(Article written for City Fitness - July's national newsletter).
What works for you?? Longer sessions or short intense
workouts?? Take some of the guess work
out of your training and record what you do.
(This means Excel and not Facebook!!).
By recording what you have completed for your workouts, you create a
level of objectivity that can clearly show where you got things right…or wrong.
The nature of your training
will allow for differing types of data to be recorded. Cyclists (for example) will have a huge
amount of data at their finger tips.
This can include distance, time, speed, cadence, altitude climbed, wattage,
and heart rate. That’s a lot of
potential data, and noting too much can mean valuable information is lost
amongst meaningless data later.
The key is knowing exactly
what data is important to your sessions, and noting those points only. While this may mean some information is not
recorded, it’s a better scenario than losing focus on what you achieved. Several key questions exist, and data can
show a snapshot of how you achieved that area of your training…
- “What did I do??”
– Note the activity. (This may also note
variables that can influence pacing, such as windy or wet weather).
- “How long did I train??”
– Time is recorded, with key portions noted if applicable. (eg. Hill climbs).
- “How far did I go??”
– The distance is recorded.
- “How intense was the
session??” - Usually measured by a heart rate monitor, although wattage (via a
power meter) can also measure this.
One of the major benefits of recording
your sessions is the mindfulness that will exist for your training. You are less likely to simply do the same
training every time if you are recording the session’s outcomes. This applies to indoor sessions also, for
example if you normally do a 30 minute spin level 12 for a warm-up for your
Centergy session, and decide to give it a nudge and choose level 16, then the
outcome can be recorded. This may be you
being smashed for the class that followed, or conversely could have left you feeling
invigorated. Note the efforts in terms
of numbers where possible - so the workout type, duration, distance covered,
and level selected. This approach can be
used for everything from cycling and running, through to weight training and
Over time the data collected
will gain meaning. This is as long as
you can later read the data easily. A
good example is my assessing of the data for a local hill, where I did 2
sessions of a dozen hill repeats several months apart. The pace was intended to be ‘steady’, (not an
all out effort), with data on each climb noted.
I knew I was faster when I did the second set of climbs - the average
time being just over a minute faster per climb seemed to indicate this was the
case. However the reason WHY was the big
question. Did I weigh less?? Did I have a tail wind?? Maybe I just gave a bigger effort for the
second session?? Having recorded the time,
heart rate, cadence, and wattage for every climb had been invaluable. I had an additional 10% in wattage, with a
slightly lower heart rate. (10% is huge –
it’s like going from a 4:00 marathon, to a 3:36 marathon for no additional effort!!). The faster cadence on the second session also
reminded me that I climb faster in a smaller gear.
Hill Repeats (Early in the
season)
Average time - 12:58
Average heart rate – 151
Average cadence – 45
Average wattage – 251
Hill Repeats (Several months
later)
Average time - 11:55
Average heart rate – 149
Average cadence – 50
Average wattage – 277
A great deal of time can be spent
training, and by recording what you have achieved you have the ability to later
review your progress. Does it instantly make
you faster?? No. However, you will have the ability to see
what is working for you, and you’ll potentially be saving yourself a huge
amount of time, effort, and money(!!) by identifying what seems to be working,
and proving this by testing and retesting aspects of your training that bring
you success.
Ride safe.
:)
Stu.
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