Is there a "perfect" training week?



J

jperryNOSPAMnea

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Years ago, in Runner's World, Amby Burfoot published an article in which he had what he called the
"perfect" 30-hour training week. this consisted of 3 consecutive days, one day rest, 2 consecutive
days, 1 day rest. Of the first 3 days, #1 and #2 were training days of a sort, and #2 was a slow run
recovery day. On the last two training days, they consisted of a long run followed by a slow run
recovery day. He also said the regimen could be done without the speed work in the off season. This,
I guess, is why he called it "perfect". Is there any such thing as a perfect training week, one that
a person could do year round without risk of injury? Do any of you have any favorites?

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Assuming you were rich enough not to have things like "work" and "family" make demands on your time
and choose anywhere in the world to live and train?
 
<[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> Is there any such thing as a perfect training week, one that a person could do year round without
> risk of injury?

Yes, my friend, there is. And as I have a spare ten minutes, I shall outline it for you.

Mon:

My wife goes to work after preparing my breakfast of Sugar Puffs, orange juice, French bread and
Emmental cheese. The kids disappear happily to school, giggling about how well they're doing in
the half-term exams. I gaze out the window and note the sun is already beating down from a clear
blue sky. The postman steps smartly up my front path and delivers two letters. One is a
notification of a £13,435 tax refund. The second contains a request from Ferrari to take over from
Rubens B. in the F1 team.

After an hour reading the newspapers, during which I note I'm being discussed on the sports pages as
an outstanding Veteran athlete, I check in at rec.running. Surprise! I've been awarded 'Contributor
of the decade', the prize being the head of 'TheBillRodgers' mounted on a wall plaque. Oz has
written a 102 KB post of congratulation, frankly admitting that all of his posts were utter
nonsense, and promising to quote my words of wisdom in future. I am so moved I quite forget myself
and am kind to Douglas by mistake.

An hour later I'm getting ready for my run. Surprisingly, all of my favourite running gear is washed
and ironed. I start to stretch, but note that I am so flexible it feel like I'm 16 again. A warm
breeze caresses my lithe body as I stride outside in my favourite running top and shorts. I start to
run and experience that 1 in 500 run feeling when you're moving fast with absolutely no effort at
all. The 18k off-road run goes perfectly on a firm yet forgiving forest track. Deer applaud my style
as I run powerfully by. Rabbits gaze in awe at my thighs. Raptors follow me at a respectful
distance, amazed at the grace of the 'king of beasts'. About 1k from home - just after I've checked
in a tractor's mirror that my sweat-drenched hair is looking particularly manly - I am surprised to
come across our local female 'guest workers' having their morning break by the side of the field.
It's hot, and the silly little things are all topless. At first they're startled, but - once they
recognise me - they make no attempt to cover themselves. Instead, they stand and jump up and down,
throwing wild flowers in my path as I slow to a jog and brush against their clamouring bodies.

Arriving home, I find my sister awaiting my return. She feels so bad about being mean to me for
40-odd years that she's decided to hand me the keys to her lightweight E-type, a car she knows I
have coveted for many years. Fortunately, she then disappears from whence she came in the blink
of an eye.

After my shower, I step onto the scales and notice that I've returned to my racing weight of 58
kilos. Oh my! Thus amused, I wander downstairs and make myself lunch - only to find that mummy has
visited whilst I've been on my run and has left lunch in the oven. As I scoff my toad-in-the-hole
(made with vegetarian sausages, of course) I realise that if I'm not careful I'll be late for my
afternoor meeting with Cameron Diaz. We met on Concorde......

......and so it continues.

To answer your question sensibly, of course there isn't a perfect training regime, or a perfect
training week. Any effort we expend trying to be 'perfect' is a waste of time. Just be happy to be
alive and able to run. Cope with the good and the bad with a smile, and you'll do OK.

Enjoy your crappy week.

Roger.
 
[email protected] wrote:
>
> Years ago, in Runner's World, Amby Burfoot published an article in which he had what he called the
> "perfect" 30-hour training week. this consisted of 3 consecutive days, one day rest, 2 consecutive
> days, 1 day rest. Of the first 3 days, #1 and #2 were training days of a sort, and #2 was a slow
> run recovery day. On the last two training days, they consisted of a long run followed by a slow
> run recovery day. He also said the regimen could be done without the speed work in the off season.
> This, I guess, is why he called it "perfect". Is there any such thing as a perfect training week,
> one that a person could do year round without risk of injury?

Any training that you can do that gets you to your goals uninjured, allows for rest-of-life
commitments, and is fun is "perfect" in my book. YMMV. Many people focus only on the first aspect.
A 30-hour training week across 5 days, is an avg of 6 hours a day - maybe that was supposed to be
"miles"? However, keep in mind that one of the main training principles is "diversity" - and one
way people do that is to change their level and type of workouts (periodization) throughout the
year in response to key races or other goals or seasons, although they might fit a general pattern.
Some people may maintain the same basic mileage throughout the year but diversify their workouts
within a week.

Dot

--
"Success is different things to different people" -Bernd Heinrich in Racing the Antelope
 
"Roger Hunter" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> >
> > Is there any such thing as a perfect training week, one that a person could do year round
> > without risk of injury?
>
> Yes, my friend, there is. And as I have a spare ten minutes, I shall outline it for you.

<snip>

> ......and so it continues.
>
> To answer your question sensibly, of course there isn't a perfect training regime, or a perfect
> training week. Any effort we expend trying to be 'perfect' is a waste of time. Just be happy to be
> alive and able to run. Cope with the good and the bad with a smile, and you'll do OK.
>
> Enjoy your crappy week.
>
>
> Roger.

Thanks for the laugh to start my training week, now it has a chance to be perfect.

Andy
 
"Roger Hunter" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> >
> > Is there any such thing as a perfect training week, one that a person could do year round
> > without risk of injury?
>
> Yes, my friend, there is. And as I have a spare ten minutes, I shall outline it for you.

<snip>

> ......and so it continues.
>
> To answer your question sensibly, of course there isn't a perfect training regime, or a perfect
> training week. Any effort we expend trying to be 'perfect' is a waste of time. Just be happy to be
> alive and able to run. Cope with the good and the bad with a smile, and you'll do OK.
>
> Enjoy your crappy week.
>
>
> Roger.

Thanks for the laugh to start my training week, now it has a chance to be perfect.

Andy
 
Sir Roger, a classic!!! Made my day.
--
Caveat Lector "the further you go outside, the further you go inside" - B. McKibben Doug Freese
[email protected]

Roger Hunter wrote:
> <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
>>Is there any such thing as a perfect training week, one that a person could do year round without
>>risk of injury?
>
>
> Yes, my friend, there is. And as I have a spare ten minutes, I shall outline it for you.
>
> Mon:
>
> My wife goes to work after preparing my breakfast of Sugar Puffs, orange juice, French bread and
> Emmental cheese. The kids disappear happily to school, giggling about how well they're doing in
> the half-term exams. I gaze out the window and note the sun is already beating down from a clear
> blue sky. The postman steps smartly up my front path and delivers two letters. One is a
> notification of a £13,435 tax refund. The second contains a request from Ferrari to take over from
> Rubens B. in the F1 team.
>
> After an hour reading the newspapers, during which I note I'm being discussed on the sports pages
> as an outstanding Veteran athlete, I check in at rec.running. Surprise! I've been awarded
> 'Contributor of the decade', the prize being the head of 'TheBillRodgers' mounted on a wall
> plaque. Oz has written a 102 KB post of congratulation, frankly admitting that all of his posts
> were utter nonsense, and promising to quote my words of wisdom in future. I am so moved I quite
> forget myself and am kind to Douglas by mistake.
>
> An hour later I'm getting ready for my run. Surprisingly, all of my favourite running gear is
> washed and ironed. I start to stretch, but note that I am so flexible it feel like I'm 16 again. A
> warm breeze caresses my lithe body as I stride outside in my favourite running top and shorts. I
> start to run and experience that 1 in 500 run feeling when you're moving fast with absolutely no
> effort at all. The 18k off-road run goes perfectly on a firm yet forgiving forest track. Deer
> applaud my style as I run powerfully by. Rabbits gaze in awe at my thighs. Raptors follow me at a
> respectful distance, amazed at the grace of the 'king of beasts'. About 1k from home - just after
> I've checked in a tractor's mirror that my sweat-drenched hair is looking particularly manly - I
> am surprised to come across our local female 'guest workers' having their morning break by the
> side of the field. It's hot, and the silly little things are all topless. At first they're
> startled, but - once they recognise me - they make no attempt to cover themselves. Instead, they
> stand and jump up and down, throwing wild flowers in my path as I slow to a jog and brush against
> their clamouring bodies.
>
> Arriving home, I find my sister awaiting my return. She feels so bad about being mean to me for
> 40-odd years that she's decided to hand me the keys to her lightweight E-type, a car she knows I
> have coveted for many years. Fortunately, she then disappears from whence she came in the blink
> of an eye.
>
> After my shower, I step onto the scales and notice that I've returned to my racing weight of 58
> kilos. Oh my! Thus amused, I wander downstairs and make myself lunch - only to find that mummy has
> visited whilst I've been on my run and has left lunch in the oven. As I scoff my toad-in-the-hole
> (made with vegetarian sausages, of course) I realise that if I'm not careful I'll be late for my
> afternoor meeting with Cameron Diaz. We met on Concorde......
>
> ......and so it continues.
>
> To answer your question sensibly, of course there isn't a perfect training regime, or a perfect
> training week. Any effort we expend trying to be 'perfect' is a waste of time. Just be happy to be
> alive and able to run. Cope with the good and the bad with a smile, and you'll do OK.
>
> Enjoy your crappy week.
>
>
> Roger.
>
>
>