MAXIMIZE TIME:
TOP 3 TIPS FOR BUSY ENDURANCE ATHLETES
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"The person who carefully designs their daily routine goes further than the person who negotiates with themselves everyday"
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Feeling like there's never enough time in the day? You don't need endless hours to stay on top of your training. In this weeks newsletter, I'll give you 3 strategies to maximize your time--even on your busiest days.
If you've got a tight schedule, you need to be smart with how you plan your training. Here are 3 proven strategies that ensure you get the maximum results within the confines of your busy schedule:
1. Pair your most important workout days:
- Rather than spreading your workouts evenly over a 7 day week, get the most out of your training by pairing 2 (or 3) workouts back-to-back.
- Take the days before and after as days off or easy recovery days.
- By pairing the workouts together, you'll get a greater stimulus to both your durability and physiology. Then you can afford to take a day or two completely rest or go easy.
- Try to avoid spreading the fatigue over the entire week. By having a constant rollercoaster of hard/easy/hard/easy/hard/easy, you don't give your body enough time to absorb the stimulus and recover from the load.
- Start with the 2 days. Find 2 days in the week that you can workout back to back.
- For triathletes, this may be a run day, followed by a cycling day.
- For runners, this may look like an interval run, followed by a medium distance long run.
2. Focused strength Training
- Instead of spending hours in the gym, focus on spending 15-30 minutes at the end of your endurance workout.
- This isn't the most effective way to build strength. But it's the most effective for time limited athletes.
- Pick 4-5 exercises and cycle through them 2-4 rounds. Here's a list of my quick and easy sets:
3. Frequency over volume
- Volume is important, but when the schedule takes an unexpected change, you may only have 30-60 minutes to train.
- Don't get me wrong, if you want to go long you will have to find the time to do the longer workouts. But sometimes the calendar has to be flexible.
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For example, you had a long run scheduled on Wednesday, but you woke up late and now, instead of 1.5 hours of available time you only have 1 hour.
- Run for an hour. If tomorrow you had a 1.5 hour bike ride, get off the bike 15 minutes early and go for a 15 minute run.
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Or you had a 5 hour bike planned for Saturday, but realized that you don't have 5 hours straight to ride.
- Split the ride into a 3 hour ride in the morning and then see if there is an opportunity to ride another 1-2 hours later in the day.
- Increasing frequency doesn't have to match volume. But find the extra moments where you can add a little stimulus so your progress doesn't stagnate.
As discussed in last week's email, building consistent systems is more important that actions. Use these strategies to make efficient systems. If the goal is important enough to you, you have to learn how to navigate the challenges that a busy life brings.
If you'd like these style of tips, follow me on Instagram @stevekeller.mecoaching or head over to the website and scan through the newsletter archives.
