General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Do you reach a limit of training hours per week? Rss Feed  
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2010-08-13 2:07 AM

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Subject: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Seems I can only seem to do a certain amount of training during the week before I just become way too tired to do any more training and if I did I know I'd get sick.

Do you guys and girls have the same sort of issues? How do you overcome it?

I seem to top out around 700 minutes/10 hours or so.


2010-08-13 3:03 AM
in reply to: #3041369

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Master
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
A quick look at my logs shows I've hit a peak pushing 13 hours/wk but I have a LOT of weeks +/- 10 hours.

It's more intense lately, if less consistent though.  For a while I was swimming most days, but those hours were pretty leisurely compared to the time in the saddle lately.  (I don't swim very hard or fast.)

So time isn't an end-all indicator for me, but I do like seeing spikes on the graphs!

As far as limits, I FEEL them as opposed to noticing it time-wise.  Setting myself up for a cold or something is directly related to  individual longer/harder workouts. (Or races!)  The feeling of a possible cold has stopped me from doing some late night impromptu runs. (But it doesn't take much to keep me from runs...)

Volume should be going up for me since I got my 'Y membership renewed and have just recently pushed a bit more (longer) on the bike as well.  Then again, a business deal I'm trying to close on could kill my training for weeks too.

I wonder how much time I'll log if I ever bother to follow a plan....

-eric
2010-08-13 4:10 AM
in reply to: #3041369

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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?

Elliot Power - 2010-08-13 2:07 AM Seems I can only seem to do a certain amount of training during the week before I just become way too tired to do any more training and if I did I know I'd get sick.

Do you guys and girls have the same sort of issues? How do you overcome it?

I seem to top out around 700 minutes/10 hours or so.

Everyone has a limit, based on their fitness levels, lifestyle, stress, etc.

As your fitness improves, you'll be able to handle more without overdoing it.  Extra sleep and a healthy diet will also ensure you recover and will help you handle a higher training load. The hard part for me is simply finding the time.  I always feel like I can handle more physically, but life rarely lets me fit it in!

2010-08-13 4:21 AM
in reply to: #3041382

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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
AndrewMT - 2010-08-13 2:10 AM

Elliot Power - 2010-08-13 2:07 AM Seems I can only seem to do a certain amount of training during the week before I just become way too tired to do any more training and if I did I know I'd get sick.

Do you guys and girls have the same sort of issues? How do you overcome it?

I seem to top out around 700 minutes/10 hours or so.

Everyone has a limit, based on their fitness levels, lifestyle, stress, etc.

As your fitness improves, you'll be able to handle more without overdoing it.  Extra sleep and a healthy diet will also ensure you recover and will help you handle a higher training load. The hard part for me is simply finding the time.  I always feel like I can handle more physically, but life rarely lets me fit it in!


I sometimes catch an hour nap if I can fit it into my day without short-cutting my normal sleeping hours.
2010-08-13 6:06 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
You have to take time to build up to a heavier workload and you need to give your body sufficient time to recover. You should have a cyclical training plan where you increase intensity and/or distance every week for 3 weeks and then the 4th week bring it back to week 1 (or less!) before upping the volume again week 5 (4 week cycle works well for me, but there's no hard and fast rule).

How many hours per week did you do last year? How many hours per week the year before?

The more stress you put on your body, the more important nutrition, sleep and recovery becomes.
2010-08-13 6:12 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
I spend more hours doing this than my WIFE deserves.  7-10hrs./wk. isn't "so" daunting sounding.  But, we all know there's more to it than meets the eye.  You have time driving to the pool; getting ready for the bike ride; driving to a bike ride;  recovering;  some drive to a spot to run; etc..., etc..., etc... .

I've reached the peak of what I WANT to do.



2010-08-13 8:31 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Your body can handle so much stress from training, work, life, ect to be able to recover and stay healthy. I find when my stress from all sources gets to high I get colds frequently. What that level is varies depending on what is going on in my life and varies from person to person.

I find doing consistent training my body handles better than varying my volume week to week. When I changed from build/rest pattern to consistent training, I didn't get sick as frequently.

2010-08-13 8:48 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
nc452010 - 2010-08-13 6:12 AM I spend more hours doing this than my WIFE deserves.  7-10hrs./wk. isn't "so" daunting sounding.  But, we all know there's more to it than meets the eye.  You have time driving to the pool; getting ready for the bike ride; driving to a bike ride;  recovering;  some drive to a spot to run; etc..., etc..., etc... .

I've reached the peak of what I WANT to do.



I think the above is often overlooked as far as time training.  Some people are able to bike/run from home but some have to pack up the car drive 20-30 min to bike/run then repeat to get home.  That adds up to a decent chuck of time if you are already pressed for time
2010-08-13 8:54 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
I has a similar variation of this question.  Is there a point where you have introduced so much fatigue that your RPE is affected?  Meaning, is there a point of diminishing returns?  If so, I suspect that it would be different for each person depending on their level of fitness?
2010-08-13 9:19 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Yes there is a point of diminishing returns and yes its different for everyone.  However I find that with proper nutrition and supplementation that point can be pushed to a point very few will get to.
2010-08-13 9:27 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
nc452010 - 2010-08-13 4:12 AM I spend more hours doing this than my WIFE deserves.  7-10hrs./wk. isn't "so" daunting sounding.  But, we all know there's more to it than meets the eye.  You have time driving to the pool; getting ready for the bike ride; driving to a bike ride;  recovering;  some drive to a spot to run; etc..., etc..., etc... .

I've reached the peak of what I WANT to do.



X2


2010-08-13 9:30 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Pector55 - 2010-08-13 6:54 AM

I has a similar variation of this question.  Is there a point where you have introduced so much fatigue that your RPE is affected?  Meaning, is there a point of diminishing returns?  If so, I suspect that it would be different for each person depending on their level of fitness?


Yes. Though newer athletes will see big gains at first I still firmly believe in slowly ramping up bigger training hours over long peiods of time. I cringe when I see someone go from zero to 12+ hours over a couple months. It may be great in the begining but burnout, injury, fatigue, and just overtrainng are right around the corner for most (not all). Then the returns slow down or stop and the person often times quits which isn't what anyone wants.
I think that when you train for a long time you learn when to HTFU and when to listen to your body and back off or take a rest day/week and that's a lesson that IMO can't really be taught.
2010-08-13 9:42 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Its probably around 12 hours for me, but I think that 15 hours is doable if I actually focus better on nutrition and recovery.

The biggest thing for me has always been the individual hard efforts have caused more issues than the collective.
2010-08-13 10:01 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Around 10hr for me.....Its important that we know our limit. We must protect ourselves from ourselves.   
2010-08-13 10:05 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?

I was just thinking about this last night,  in my prime, 10+ yrs ago,  15 hrs a week was no problem.  Introduce kids,increased family activities, increased job responsibility and old age, now 10 is about it.  I have had stretches of 12-15 hrs weeks on builds for an Ironman and a few halfs but not the week in, week out of 15hrs. 

As far as increasing your training time it has to be gradual.   If you add 3 miles a week on the run, another 1000yrs on the swim and 10 on the bike, spaced out over all your weekly workouts,  thats another hour+ right there.

2010-08-13 10:21 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
10 hours for me. I only can manage to go over that if it's a 3 day weekend or a specifically long training weekend.  But that's rare, I'm usually more in the 6-8 range.


2010-08-13 10:35 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
I was thinking about this because a few times I felt as though I was just too exhausted to put the level of intensity into my workout that I wanted.  I'm training for my first HIM so I ramped up the volume since May to make sure I was prepared.  Lately, I've wondered about backing off on some of the volume so I can get in more intense workouts. 
2010-08-13 10:47 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
spudone - 2010-08-13 2:21 AM
AndrewMT - 2010-08-13 2:10 AM

Elliot Power - 2010-08-13 2:07 AM Seems I can only seem to do a certain amount of training during the week before I just become way too tired to do any more training and if I did I know I'd get sick.

Do you guys and girls have the same sort of issues? How do you overcome it?

I seem to top out around 700 minutes/10 hours or so.

Everyone has a limit, based on their fitness levels, lifestyle, stress, etc.

As your fitness improves, you'll be able to handle more without overdoing it.  Extra sleep and a healthy diet will also ensure you recover and will help you handle a higher training load. The hard part for me is simply finding the time.  I always feel like I can handle more physically, but life rarely lets me fit it in!


I sometimes catch an hour nap if I can fit it into my day without short-cutting my normal sleeping hours.

Irony: allergies keeping me awake, so I log on here at 2:30am and write a post telling someone to get more sleep.

Do as I say, not as I do!

Cool 
2010-08-13 11:33 AM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
I have found a balance within the week itself. If I do say 15-18 hours, I have to structure it a specific way based on intensity. Otherwise, I will get fatigued. It's more about consecutive workouts for me rather than just a number of hours. My hardest workouts from an intensity standpoint are right in the middle of the week...I go slow into them, Monday, and go slow out of them, Friday. I have found this to work for me as I'm only really on the gas for three days or so. Then the long stuff on the weekends....which I can lay around all day after and that seems to help get me through those.
2010-08-13 2:37 PM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Bingo!
The issue is the intensity of the workouts. If you are following a plan, it should be telling you what intensity each workout is supposed to be. Our problem is that we don't usually follow/listen to the plan because running at Z1 seems just too easy - so why bother, instead we'll do it at Z3-4 and then you sabotage the other workouts that follow. As you add hours you need to manage intensity. If the plan says easy - do it easy.
My current plan is annoying the heck out of me because of the number of Z1 items, but it is calling for 13.5 hours of work, so for once I am just doing as I am told.
2010-08-13 2:48 PM
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Subject: RE: Do you reach a limit of training hours per week?
Gaarryy - 2010-08-13 6:48 AM
nc452010 - 2010-08-13 6:12 AM I spend more hours doing this than my WIFE deserves.  7-10hrs./wk. isn't "so" daunting sounding.  But, we all know there's more to it than meets the eye.  You have time driving to the pool; getting ready for the bike ride; driving to a bike ride;  recovering;  some drive to a spot to run; etc..., etc..., etc... .

I've reached the peak of what I WANT to do.



I think the above is often overlooked as far as time training.  Some people are able to bike/run from home but some have to pack up the car drive 20-30 min to bike/run then repeat to get home.  That adds up to a decent chuck of time if you are already pressed for time


I find this to be VERY true.  I used to workout 10+ hours a week intensely for something other than tri.  Those workouts were done from home and it was much easier to fit it all in.  Now, a 7+ hour week of training is extremely difficult to accomplish because I have a lot of necessary travel time.  My pool is 40 minutes away - so is where I run.  I can bike from home for some rides, but if I want sustained hills, that requires travel.  Those extra minutes of non-training (but necessary to training)travel time really add up!


2010-08-13 3:37 PM
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