Polarized training

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J2R
Jun 2015
5:44pm, 24 Jun 2015
94 posts
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J2R
Thanks, Canute, I'm happy enough to see that as mild over-reaching. A hard 10 miler is bound to have some impact. I did a club efforts session last night (not my schedule, just when it happened to fall), which was probably too soon after the race and my legs definitely felt a bit leaden. I'm doing a 10K race on Sunday and have now basically finished my training for the week and am just doing a mini-taper between now and then, so that should, I hope, allow full recovery.

I must say I am learning so much on this thread. It is amazing - thanks!
Jun 2015
10:53am, 29 Jun 2015
96 posts
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Spen71
Still out injured. 3 weeks now with no end in sight of sprained big toe ligaments.
Jun 2015
11:49am, 29 Jun 2015
1,564 posts
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Canute
Spen, that is very frustrating. What treatment are you receiving? Is there any improvement?

Even walking puts stress on the toe ligaments so you are going to be restricted in what cross training you can do. I presume you need to be off your feet as much as possible. As we discussed previously, cycling might be least risky but cycling does not fit easily with your work commitments., Even with cycling I suppose it would be crucial to minimize application of force through the toe, though it is always risky to adopt any unaccustomed foot position during any lower body exercise because of the risk of transferring stress elsewhere.

I hope things take a turn for the better soon
Jun 2015
11:58am, 29 Jun 2015
97 posts
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Spen71
I am a window cleaner. On ladders all day so does not help the situation one little bit. I work awAy 4 days a week so hard to do anything. Currently doing hot and cold contrast. I am having a catheter alabation in August so pretty much resigned to be off until after that.
Jun 2015
12:06pm, 29 Jun 2015
1,566 posts
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Canute
That is a real shame, but clearly the focus in the immediate future is protecting that toe as much as possible.
I hope the ablation goes well
Jul 2015
12:53pm, 12 Jul 2015
1,575 posts
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Canute
I have struggled with various nagging health issues over the past year, including chest infections, asthma and arthritis. The primary cause of these problems extends back many years. It is unclear whether my recent training has exacerbated the problems, but it is clear that my training plan based on Ed Whitlock’s marathon training is not working well enough for me. Although running a reasonably good marathon sometime in the next year or so still remains as one of my goals, it is time for a change in strategy.

In the past year I aimed for a moderately large volume at low intensity with a very small proportion at high intensity. It is time to shift the catabolic/anabolic ratio in the direction of more anabolic training (more short duration high power activity). However at present my joints cannot stand high intensity running, so I will re-introduce a higher proportion of resistance training and some very gentle plyometrics.

I will still maintain a polarised approach but one designed minimise stress on my joints by including more varied activities – even including cycling though on account of my preference for minimal dependence on inanimate technology, I have little inclination to buy a racing bike at this stage.
Jul 2015
3:06pm, 12 Jul 2015
1,980 posts
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Ninky Nonk
I wonder if sets of pirie / gerschler style aerobic intervals would suit you canute. Avoids higher stress of long periods of high intensity, but enough intensity to build strength.

With a bit of adaptation the classic 120bpm gerschler protocol could also help avoid over training.

Not sure where these would sit in a polarised schedule?

Hopefully you get some respite on the health front for the foreseeable.
Jul 2015
4:32pm, 12 Jul 2015
1,577 posts
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Canute
NN thanks for those thoughts. I have not been doing prolonged periods at high intensity, and do not intend to do so in the near future. Some of my intervals sessions on the Elliptical conform approximately to the Gerschler protocol, though on account of lower HR max related to age, I usually recover to a HR lower than 120.

The main problem I have with high intensity running at present is that my joints are not coping well with the impact forces. The biggest changes i will introduce is a reduction in number of long low intensity runs, and increase in exercises intended to strengthen my connective tissues (including plyometrics, but I will need to build up very gradually, starting with gentle hopping.)
Jul 2015
7:58pm, 13 Jul 2015
5,715 posts
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Garfield
Would aqua running be an option Canute? That would help to protect your joints from the impact using the buoyancy effect. I hope you stay well...I've been suffering this year between illness and hay fever.
Jul 2015
10:21pm, 13 Jul 2015
1,581 posts
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Canute
Garfield, Thanks for your comment. I have been aware that you have struggled with problems this year and note that you have been doing some cycling. I hope things continue to improve.

Yes, aqua-running would be an alternative, but I already do elliptical cross-training. Like aqua –running, the leg and arm action and trunk postures is similar to running (if not using the handles) but because the resistance can be adjusted, it is possible to set a resistance that allows a cadence similar to running cadence, so I am inclined to think it might actually be better than aqua-running. I was intrigued to note that Paula Radciffe used the elliptical when recovering form the stress fracture prior to Beijing – but with only limited success. Both aqua-running and elliptical minimise impact forces, which is clearly their principal advantage, but the unfortunate consequence is loss of the leg muscle resilience required for running. Therefore I will employ a cautiously graded plyometrics program, starting with small hops

About This Thread

Maintained by Canute
Polarised training is a form of training that places emphasis on the two extremes of intensity. There is a large amount of low intensity training (comfortably below lactate threshold) and an appreciable minority of high intensity training (above LT).

Polarised training does also include some training near lactate threshold, but the amount of threshold training is modest, in contrast to the relatively high proportion of threshold running that is popular among some recreational runners.

Polarised training is not new. It has been used for many years by many elites and some recreational runners. However, it has attracted great interest in recent years for two reasons.

First, detailed reviews of the training of many elite endurance athletes confirms that they employ a polarised approach (typically 80% low intensity, 10% threshold and 10% high intensity. )

Secondly, several scientific studies have demonstrated that for well trained athletes who have reached a plateau of performance, polarised training produces greater gains in fitness and performance, than other forms of training such as threshold training on the one hand, or high volume, low intensity training on the other.

Much of the this evidence was reviewed by Stephen Seiler in a lecture delivered in Paris in 2013 .
vimeo.com

In case you cannot access that lecture by Seiler in 2013, here is a link to his more recent TED talk.

ted.com
This has less technical detail than his 2013 talk, but is nonetheless a very good introduction to the topic. It should be noted that from the historical perspective, Seiler shows a US bias.

Here is another useful video by Stephen Seiler in which he discusses the question of the optimum intensity and duration of low intensity sessions. Although the answer ‘depends on circumstances’ he proposes that a low intensity session should be long enough to reach the point where there are detectable indications of rising stress (either the beginning of upwards drift of HR or increased in perceived effort). If longer than this, there is increasing risk of damaging effects. A session shorter than this might not be enough to produce enough stress to achieve a useful training effect.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GXc474Hu5U


The coach who probably deserves the greatest credit for emphasis on the value of low intensity training was Arthur Lydiard, who coached some of the great New Zealanders in the 1960's and Scandinavians in the 1970’s. One of his catch-phrases was 'train, don't strain'. However Lydiard never made it really clear what he meant by ‘quarter effort’. I have discussed Lydiard’s ideas on several occasions on my Wordpress blog. For example: canute1.wordpress.com

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