How much training is enough?
Many people ask the question of how many hours of training should be done per week. Are 20 hours a week enough to continue making progress and reach the elite level? How much training is enough?
There are two schools of thought:
- The first school suggests maximizing training hours.
- The second school advocates for fewer hours with maximum results, allowing athletes to recover.
Let's examine the case of Olympic champion Julien Absalon, a professional mountain biking athlete who won multiple world championships and two Olympic gold medals. On average, he trained for 16 to 20 hours per week.
His coach, Gérard Brocks, designed his training regimen, including psychological training. Julien Absalon often asked his coach if he was training enough hours per week to achieve his desired level. Gérard replied, "Well, look at your results from last weekend. You're ranked first, continuing to improve, and you've been selected for the Olympic Games next year. The results speak for themselves."
Training sessions
Michael Phelps explains that during certain periods, when he trained in Colorado Springs, he had 75 sessions over 24 days, averaging between 3 and 4 sessions per day. He states that during these periods of maximum effort, he made the most progress and achieved the best results. He trained seven days a week, never missing a training day.
Phelps explains that missing a workout sets him back by two days to regain his level.
You may wonder how it is possible to recover when training three to four sessions a day, every day. How is it possible to avoid the overtraining effect that many people talk about? Muscle and mental fatigue, an increased risk of injury, a loss of motivation, and a decline in results characterize overtraining.
For Michael Phelps, training every day allows him to maintain a certain muscle feeling and fluidity in the water. If he misses a training day, it takes him two days to regain that feeling.
Sensation of activity
Understanding the sensation of activity, the engagement of muscles in motion, and the fluidity specific to one's sport is crucial. Reaching an elite level requires repetitive technical movements to achieve fluidity.
This pursuit of fluidity can only be accomplished through consistent training. It is important to consider whether intense workouts with no rest days or a regular plan of one to two sessions per day with one or two rest days per week is more suitable for your sport. To answer that question, reflect on your sensations. Are you currently experiencing the desired fluidity in your sport? If not, then you know what adjustments you need to make.
Visit: https://www.MaximumComposure.com
Next read: https://mentalaccelerator.com/resource/grit/how-to-find-your-motivation-to-train