Steve vs the Experts #7: Scott (?)

I don't know who to attribute this plan to, as the first version of it I have came from a journal article that's currently missing the first page, including the name of the author and journal. It's obviously a common athletics journal, between 1989 and 1992, pp. 3435-3442. The only version of it I've seen in a mass-marketed training book is "Dave Scott's Triathlon Training" (1986); and yes, that was before the article. This should be the last book I reference that's out of print.

There is a constant attempt to bridge the gulf between physiology and training; it never really works, but each major attempt brings new (largely meaningless) terms to coaching and influences the way people think about training. This was state-of-the-art at the time.

The philosophy is to divide training into different parts by the energetics involved. The first is Explosive Speed Training, or Phosphate System Training; this refers to muscles using creatine phosphate for very short bursts of maximum intensity. The second is Sprint Race Training or Lactic Acid Tolerance Training; this in reference to the accumulation of lactic acid in tissues in events of short duration. The third is Maximal Oxygen Consumption Training or VO2max Training; this being in reference to events requiring the body to maximize the amount of oxygen used to convert glycogen and sugars for energy. The fourth is Anaerobic Threshold Training, referring to a theoretical point at which lactic acid production and removal are the same. Fifth is Aerobic Threshold Training or Distance Training, which is training that utilizes fatty acids as fuel as well as carbohydrate.

These are imaginary constructs, but they can be useful, as long as one recognizes that they have little basis in reality. One divides one's event into parts and trains for each separately, putting them together as a sort of assembly-line production.

The actual workouts below are first from Scott, second from the journal source.

Phosphate training: 5-10x 5-30 seconds @ 100-120% of 5K pace, 90 second rest intervals (until heart rate is no more than 20-30% above resting)
OR 10-30x 4-15 sec., with 1-3 min rest intervals (1:4-1:25 ratio of work:rest) @ 95% maximal intensity, heart rate immaterial.

Lactate training: 5-8 x 30sec. to 2 min. @ 85-100% 5K pace, 3 min. rest (HR to 30-40% above resting) OR 2x[2-4x30-60 sec. (up to 2-2.5 min)- more than 5 min.]- 30 min. (1 work: 2-3+ rest), HR near maximum.

VO2 training: 2-4x 3-8 min @ 80-95% 5K pace- rest to HR 30-40% above resting, 3-4 work: 1 rest, sets up to 12 minutes [ e.g. 2x(3x3min-1)-3 or 2x(6-8 min)-3] OR 4-12x 3-5 min @ 90% HRmax - 2-3min. (2 work: 1 rest)

Threshold training: 8-50x 1.5-3 min. @ 75-90% 5K pace - 20-90 sec. rest, sets of 15-60 min., allowing HR to drop 10-15% between repeats OR 3-5x 1.5-7 min. (HR 75-85% max)- 2-3 rest (2 work: 1 rest)

Aerobic training: 15min- 6 hours @ 60-85% 5K pace OR 1-6x10 min. to 2 hours (HR 65-75% max) - 1-2 min rests (1 work: 0.2 to 1 rest)

One divides one's training into phases and assigns percentages of one's mileage to each type of training. In the early preparatory phase, it's 75% aerobic, 25% threshold. In the late prep. phase, 50% aerobic, 25% threshold, 20% VO2, 5% lactate. In pre-competition, it's 40% aerobic, 20% threshold, 20% VO2, 10% phosphate, 10% lactate. In competitive phase without a race: 30% aerobic, 20% lactate, 20% VO2, 20% phosphate, 10% threshold. In competitive phase, in a week with a race, the non-racing days are 80@ aerobic, 20% phosphate.

Sounds scientific, doesn't it? Training turned into mathematical formulae. The problem is that people don't actually work that way. This pseudo scientific method is important to note, however, as it keeps returning in different forms, one of which will be seen when I cover the Jack Daniels program.