Joe Friel

Oops! What Is TSS?

Someone just pointed out to me that I forget to explain what "TSS" is in my post yesterday. Sorry about that. This gets rather hairy with further definitions needed, which I'm not going to get in to. Here it is...

TSS. Training Stress Score. In WKO+ software this is an indicator of how hard a workout is. The formula for TSS is:

TSS = [(s x NP x IF) / (FTP x 3,600)] x 100

where s is workout duration in seconds, NP is normalized power (or pace in running), IF is intensity factor, FTP is functional threshold power (or pace in running), and 3,600 is the number of seconds in an hour.

A cumulative, running average of workout TSS is expressed as CTL (usually a 42-day average). This is what I was referring to yesterday when speaking of the rate of increase in cumulative TSS as perhaps to be great for the rider who asked the question.

I hope that helped some, but I expect if you don't use a power meter, runner's GPS or WKO+ software then you have an even deeper level of confusion. The best way to understand this stuff is to train with such a device and use WKO+ to analyze your training.

Question: Why am I so Tired?

Many successful endurance athletes are type-A personalities. They are driven to succeed. While this is necessary to some extent, too much drive and motivation can lead to disastrous training and poor performance. This is evident in the following question that I received today. The athlete, a cyclist, understands a lot about the intricacies of training. His question uses several terms common to power-savvy cyclists who use power meters (or GPS devices for runners). Here’s a quick reference so you can understand what he is asking in case you don’t train with power (or a GPS):

CTL. Chronic Training Load. A rolling, daily average of how much training stress an athlete is managing. The more stress he/she can handle the greater the fitness. So CTL is a good proxy for “fitness.” If CTL is increasing then fitness is generally increasing also.

FTP. Functional Threshold Power (“Pace” in running). This is how much power (pace) a rider (or runner) can maintain for an hour. It’s similar to lactate or anaerobic threshold power (pace). Increases in FTP indicate an improvement in aerobic fitness.

1 minute max. The highest max power (or pace) one can maintain for a minute. This is another indicator of fitness.

Sh-t. You can probably figure this technical term out for yourself.

WKO+. Software designed for logging and analyzing power and pace data.

Question: I’m a big fan of your blog. I’m having trouble understanding fatigue and recovery. By definition I need to experience fatigue to gain fitness, but how much fatigue should I “feel” day to day? I’ve been increasing my CTL in 3-5 week cycles resting a little more for 1 week allowing a little loss of CTL then I hit it again and increase my CTL…. The problem is that my perceived fitness and actual fitness are not getting better. I just feel tired. Heavy legs, not making gains in my FTP, I’m stagnating! My FTP is not in decline, but the numbers I’m putting out seam to require more perceived effort. My 1 minute max has been in decline, at one point I was able to maintain 550 watts for a minute, now I'm at 440 watts. The question I have is, how should I feel during training, because quite frankly I feel like "sh-t".... and I don't think I'm suppose to. The other option is that I'm just not cut out for endurance sports because I can't take the suffering. I just feel weak!

Answer: First of all, everyone is cut out to be an endurance athlete to some extent. That’s our inheritance as homo sapiens. We’re hunter-gatherers by design—slow sprinters compared with the rest of animal world, but better than the others at endurance. Some of us just got more endurance genes and opportunities than others.

What you’re experiencing is not unusual at all for highly motivated athletes. It’s common for us to always seek our limits. Since you seem to be using WKO+ I’ll give you a suggestion for that software which may help you regulate your training to avoid extreme overreaching.

But first, some overreaching is necessary to produce improvements in fitness. You seem to understand that given your reference to fatigue being required to improve fitness. But overreaching and fatigue can be accumulated too quickly for the body to adjust and adapt. It functions best when the rate of overreaching is gradual. I suspect yours is overly aggressive.

The rate of overreaching (and therefore “hard training”) is probably too high when your CTL is increasing at a rate greater than 5 to 8 TSS per week. If your absolute CTL numbers are relatively low (let’s say, around 50 or less) then an increase of 7 or 8 in a week is probably a bit too much. Keep it lower than that. If your absolute CTL is higher (around 80+ we’ll say) then a weekly increase of 5 or 6 is pushing the limits. You may be able to manage such a rate of CTL increase for one week and get away with it (some can’t), but the longer you keep that going the deeper the fatigue hole you dig.

After 2 to 4 weeks of increasing your CTL by such excessive amounts you are likely to be toast. You’ll be in the early stages of the overtraining syndrome. That will be marked by relentless fatigue, poor training performance, lethargy, low motivation, a bad attitude about life in general, and much more. If you keep pushing it beyond this fatigue you’re likely to experience full-blown overtraining which is similar to having a disease such as mononucleosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, or Lyme disease. It isn’t pretty. And it may take you weeks if not months to shed the overtraining symptoms.

By keeping the rate of your CTL increase below the numbers suggested above you should be able to train steadily while making fitness gains and avoiding the downsides.

It may also be that a 5-week period of training in which CTL steadily climbs is too much for you. I train most of my athletes with 2- or 3-week periods before they rest. And regardless of your usual period length, if you are overly fatigued then you should recover immediately regardless of the plan. Training plans must be flexible to be effective. Doing workouts just to satisfy the plan is doing it backwards.

Of course, there are other stressors in our lives besides training. Supporting your family, working a lot of hours, having a physically or emotionally stressful job, having lifestyle stresses such as relationship or financial difficulties, and experiencing other pressing responsibilities of life can also lead to what may be interpreted as overreaching. If this is the case then training must be reduced regardless of what your weekly rate of CTL increase may be.

Max Heart Rate and Fitness

I’m still getting caught up with work and life in general having just returned from 2 weeks in Switzerland and the UK. So this is just going to be a quicky. It has to do with a study I came across addressing the issue of max heart rate variation with changes in fitness.

Over the years I’ve noticed that as athletes’ aerobic fitness changes their max heart rate (MHR) also changes. A review of the literature by Zavorsky of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver showed that MHR declines as aerobic capacity (VO2max) increases (Zavorsky, G.S. 2000. Endurance and possible mechanisms of altered maximum heart rate with endurance training and tapering. Sports Med 29(1):13-26).

So as you become more fit in the lead-up to your race you might expect to see lower heart rates at the high end. The reverse of this is also true. As fitness declines MHR increases. The review reported 3% to 7% shifts with training and detraining. So, for example, someone with a MHR of 200 at the start of the Base period may expect to see their MHR decline to 186 to 194 by the time of their first race.

Both of these changes probably have to do with variations in cardiac stroke volume – how much blood the heart pumps per beat. As fitness increases the heart becomes more efficient at pumping. More blood goes out for each beat satisfying the body’s need for oxygen and fuel and so the heart can use fewer beats per minute to accomplish its mission. As fitness declines the opposite occurs.

This is yet another good reason not to use MHR as the standard by which heart rate zones are established. Lactate (or anaerobic) threshold seems to be much more stable with changes in fitness.

What’s Important to Your Success?

The above title is the key question that must be asked before starting to train for a specific A-priority race. Many don’t and simply train randomly. That’s works alright in the first year or so after becoming an athlete, but it is of increasingly limited value thereafter.

So what is important to your success? The answer has to do with your strengths and limiters. I’ve written about limiters in all of my books because they really are the key to success. A limiter is a race-specific weakness. In order to determine your limiters you have to first know what the characteristics of the race are and compare them with your strengths and weaknesses. What you would like to see happen is that the race’s characteristics would overlap completely with your strengths. That means you are going to be very well prepared for the race. Where the race’s characteristics are the opposite of your weaknesses then you have a limiter which must be improved.

In the Base ("accumulation" in block periodization) period your training is usually best focused on developing basic-ability limiters. These are aerobic endurance, muscular force, speed skills and muscular endurance. There are exceptions which I won’t go into here. Race-specific limiters should be addressed in the Build ("transmutation") period.

Every race has unique characteristics that define it:

Duration. This is related to the race’s distance, but isn’t exactly the same thing. An elite runner who covers 10km in 30 minutes is not really doing the same race as someone who takes 60 minutes of very hard work to run that 10km course. So they shouldn’t train the same way. You don’t train to distance; you train to duration. You must train to the duration of your race. This has to do with the intensity of your training. It must increasingly become like what is expected of you in the race given its duration.

Steady vs. variably paced. If you are training for a race that will be done at a very steady intensity then much of your training must be done the same way. Variably paced races such as bicycle criteriums and road races must include a great deal of variably paced training. Doing hard group rides in the last 12 weeks prior to the race is very helpful for this.

Race-course layout. Courses can include flat sections; hilly portions with long, steady climbs; hills with short, steep sections; off-road or very rough surfaces; smoothly paved roads; lots of corners; straight point-to-point or out-and-back layouts; corners that are off-camber, flat or banked corners; and more. Swims can be calm or choppy, have a current or be dead still. The water can be murky or clear. The layout of the course you will race on should be considered when it comes to designing race-like workouts. Mimicking the course in your training, especially in the last 12 weeks, is often critical to success.

Weather. Will the race be cold, hot, rainy, dry, windy, or humid? If you only train in dry and calm conditions but end up racing in a driving rainstorm then your chances of doing well are greatly diminished. Athletes who train in all types of weather and become comfortable with nasty days feel like they have an advantage at the start line when the weather is challenging on race day.

Altitude. This is one that is difficult to prepare for short of going to the altitude at which the race is held and living there for some period of time. Going to a higher altitude for the race is more demanding than going down. Training for this is difficult if not impossible for most amateur athletes. If you will be racing at above about 5,000 feet (1500 meters) but can’t spend at least a couple of weeks living (especially sleeping) at such an altitude then your only option is to become as aerobically fit as possible for the race.

Competition. For the competitive athlete, other athletes who are likely to be on the start line on race day has a lot to do with training. This is especially true for bicycle road racing but also applies to triathlon, running and other steady-state sports. Race-day strategy and tactics will greatly depend on who you are racing. Training must reflect this in the last 12 weeks.

Key episodes. During your race there may be key episodes that will determine the outcome. This could be due, for example, to a certain hill, or a windy section of the course, or a point where other athletes are known to have made key moves in the past. It could even be related to race-day nutrition. For longer duration races getting in adequate calories often determines how well you finish. Whatever the key episode is you must prepare for it in training in the last 12 weeks.

 

One way of preparing is to make a list of your limiters for your most important race of the season. The areas of concern described above can help you do that. Then determine how you will know if you are making progress toward correcting your limiters. This can be the hard part. In my Training Bible books I refer to these short-term measures of progress as “objectives.” Check there if you are unsure what objectives are and how to come up with them.

Dealing with limiters can be made a moot point by careful selection of your races. The old saying, “horses for courses,” applies here. If you want to improve your odds of having a good race then select a race which suits your strengths—not one which demands that you completely remodel your weaknesses.

Recovery On Demand for the Advanced Athlete

I’m at a camp in Switzerland this week with a group of first-time Ironman triathletes. When I do these with Tridynamic,  who manages the camps, we bring in local experts to add depth what may even be differing points of view from the staff's. This week Ronnie Schildknecht, the four-time winner of Ironman Switzerland, not only spoke to the group but also took us on a guided tour of the bike course. A great experience. And we had Darren Smith (read an interview with Darren here) talk one evening.

Daren has been a friend of mine for many years. He’s a triathlon coach from Australia who works with elite ITU athletes. He’s produced several World Champs including Lisa Norden who accompanied him to the talk.

Darren is a sharp guy and always says things that set my mind to working for days after. As usual, he had several gems on Monday evening when he spoke. One of them was something he calls “recovery on demand.”

Instead of scheduling recovery periods into his athletes’ training plans he remains quite flexible and includes it when he sees signs of excessive fatigue. This is quite logical and the way most advanced athletes should actually do it. It’s hard to predict with accuracy when one will need a couple of days to rest up. But for the less-experienced athlete it’s probably best to schedule it at given intervals, such as every third or fourth week.

Advanced athletes should be able to not only recognize the need for rest but be willing to also “take their medicine.” If self-coached, advanced athletes are unwilling to back off despite several signs of extensive overreaching, or if they can't easily recognize excessive fatigue, then scheduling R&R must be the norm.

Recovery on demand is more difficult for the coach to do than it is for the athlete. Few coaches have daily, face-to-face contact with their athletes. Darren does. His athletes live and train in the same town for several weeks out of the year. He sees each every morning and has a brief conversation with them. From this he can determine what their readiness-to-train status is. The long-distance coach can ask questions by email with forms and even by phone, but this is much less effective than seeing and talking personally as Darren does.

The bottom line here is that periodization does not have to be rigid and inflexible as many, for some unknown reason, believe is the case. It can be quite flexible—and must be, not only in terms of rest but also with regards to workouts.

Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 5

In block periodization, according to Vladimir Issurin in his book, Block Periodization,  there are three mesocycles which are actually quite similar to what is used in linear periodization. They are accumulation (“base” in linear-speak), transmutation (“build”) and realization (“peak” and “race”). Let’s take a look at each block within these mesocycles and how training may be designed using an example from what I’ve been doing with my athletes. This example is not necessarily what’s best for you or for any given sport. I’ve used this primarily with road cyclists but it could be adapted to work for triathletes, runners, mountain bikers and other endurance athletes.

Accumulation Purpose: Develop as much “general” fitness as possible.

Block 1: Efficiency. This block lasts 3 to 6 weeks depending on what the athlete has been doing prior to starting back into structured training. If block 1 follows several weeks of inactivity then the longer time frame is probably better. But if the athlete has remained active in the sport then this may be far fewer weeks. During this block I’ve had the athlete focus on efficiency of movement. This has included drills for speed skills and muscular force sessions (weights and/or sport-specific force training).

Block 2: Aerobic Endurance 1. Here I’ve used 3 to 6 weeks, also, but it should seldom last 6 weeks. In fact, that would be unusual for the advanced athlete. It could last even less than 3 weeks as advanced athletes seem to get limited value from zone 2 training if their starting fitness is even moderately well-developed. During this time the athlete trains almost daily with steady workouts at the aerobic threshold (AeT) heart rate. While testing is necessary to determine AeT with certainty, it is usually in the low 2 zone (using my heart rate system) and often about 25-30bpm below the lactate/anaerobic threshold heart rate. For this type of training I have the athlete gauge intensity by using heart rate only. The “Block 2” graphic here shows how heart rate distribution may look for such a workout.

Block 2 lasts until I see the output-input ratio stabilize, especially at previously attained high levels, indicating that no further aerobic gains are being made. For some advanced athletes this may be almost immediately on starting this block. Every 3 weeks or at the end of this block the athlete rests for 2 days and then we do some testing to establish a baseline of fitness. This like to test for metabolic efficiency and in a lab along with a field test, generally a CP30  or functional threshold power/pace (FTP) test. The met test is not always available for my athletes, however.

Block 3: Aerobic Endurance 2. For 3 to 6 weeks the athlete alternates zone 3 and zone 2 workouts. For zone 3 I use output measurement (power, pace, speed) rather than heart rate to set the intensity. Heart rate continues to be used for zone 2 AeT sessions. Again, the zone 3 workouts are done steady state and typically involve long intervals. A common session is 3 to 6 intervals of 12 to 20 minutes duration each (longer for cycling and shorter for running) done in zone 3 with 5-minute recoveries. Other than warm-up and cool down, when not in zone 3 the athlete should be in zone 2 for maintenance. This includes recovery intervals. Some athletes may prefer to do long, steady rides or runs of 1-2 hours, non-stop, in zone 3. That’s okay so long as they are recovering well enough to repeat it the next day.

In the “Block 3” chart here you can see an example of the power distribution for such a workout. These interval sessions may be done on a flat course or on a long, slight hill (less than 5% grade). Output-input is measured for each of these sessions and, again, I look for the eventual stabilization of this ratio indicating that fitness gains have stopped.

Some athletes will be able to manage 2 or even 3 such workouts on consecutive days followed by one day of zone 2 AeT training as in block 2. However, older athletes may need more frequent zone 2 sessions and perhaps even an occasional zone 1 session to allow for recovery. As before, at the end of each 3 weeks the athlete rests for 2-3 days and then progress is assessed using the same tests as before. Immediately after the testing training resumes.

Although we are usually told to avoid zone 3 training, this is the block in which I have seen the greatest gains in FTP. Zone 3, especially the upper portion, seems to be quite effective for producing aerobic fitness and yet not overly demanding on the body requiring frequent or extended recovery. It seems I saw such a finding in a paper by Dr. Eric Bannister a few years ago but I’ve been unable to find it. He’s the one who developed the TRIMP system. Allen and Coggan in their excellent book, Training and Racing with a Power Meter, refer to the upper end of zone 3 and the lower end of zone 4 as the “sweet spot” and a range that is very effective for producing aerobic fitness.

Block 4: Muscular Endurance. For some events this block may mark the beginning of the “transmutation” mesocycle. This would be true for events that are strictly determined by the muscular endurance of the advanced athlete. Probably the best examples of this are marathon, Ironman and half-Ironman triathlon training. For such events the long-distance athlete may even change block 4 to anaerobic endurance training with short (2-4 minute intervals) done at VO2max power, pace or speed and separated by recoveries of equal duration. About 15 to 20 minutes of total work interval time in a single session has been shown to be quite effective at boosting aerobic capacity before starting race-specific training.

For shorter events and those that are variably paced such as bicycle road races, this block is the last of the “accumulation” period. For such events the athlete trains for 3 to 6 weeks using long intervals done at zone 4 output (power, pace or speed) with short recoveries. These may be something such as 5 to 8 intervals of 6- to 12-minutes duration with recovery intervals that are one-fourth as long (example: 5 x 6 minutes with 90-second recoveries). These intervals may also be done as repeats on a hill. Shorter intervals are used for running and longer for cycling.

Zone 2 should be incorporated into these muscular endurance workouts whenever possible for aerobic endurance maintenance. I will also often have the athlete do a 20- to 30-minute steady state effort following the zone 4 intervals. Aerobic fitness is high when the output-input ratio for this zone 3 effort is similar to what the athlete produced when fresher back in block 3. It may be a bit low early in block 4 but should rise as fitness improves.

Three or four of these zone 4 interval workouts in a week are usually manageable by the advanced athlete with zone 2 AeT sessions or zone 1 recovery the following day depending on the athlete.

Accompanying is a chart of a block 4 workout showing a typical power distribution. These zone 4 intervals may be done every other day with a zone 2 (heart rate) or a zone 1 recovery day, depending on the athlete’s needs, alternating with the interval sessions.

Racing at the B- and C-priority level may now begin. Before B races the athlete actively recovers for 2 or 3 days. Markers of progress include race performance and testing as before after 3 weeks of training.

Transmutation Purpose: Develop as much “race-specific” readiness as possible.

Block 5: Event Specificity. This block is likely to last 4 to 8 weeks depending on how quickly the athlete responds. The measures of improvement now are much more event-related. The workouts should closely simulate the anticipated stresses of the targeted race or races. The stress should now be based primarily on maintaining a racelike intensity for durations that approximate what will be experienced in the race. Weekly volume is unimportant and has little to do with race preparation. “Accumulation” is no longer the focus. Instead, the focus should be strictly on doing racelike workouts on racelike terrain with recovery days as needed. Every fourth week the athlete should reduce the training stress by including frequent zone 2 AeT sessions which will maintain aerobic endurance. Progress is determined through B- and C-priority race performances and event-specific workout results.

Realization

Block 6: Taper and Peak. For one to two weeks the advanced athlete does a very challenging, racelike workout every third day with two days of recovery and zone 2 AeT maintenance sessions between them. The duration of the racelike workouts is shortened with each subsequent session. Being well-rested for each of these workouts is critical.

Block 7: Competition. This is the block when racing occurs. It could be a single race, a stage race or even a few weekly and closely spaced races. Some athletes may be able to maintain their peak of fitness for several weeks while others will find this difficult to do. In the days between races the first priority is to recover from the previous race and then maintain or develop the ability critical to success in the next race. For the advanced athlete this is likely to be muscular endurance, anaerobic endurance and/or sprint power.

Transition Purpose: Rejuvenate the body and the mind.

Block 8: Rejuvenation. Following the last of the races in the competition block it’s time for recovery. How long this recovery lasts depends on how stressful the preceding race and preparation for it was, the presence of injuries or soreness, the athlete’s level of motivation to return to focused training and when this block falls in the season (block 8 is longer at the end of the season than early in the season). There are no scheduled workouts. The athlete should train randomly, if at all. The focus is on rejuvenation, not maintenance of fitness.

Summary Comments

Note that these blocks can be used as training modules and don’t necessarily have to occur in a continuous manner over big chunks of the season. For example, I’ve had athletes go back to a previous block to re-establish the depth of fitness for that ability. Following that we continue back into the progression outlined above. When repeating an earlier block its duration may be quite brief.

Again, what I’ve described above is only an example, and one based on my limited experience with block periodization. It may not be the best for you and I expect I will tweak it as I learn more. As I do I’ll post updates here.

I can’t emphasize enough that block periodization is intended only for the advanced athlete as described here. It is not for the novice or the moderately trained athlete. I would not expect good results for these two groups of athletes should they use a block training plan. In fact, they may even lose fitness. But if you are an advanced athlete you may find that such a system greatly enhances your performance. As always, I would appreciate your posted comments on what you’ve learned with such training.

Training for Advanced Athletes, Part 4

Block periodization is relatively new. I started toying with it about a year ago. As with all such training experimentation I tried it on myself first. I was pleased with the results. I do a few road races and time trials that are on the same courses from year to year. Using block periodization I produced some of my fastest TT times and I won every road race. More importantly, I learned a lot about how to block periodize training.

At the start of the 2011 season last winter I began using it with the advanced athletes I coach. I’ve been very pleased with the results but we’re talking about a small number of subjects. I’m still learning and know this will go on for a long time, probably years.

There is a limited amount of research on block periodization but that which is available is quite positive [Breil, Garcia-Pallares, Garcia-Pallares].

In the last of the three studies cited below researchers at the University of Murcia in Spain manipulated the training of 10 world-class kayakers. They were tested 4 times during each training cycle over 2 consecutive seasons. For one of the cycles they used the linear periodization model I describe in my Training Bible books. For the other they used block periodization. The two periodization models resulted in similar gains on incremental tests to exhaustion. But here’s the kicker: Linear periodization required 10 more weeks and 120 additional hours of training to achieve the results of block periodization. Block required only about half of the volume.

The same results in half the time means that the advanced athlete can accomplish a lot more in training in a given time. This may also mean that, overall, more fitness can be gained in a season. But realize that with such a study it’s not possible to use a “double-blind” protocol. Both the athletes and the researchers knew when linear and block training was used. You can’t hide or mask that sort of thing. This leaves the possibility of the placebo effect muddying the results.

This study also used exercise to exhaustion as the test to measure improvement. In the real world endurance athletes don’t race to exhaustion at a fixed intensity. They vary the intensity based on how they feel at any given moment in the race in order to produce the fastest time possible over a given distance.

So, unfortunately, research is not always perfect. But the same results, even if it is a test to exhaustion, in half the time as a placebo effect is a pretty big leap. So I believe that while all of this may have somewhat influenced the results, placebo was undoubtedly not the major cause of testing improvement.

Before getting into how to use block periodization I want to address a side issue: Should moderately trained or even novice athletes use block periodization? Why is it recommended only for advanced athletes?

Advanced athletes have a training “base” which generally goes back for several years of highly focused training. All of their unique event-specific abilities (aerobic endurance, muscular force, speed skills, muscular endurance, anaerobic endurance and/or sprint power) are very well developed. That is generally not the case for moderately trained athletes and certainly not true for novice athletes. Should moderately trained or novice athletes follow a block plan which emphasizes only one or two abilities for several weeks their other abilities will fade quite badly and may even return to base levels. Since the advanced athlete has such a high level of fitness in each of the abilities that are important to his or her performance, the erosion of fitness in those not being stressed will remain high [Neufer].

In Part 5 I'll provide an example of how to use block periodization. This should be posted by Sunday (if all goes well) as I leave on Monday for my camp in Switzerland and a talk at the Wilmslow Royles bike shop in the UK on 19 June.

References

Breil, F.A., S.N. Weber, S. Koller, et al. 2010. Block training periodization in Alpine skiing: Effects of 11-day HIT on VO2max and performance. Eur J Appl Physiol 109(6):1077-86.

Garcia-Pallares, J., L. Sanchez-Medina, L. Carrsaco, et al. 2009. Endurance and neuromuscular changes in world-class level kayakers during a periodized training cycle. Eur J Appl Physiol 106(4):629-38.

Garcia-Pallares, J., M. Garcia-Fernandez, L. Sanchez-Medina, et al. 2010. Performance changes in world-class kayakers following two different training periodization models. Eur J Appl Physiol 110(1):99-107.

Neufer, P.D. 1989. The effect of detraining and reduced training on the physiological adaptations to aerobic exercise training. Sports Med 8(5):302-20.