I am now only 13 and a bit weeks away from my 28 mile off road race and the training so far has been great!
After reading up on various opinions on long distance endurance training and reports from experts in exercise physiology, I have chosen to adapt a regular weights programme into my preparation.
I have always (well..for the last 23 years since my 14th birthday) followed some kind of weights programme, sometimes for just general conditioning and muscle tone and also led by my interest and awe in what Bodybuilder's achieve through training and diet, even to the point where I followed a 6-8 month bodybuilding lifestyle where I packed on over 30lbs in just under 3 months!! (mainly muscle as my bodyfat percentage didnt increase significantly)...although at that time I nearly stopped my cardio altogether and in those 6-8 months got VERY unfit!!
I felt like a tank but very very out of breath even jogging lightly...so stopped the intense heavy weights and ran much of the weight off in the following months.
Reading up on this subject has uncovered that some modern day thinking is heavy, compound weight training exercise is nigh essential for successful endurance training due to the fact that after 2 hours or so it is the body tissue that begins to break down as the inevitable wall stands in your way...not a lack of endurance conditioning per se...thus, by strengthening the weak links of the body and putting it under regular duress my body may be better prepared for the stress of post 20 miles on the unforgiving hills, dips and tracks of the South Downs come June.
One of the reasons I have posted a picture of Bruce Lee is that although he wasn't known for endurance feats, he built and honed an enviable body using a regular weights programme and following bodybuilding routines popular in the 1970's and drank high protein supplements to form his body and increase his bodies ability to deliver speed and power whilst balancing out his cardiovascular training, up until his untimely death at the age of 32.
Being, myself a teacher of Wing Chun Kung Fu, Bruce Lee's original style before he exploded into popular movie fame he stands as an inspirational figure to me whatever my endeavour.
Lastly, my training is progressing nicely and i'm certainly feeling much fitter and able whether I am running distances of 8-10 miles or intense full speed treadmill sprints and cross trainer hill work which round up my weight sessions 3 times a week.
Diet is still based around a high fruit/vegetable intake but I am also starting to incorporate some lean protein as I felt like this was lacking, especially whilst recovering from my gym sessions..so the balance I seek in my nutrition is yet to be fully decided upon.
Low fat raw vegan is certainly the most ideal way of fuelling for my runs and general activity but heavy weight sessions not so at all in my experience so tweaking things where needed..there are and should never be absolute situations when it comes to nutrition..everyone has different needs dependant on their training and body goals.
Until next time..thanks for following and hopefully i'll have nailed a 15-20 miler by then as well as taken a few steps closer to a lean, muscular beach body for the Summer!! :-)
No comments:
Post a Comment