Andrea Fisher’s tips for the busy athlete

It’s not easy to balance life, work, training, racing, and everything else that comes on a day-to-day basis. It often seems that that there are those that make it appear effortless, and the rest of us trying to cram it all in and wondering if we’re doing enough and doing it well.

Bicycle Sport Shop Cycling Club sponsor, coach, athlete, and mom recently gave a talk at the Lamar store: “The Time Sensitive Athlete” and there were a number of take aways from the evening that are worth sharing. Whether you’re just starting to try to figure out how to do it all, or you simply need a gentle reminder, there were great takeaways for everyone.

Coach, athlete (and former pro), mom, and business woman Andrea Fisher is no stranger to balancing the day-to-day.

Here’s a quick recap of my key take aways from Andrea’s talk:

1) It isn’t necessary to train 15-20 hours a week for an ironman distance race. Drop the junk miles.

2) Focus on three workout efforts: endurance (base), tempo (moderate), and intense (hard!).

3) Build your schedule in 3-4 week blocks with the last week as a recovery week (recovery week = less volume; same intensities/efforts). Regular weeks should include one day off; recovery weeks should include two. Allow yourself 24 hours to recover from intense workouts.

4) Overall plan only needs to be 12-16 weeks based on current fitness (if longer, you’ll burn out).

5) Each week’s total volume should only increase by ~10%.

6) Workouts should be scheduled by time, not distance (2 hour ride; not 40 miles). When training for an Ironman race distance race, longest ride should be 5 hours; longest run should be 3 hours.

7)  Add your workouts to your planner, Google calendar, etc. Schedule them so they are on your calendar as part of your day.

7) MOST IMPORTANT – Respect Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

Everything in terms of training and racing needs to fit within Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

When trying to balance the things you have to do and those that are passions that drive you, perspective is key. Make the most of your available time by staying focused on the overall goal and keeping true to your plan. That will help ensure success and keep you happy.