor it to your own more specific needs and even more important:
You’ll actually do it!