MAXIMISE YOUR TRAINING GAINS
It’s a fine line between making performance advances and tipping over into injury. But you can find the balance with Greg Whyte
As we move into the winter training phase, training volume (volume = intensity x duration x frequency) increases significantly. Why is down to the theory of supercompensation that states training leads to fatigue, which, following sufficient recovery, results in performance improvement. Accordingly, progressive overload – continually increasing training volume – is important to ensure performance improvement.
The accumulation of fatigue across multiple sessions is termed ‘overreaching’ and is a common part of training programmes. While carefully planned and monitored overreaching results in performance enhancement – termed ‘functional overreaching’ – care is needed to avoid excessive overload over an extended period in the absence of sufficient recovery, which results in no improvement in performance until a prolonged period of recovery is required, often leading to a reduction in performance (termed ‘non-functional overreaching’).
“More always better; training quality is almost always better quantity”
Non-functional overreaching is a waste of time and effort, and it’s important to respond appropriately to avoid a prolonged reduction in performance often combined with repetitive illness and additional symptoms. This is a condition that’s been termed ‘overtraining syndrome’, ‘underrecovery syndrome’ and, more recently (and more accurately), as ‘unexplained underperformance syndrome (UUPS), which takes into account stressors from other aspects of life (i.e. family, work…).
In addition to chronic underperformance commonly lasting two to three months, there are a host of symptoms that characterise UUPS including: fatigue, depression, loss of motivation, insomnia, restlessness, anorexia, heavy/sore muscles and anxiety. UUPS is far less common than overreaching, however, and it’s important to minimise the potential for both to avoid losing an entire season and potentially than jeopardising future performance. A c ommon mistake I see is athletes responding to an absence in performance improvement by increasing their training volumes and reducing recovery, which ultimately leads to a downward spiral of performance and health. There are a number of ways to reduce the potential for nonfunctional overreaching and UUPS, starting with a carefully planned programme with regular monitoring of training load. Importantly, be attentive to unexplained performance decline attributable to cumulative fatigue. Recording your performance (i.e. rep times, pace and so on) together with your rating of perceived exertion (RPE; how hard you think a session is) and your personal reflections on the session can provide valuable insight into your state of fatigue. In addition, using simple psychological screening tools (i.e. Profile of Mood States) can deliver early warning signs of non-functional overreaching. Optimising nutrition, hydration, rest and sleep are crucial here. Noting down your feedback from sessions for yourself and your coach will also act as an early warning sign, allowing timely modification of training to avoid problems.
More is not always better; quality is almost always better than quantity; and it’s not solely about training volume. Plan and monitor your winter phase training carefully (including recovery) and respond to stressors in general life by modifying training, to ensure you make the most of the time and effort you invest.
PROFESSOR GREG WHYTE
Former modern pentathlon Olympian professor Greg Whyte is a pre-eminent authority on exercise physiology and sports and exercise performance in the UK. But he’s probably best known for training, motivating and successfully coaching 23 Sport & Comic Relief challenges.
Need advice from the Prof? Send an email to asktheprof@220triathlon.com