desert dude wrote:
Quote:
I'll cite just about any elite runner or cyclist on the planet to prove that point. They all do a base/build/peak season. And no, they don't "build base" throughout the year. They have to return to base after a peak. Why? Because they have to return to that aerobic foundation that's been eroded throughout the high intensity efforts necessary to bring them to that peak.What you are referring to is periodization.
To make this easier to understand and using what I believe to be your analogy, lets say for every 10min you spend riding/running at a low intensity you get $1. If you do intervals or a race you subtract $2 for every 10min. (the physiological response is exponential but for simplicity we'll go with a linear model). You've done 100 minutes of your base which = $10. You've done 20min of intervals which = -$4. Are you saying, which I think you are that your fitness level is not 10-4=6?
If so why not just stop at 6 and why the fuck would I even do intervals?
What I'm referring to is your erroneous notion that base is bullshit.
What I'm saying is that you reach a point where your body is no longer handling the intensity. This is obvious. You don't do VO2 max workouts for 12 weeks at a time because after 6-8 weeks you're not going to respond to them. It's the same concept.
The math is extraneous and arbitrary. Your fitness builds upon itself up to a point: a point/peak at which your body can no longer handle the intensity/volume. Do you add more intensity or volume because it's "adding to your base" or do you back it off and rebuild?
That rebuilding is rebuilding that aerobic foundation.
Last edited by:
needmoreair: Nov 9, 13 12:56