Quite Interesting US Track Blog

Can be found here.

Is this another kitty pic?

Want...

Nice link. Some interesting stuff there until it got to those God forsaken charts. Do people really measure their body fat and thigh size etc as obsessively as some of these pros? Bollox to all that. That's my non-scientific approach anyhow

^That is where I grabbed that chart you liked so much in the training thread.

Nice link. Some interesting stuff there until it got to those God forsaken charts. Do people really measure their body fat and thigh size etc as obsessively as some of these pros? Bollox to all that.

You don't have to be obsessive, but if you have aims you need to be able to know whether you are on the right track. How do you know if you are getting faster as the season approaches? how do you know if you are improving?

Without a way of measuring and recording things, you'll simply never know. Eg. "beating" a fellow commuter is only a measurable achievement if you main goal is to "beat" that fellow commuter.

Doing this doesn't have to be complicated, it can be anything from a HRM, a cycle computer and a few notes with dates, before long you have a training diary. You can look back and say , as an example: "oh, last month on the 16th my max HR was 180bmp when doing intervals of 60s at 50mph max with a 50x16 gear, but this month on the 16th, my max HR was 170bmp when doing the same session" This is a measurable improvement, but what have you measured and is it relevant to you goals for the coming season?

It's all about S.M.A.R.T.E.R goals.

I suppose so. My resting heart rate has gone from 42 to 39 in a month so I guess that is something.

I can now average 22 mph for one hour on a 65GI as oppose to 19.8 when I started this training nonsene. And I no longer race commuters. So I am getting there :)

^^I've had the concept of SMART objectives/goals rammed down my throat since doing allied health professional training, but what's the 'ER' bit?

^^I've had the concept of SMART objectives/goals rammed down my throat since doing allied health professional training, but what's the 'ER' bit?

Exciting and Recorded, the second one being important.

What on earth are you all talking about/!?!!?

What is a "SMARTER" goal?

Well it's something that should be:

• S - goals must be **Specific **(specify what it is you want to do, ie: do a 12 second flying 200)
  
• M - training targets should be Measurable (how will you measure it, stopwatch?)
  
• A - goals should be Achievable (if you can already do a 13 second 200 then this should seem achievable)I have also seen this as Adjustable, so I suppose it could also be something that could be ongoing measurement of improvement
  
• R - goals must be Realistic (don't say you want to be Olympic champion if you are a middle aged B cat racer!)
  
• T - training targets should be **Time based **(so you should aim to hit your target by a certain date or within an alloted time frame, like "by the end of the month/session/season")
  
• E - goals should be challenging and **Exciting **(not sure this is wholly relevant to adult athletes, but boring training is never good training if you can get the same results by doing something more exciting)
  
• R - goals should be **Recorded **(write it down!)
  

Thanks.

Is 35 middle aged?

Yes.

ohh so its an acronym. There was me thinking you were assuming I was stupid :)

Is 35 middle aged?

If you're just starting, yes. If you're going to be 36 at the 2012 games and looking to retain up to three championships, probably not.

I suppose so. My resting heart rate has gone from 42 to 39 in a month so I guess that is something.

I can now average 22 mph for one hour on a 65GI as oppose to 19.8 when I started this training nonsene. And I no longer race commuters. So I am getting there :)

at last I am getting through ;-)

What is a "SMARTER" goal?

Well it's something that should be:

[*]S - goals must be **Specific *(specify what it is you want to do, ie: do a 12 second flying 200)
[]M - training targets should be Measurable (how will you measure it, stopwatch?)
[*]A - goals should be Achievable (if you can already do a 13 second 200 then this should seem achievable)I have also seen this as Adjustable, so I suppose it could also be something that could be ongoing measurement of improvement
[*]R - goals must be Realistic (don't say you want to be Olympic champion if you are a middle aged B cat racer!)
[*]T - training targets should be **Time based *(so you should aim to hit your target by a certain date or within an alloted time frame, like "by the end of the month/session/season")
[]E - goals should be challenging and **Exciting *(not sure this is wholly relevant to adult athletes, but boring training is never good training if you can get the same results by doing something more exciting)
[]R - goals should be **Recorded **(write it down!)

There is much evidence to say that if you enjoy your training you will improve more than if you dont.