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Five Training Stages By Rob Sleamaker and Ray Browning

Ideally, preparation for competitive endurance sports includes five stages for each competition season: base, intensity, peak, racing, and recovery. The number of weeks given each stage depends on the number of competitive seasons planned per year, your experience, and your physical condition. In planning, it is helpful to consider actual dates for competitions, training camps, clinics, and any medical or physiological testing desired during the year.

We have chosen to segment the systematic training plan into five stages for each competitive season for several reasons. First, there are essential physiological developments that take place by stages in a progressive fashion during the weeks and months preceding competition. Second, the recipe of each stage changes in total training time, intensity, and SERIOUS components. Third, the systematic approach allows you to project precisely the percentage of total time you'll spend in each mode of training, thus allowing you to measure what you actually complete. Finally, by thinking in terms of progressive stages, the athlete is able to stay motivated toward building a foundation of strength and endurance that will support much more difficult training and competition later in the plan. This helps to keep his or her sights on long-term goals instead of prematurely reaching a plateau that is lower than the athlete's potential. The concept of using five training stages applies well if you are planning one or two competitive seasons per year, such as a six-month buildup toward certain events. However, if you are planning a shorter training season leading up to a competition phase, adapt the concept of using five stages and apply this to your plans. Chapter 3 will provide more on specific planning.

Each stage represents distinct physiological, neuromuscular, and psychological developmental phases necessary for systematically developing your conditioning. Ideally, there will be a subtle distinction between successive stages as training volume and emphasis change appropriately from one training cycle to the next.

The following is a summary of the five stages of training. Understanding them will help you decide the necessary training components for each stage of your plan. Using the terminology we've presented will build your training vocabulary and help you organize your thoughts about planning your winning training program.

Base

The primary objective during the base stage is to construct an intricate and effective aerobic foundation and "plumbing system." Doing overdistance and endurance training a high percentage of the time will create the system foundation. When constructed carefully, the aerobic plumbing system-the cardiovascular system and lung capacity-will be able to support high-intensity training and racing that will occur in later stages of your plan. The base stage also emphasizes muscular strength, developed through weight lifting or resistance training, both nonspecific and sport specific. High-intensity training, such as race/pace, intervals, uphill intervals, and speed, will represent only a small portion of the total training done during this stage. Gradually, during the next stages, a greater proportion of the program is devoted to the high-intensity components.

Aerobic Conditioning

The primary reasons for establishing a sound aerobic base during this stage are related to the body's energy and oxygen transport mechanisms. To build a strong oxygen transport system that can support high-level aerobic exercise, we recommend that a high percentage (60 to 70 percent) of the total training volume (hours of exercise per week) during the base stage be devoted to overdistance and endurance/easy distance training, which will be described in detail in chapter 4. To produce optimal training effect, do this exercise at relatively low intensity. Koivisto, Hendler, and Nadel (1982) demonstrated that improvements in fat oxidation occur with regular training at intensities of 55 percent to 60 percent of VO2max. Training at this intensity and duration also improves the muscles' blood capillary density and mitochondrion numbers and efficiency, all of which contribute to improved oxygen transport and energy use at the cellular level. Chapter 2 will describe these adaptations in detail.

Strength Conditioning

The base stage emphasizes strength training for improving general muscle strength as well as sport-specific strength. The important reasons for strength training during the base stage are to increase the force per contraction of the primary movers that propel the body during a race and to strengthen the musculoskeletal system sufficiently to prevent injury, either from chronic use or from an acute trauma, such as a fall or crash. What must be determined is the amount and type of strength training to be employed in the overall plan.

As the muscles are placed under sufficient loads during strength training, they adapt or accommodate to the loads and grow stronger, as long as this is followed by 24 to 48 hours of no strength training. Only after adaptation has occurred may the loads be increased. Typically, muscles improve in strength when placed under loads of greater than two-thirds of maximum strength and repeated in sets in which the muscles fatigue in fewer than 25 repetitions per set.

There are many methods for increasing strength. Sport-specific strength-training machines like the Vasa Trainer, or weight machines, free weights, calisthenics, plyometrics, and rubber tubing all work well when used correctly. In general, most strength exercises should simulate the motions used in competition, thereby strengthening sport-specific muscles and connective tissue. During the base stage, however, it is less critical to be completely sport-specific in strength exercises. The physiological details of strength training are discussed in chapter 2. Actual strength workouts and recommendations for each sport are outlined in chapter 4. Please refer to these for specific guidance in doing sport-specific strength routines. During the base stage, approximately 10 percent to 20 percent of total training time will be devoted to strength exercises, depending on your goals, areas that need improvement, and abilities.

Intensity

One of the most important goals of any competitor training program is to improve the body's ability to sustain high-intensity effort for longer periods of time. Therefore, our training plan recipe must change a bit, with the addition of some new ingredients, such as higher intensity interval, speed, and race/pace exercises. The intensity stage increases overall training stress by increasing exercise volume (hours) and intensity. The amount of these higher intensity components must be increased gradually throughout this stage so the body can adapt adequately. We recommend that a high percentage of this stage's total training volume (50 to 60 percent) still be planned as low-intensity aerobic training. Overdistance and endurance/easy distance exercise will maintain the aerobic base established during previous weeks. Below is a brief summary of these training components, which will be discussed in greater detail in chapter 4.

Speed training increases efficiency by teaching the body to learn about pace and to coordinate movement patterns. Intervals on flat and hilly terrain improve the ability of your heart and lungs to transport oxygen and blood, and to use heart rate, pace, and perceived exertion to develop a subjective sense of anaerobic threshold and racing intensity (described in detail in chapter 2). As the stage progresses, designated race/pace workouts, such as time trials and early season races, will be introduced to the program. These will provide benchmarks for measuring progress and for working out any technical and psychological bugs well before the competition season arrives.

The important factor in workouts during the intensity stage is that you carefully control your efforts with respect to your level of fitness. It's best to do these workouts staying under control with heart rate intensity, as well as psychological and emotional investment. Too much high-intensity racing early in the season may lead to premature peaking or burnout. Race simulations, doing a designated course and simulating a real race, can be incredible confidence builders and learning sessions. Establishing a specific purpose for every race or pace workout during this stage, such as trying a new energy drink, using a specific warm-up routine, or testing a different position on your bike, will enhance the learning and preparation for the upcoming competition season. Early races can be useful learning experiences if approached with a productive attitude.

Peak

Many coaches and athletes refer to tapering as peaking or sharpening-the terms are synonymous. The main purpose for the peak stage is to get ready for "show time." You'll want to arrive at the competition stage race ready, with all the kinks and bugs worked out of your system. This stage is characterized by a decrease in training volume from the intensity stage. However, the intensity of certain training components, such as speed, intervals, and race/pace workouts, will typically be very high to refine technique and energy systems at race speeds. This is a good time to enter races or do some race simulations on your own or with friends. We still recommend that 40 to 60 percent of the training volume be low-intensity aerobic training. Overdistance and endurance/easy distance activities will maintain the aerobic base and create easy days between high-intensity efforts, thus encouraging full recovery. The taper stage is a great time to emphasize restoration and recovery from training so that the body may become fully rested and energy stores completely replenished before intense competition. Restoration will be discussed in detail in chapter 7.

Racing

Ideally, the previous three stages of your plan will have been productive and you will be in optimal racing condition at this stage. Depending on you and the design of your training plan, peak racing form and top racing will last between 8 and 20 or more weeks. Some sports, such as cycling, may involve slightly longer competition stages, which you must consider in the overall plan. We recommend that a fairly stable training volume be maintained throughout this stage and that about 40 to 50 percent of the total training time be overdistance or endurance/easy distance to maintain the aerobic base and provide active recovery training. Intervals, speed, and racing will constitute the remaining time. Frequent racing can be very demanding physiologically and mentally. Coupled with the stress of travel, change of diet, and psychological adjustment, racing a lot may wear you down. Restoration methods, such as massage, relaxation, proper nutrition and hydration, and consistent rest, are as important as each training session during this stage. (See chapter 7 for specific guidelines on proper recovery methods.)

Recovery

Many weeks of training and racing will leave even the most experienced athlete weary, a bit stale, and unmotivated. This is why we advocate a two-to-four-week period of active recovery between seasons. Just as the farmer's field must lie fallow every winter, so does the human body, mind, and spirit need a rest, with time to reflect, recover, and rejuvenate. This stage is characterized by a reduced training volume, low-intensity exercise, and alternative activities. While you may want to keep doing some unstructured exercise in your primary sport activities, we recommend alternative exercises or sports, done in a variety of terrain or conditions. Break your routine, use different routes, tackle the jungle gym with your kids at the playground, try a mountain bike, dust off the tennis racquet, jump into a pickup soccer game. You get the idea. The key to all exercise in this stage is that it be less structured and have variety.

Excerpted from SERIOUS Training for Endurance Athletes, 2nd Edition, 1996, by Rob Sleamaker and Ray Browning.

Additional Cross-Training & Triathlons' excerpts--Niles and Evans