Getting in the Training
Getting in the Training
(Written for Buttar.com)
There has been a lot of discussion lately between my friends on the Windermere Roadies forum about how much time you need to spend working out to receive benefit per training session. Don’t get me wrong; all of us guys love being on our bikes (I think). We would rather be out hammering a three hour Clermont loop or running our favorite clay trail for an hour or two, but most of us are now family guys, have responsibilities, & just don’t have the training time that was once available to us.
But I think I discovered a very important training secret for crazy busy folks like us. I think you can receive benefit from a workout as short as a half hour with the right intensity (but that is a whole another article for another day). With that said, I really believe with some planning, a typical “busy” Buttar athlete could fit in as many as two workout sessions a day (ideally one AM & one PM). I know time is tough to come by, so here’s how were going to do it.
Make it just as big of a challenge as the workout itself to be creative & get these workouts done in our hectic lives. The purpose of the workout is important, but it is just as crucial to get the session in. For example, one of my friends brings his run shorts & shoes to church & then runs home ten miles each week as his long run. Another acquaintance commutes up & down the West Orange Trail four days a week to work from Groveland to Winter Garden. It can be done.
For Buttar athletes of all levels, finding enough time to train represents one of the biggest challenges in our sport. Realistically most athletes don’t have 20 to 30 hours per week of training to reach the top ranks. Trying to train for three sports, work, spend time with the family will leave no time for anything else. Why do we hear of so many top age groupers able to compete at such a high level with such limited schedules?
Here are my five tips that will help you see the most return on your available training hours.
1. Plan a weekly schedule & rank your workouts in order of importance based on the purpose of the workout.
2. Be willing to adapt and be flexible.
3. Creativity. Can you run to the pool or get your ride in on the way to work?
4. When crunched for time, intensity over volume.
5. Keep your key workout sessions on days when you will have the best chance to successfully complete them.
Kevin Grogan is the owner of Gear for Multisport retail store located inside the National Training Center in Clermont, Florida. http://www.GearforMultisport.com