6 Minute Training Week?

The New York Times ran a piece about a study done in Japan that showed rats that were forced to swim super hard for 6 minutes a week had the same fitness gains as another group that swam 6 hours a week at a slow endurance pace. They also cited a similar study done in Canada with untrained college students and stationary bikes.

Gotta love scientific studies that prove what is already known. Intervals work. Duh. Now before you go and bail on your long ride this weekend it is important to recognize the subjects used in this study were not athletes so really it is not surprise that both control groups showed similar increases in fitness from baseline. I would like to see if these results would be replicated with athletes. My guess is they would not. The take away from this is that if you are not incorpotating some sort of interval training then you are not goingto perform up to your potential.

Long training sessions are the foundation that a good race season is built on. The way your body prioritizes and burn fuel is enhanced with endurance training. There are no short cuts for this if you want season long fitness. 1-2 long training sessions a week are essential if you want to Live the WUKAR Life. For the busy professional or family man/woman it can be hard to find the 3-4 hour block of time to do these types of workouts. The WUKAR way is to get creative. You can ge the same training effect by splitting your endurance workouts in two. 2 hours before work and 1-2 hours after work will do the trick.

WUKAR Life!

Heat is On

After a very wet and cold spring the weather around here is finally starting to resemble summer.  With temps in the 90’s for the near future it is probably a good time to discuss the WUKAR way of training in the heat.

* pre hydrate: drink at least 16oz of plain water an hour before your workout or race.
* for races or training under 90 minute drink plain water.
* for longer races a good electrolyte replacement drink like Hammer Nutrition Endurolytes will keep you running   cool.
* In a race never pass up the water stations.  The seconds you save not taking a hand up can quickly turn to minutes lost if you start to become dehydrated.
* Train your body to handle a lot of fluid.  This means making a conscious effort in training to drink a regular intervals.  Generally speaking if you wait until you feel thirsty then you are already in the hole and getting back to a proper state of hydration is unlikely for that training session or race.  Start drinking early and often! The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends 8-10 oz every 15 minutes during exercise.
* avoid training between 10am and 2pm.  UV and Heat Index levels are at their highest during these hours. You will get a more effective workout if you train when it is cooler as your body will not be expending as much energy in thermo regulation.
* Wear light colored, loose fitting, moisture wicking clothes.  A hat is a good idea for runners. Cyclists I am assuming your head is worth protecting and you wear a helmet on all rides anyway.
* Weigh yourself before and after training.  Drink 20-24oz of water for every pound lost.
* Chug a good recovery drink within 2 hours of training to top off your glycogen stores and start the recovery   process.  We use Hammer Nutrition Recoverite with great results.

This is far from a comprehensive guide so feel free to contact us at wukarlife@gmail.com if you have any questions or want more detail.

WUKAR for life!