What's the most important workout of the week if you're after improved body composition and performance? You might be surprised.
So, you’re a triathlete, a cyclist, a runner, an adventure racer. You’ve got “big hairy audacious goals (BHAGS)” and you’re willing to do what it takes to achieve them.
Of course, as someone with a life, a family and a job, you probably have to make some decisions about which workouts you absolutely have to do every week and which ones would be OK to skip if life gets in the way.
So here’s my question for today...
Which is your most important workout of the week?
Would you choose your threshold session, because it hones the racing edge? Would your long session get the nod, because it helps to build and maintain your vital aerobic engine? Perhaps it’s a technique session, because while your VO2 Max is essentially genetically determined (we could argue that one), efficiency means free speed?
If you asked me that question, I would choose my early Friday evening session, where I sit down with my computer and a piece of paper to plan next week’s menu and write my shopping list. It takes just 40 minutes or so, but that bit of planning means I don’t waste precious training, work or family time during the week dashing to the shops to get something for our evening meal.
It also means that I don’t find myself forced to eat whatever I can get my hands on, because I’m hungry. And we all know that when we’re hungry, we don’t make good decisions about food!
By the way, my second most important workout is my Saturday morning 6am trip to the supermarket, for the same reason.
I’ve said it before and will certainly say it again: You CANNOT out-train a poor diet.
Short, sweet and seemingly too simple, but without doubt this is one of the most neglected secrets to remaining lean, healthy and fit when you have limited training time.
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