Believe it or not, you can’t eat whatever you want. Depending on who your parents are and their genetics, if there is any history of heart disease in your family, you’d be better off to avoid foods in saturated and trans fats as well as high dietary cholesterol. There are lots of skinny lean guys who have heart attacks in mid life, thinking that they could ‘eat’ whatever, all the while, clogging up their arteries. This may not apply to you, but there is a misconception out there that just cause you are lean and training, you can eat any crap.
lighten up francis;)
of course I don’t eat a supersized mcdonalds extra value meal every day. But, I do eat a lot…which is necessary when you train a lot… and a lot of it is good food…but I certainly don’t fret about indulging in “bad” food when I feel like it. I would also never call myself skinny, since even when I’m at my leanest I’m still over 190 pounds.
Indeed, I like Gordo’s JFT message - for many, the first few years in the game should be all about this and for parts of the year, even for the very best, it should be JFT - it’s good for the mind and good for the body. Also, doing away with the HRM, the power-meter, the charts, the numbers, the zones, the program . . . really teaches you about what it feels like to be in that groove, or feel really crappy ie how is the body really responding to the micro and macro training.
I think that many would be surprised with how spartan and basic the training regimes are, of many top endurance athletes: Train long. Train hard. Rest and repeat over and over for months and years.
If Gordo’s message is “JFT”, then how come he charges $525/month???
I have no idea about what he charges or his business model, but obviously JFT is a message that needs to get out there. I think that many want a formula - do these work-outs and you will get this result. This is what many people, seeking coachs or trainers want. They want minute details of workouts, HR, interval length and so on. They want it all spelled out, so they don’t even have to think. Personally I think that is a mistake. I can’t tell you how many times I have been approached with offers of money to coach or train people. I tell them, that I can give them the big picture( JFT for years and years) and the little picture( Use these tires on this course), but I will not be able to give them the middle picture - the actual detailed work-outs the day to day, detail stuff. That’s not the way I would operate.
I understand your point and happen to agree with it. You got to put in the work. I was just making a point of my own 
$475. and no, i’m not a client.
waiting list? 
I started out training just because I like to beat my self up (jso to speak.) I am having to learn to tone it down on most of my workouts. I swim less, run longer and slower more of the time (at least before I hurt my achilles.) And I’m trying to ride with a purpose. I lift less often and use lighter weights with my upper body. All of that goes against my nature.
The great thing about having an advance plan in place is that, giving for tweaks and nudges, you can just train. A while ago I wrote up my coaching philosophy and part of it was this: “Winning a race is a beautiful thing, but just getting out there and training is the place in which we dream.”
i have to admit, you are funny. wrong sometimes, but funny.
Yep, I just enjoy “training”, or not training if I don’t feel like it that day…my purpose most of the time is like Fleck mentioned, just to get out the door.
Good thread.
I guess it depends how you look at it. this time of year I tend to do very unstructured training or focus on one aspect/sport. The idea is to take a mental break and come back rested and ready to start the real hard work. I take this opportunity to ride to coffee breaks with friends, partake in Cinnamon Bun sprints etc. So taking it easy has a purpose in the grand scheme of things. I do this irrespective of whether I have signed up for a race or not. I love training but IM training is focused to a race, the training I do now allows me to train for IM race later on. So no, I dont train to train. But i dont train focused on one or two races the entire year, the focus is to train to train.
Fleck
Would you please tell me what "JFT" means? Thanks
Hi Kenney,
JFT = just f’ing train
clm
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Thanks Cathy…you have been well ! Hope you have been having fun ! By the way,looks like next year I am going to your home area (I think?) Ultramax whole. If I do I will ask your advice on where to stay and what would be good to see. Or are you from Kansas and not Mo. I know I read something about Kansas from you…College?