The VO2 to the max life.

It is not just about the right workouts at the right time, by means of a detailed training schedule but also about features that are often overlooked, like:

- Adjusting your route to the planned efforts, timing the last meal before you start, preparing your recovery kit for your return, differentiate between breakfast, lunch and dinner on training- and restdays or working on your mobility regularly.

It might sound complex, but once you are in the game for years, all these parts will first become routine and then turn into a lifestyle, you have to follow with passion. But if you do it with love, even the hardest training sessions, the early get up, caring about your nutrition and material becomes a part of yourself.

Coming back to the title of this entry, I'd like to give you a little look behind the scenes - when it comes to setting up your training schedule. Of course, the following lines are just one of many approaches to this topic and this version is just a solution that works for myself, to get and stay in shape. If you are looking for a custom-made schedule that perfectly fits your needs and considers your daily challenges, you should take into account, contacting a professional sportsdiagnostic consultant, like my partner Elsenbach Sportdiagnostik in Cologne.

Now taking a look on my last months of preparation for the upcoming racing season, the weeks were roughly structured like this:

• November

  Restarting training after off-season with a combination of basemile-rides and cross-runs to get the heart-rate up a bit

• December

  Increasing the scope of training (still basemiles pace), when on the turbo riding at upper endurance pace. Starting with running-hill-reps

• January

  Still working on basemiles in combination with the first strength-endurance efforts. Climbing efforts on the turbo. Decreasing the running workouts

• February

  VO2max comes into play. Fully concentrating on specific training, no runnin anymore. Working on strength endurance on the turbo. First hill-top sprints.

You see, there was a lot of work going on within the last months, let's hope that we will get the chance to reap the fruits of labour. Wishing you all and keep padelling, no matter what will come.

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