Yes, we have all begun our long slow runs. Well maybe some of us have, maybe some haven't and maybe some won't. But to those that swim, ride and run, endurance is often over looked in the quest for speed. I know I was generally guilty of this in the past. I mean the runs were only going to be 5 or 6K max. So why run more. Just practice those faster right? So that is what I did.
But this year I added a half marathon to my goals. So the long slow run was added as a necessity. And what did it do? It surely didn't hurt my speed. In fact it allowed my shorts runs to be faster as I could now hold my higher speeds for just that little extra. So this must work on the bike right?
Again, in the past I road hard as long as I could. It was fun, I got tired, I did pretty well in races, though again, by the end of the ride I was running out of steam. So I decided this year to do the same thing as running. The long slow ride.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have finally incorporated my heart rate monitor into my training. Sure power would be better, but my budget is low and I have a HRM already. So armed with my newly gained knowledge of my heart rate zones (see lactic tests from a few posts back) I have been heading out for 2 plus hour rides, attempting to keep an nice even pace, one that stay aerobic and easy.
Sure you Iron folks out there probably already do this. And I am sure many of you smarter short distance folks do it as well. But for those that aren't doing it, give it a try. I am amazed at how much longer I can now hold a high paced time trial like effort. Or better yet, how my bike during a triathlon style workout can be done at an increased while still easy on my legs like effort.
There is still a little while before the first events start to happen. Well the bike events anyway. Until then I am really starting to enjoy this "off season" training.
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