The Sport Factory Good at Many; Great at One

Good at Many; Great at One

At the end of each season I have my athletes start working on a race calendar for the next. This means setting goals and prioritizing races into three categories; A, B, or C. The A races are the races we structure our training for. These goal races coincide with the �peaks� of our training, which slowly ramp in intensity as we approach these events. B races are training events that we rest for, but do not taper. These events can be similar to A events, but our training is not directed towards them; they are like a hard work out. C races are fun events that can occur any time in the season. We do not set any goals for C events and they can be very different than our A races.

My most successful athletes choose one type of A event. Almost all our efforts are directed towards achieving results in these A races, so it is no mystery that they excel in their chosen sport. I have other athletes that enjoy racing several types of events throughout the season, or they enjoy trying new ones. This keeps their training interesting, new, and helps keep them motivated. It is also a way to find out what type of racing they enjoy the most. We try to structure their season so that the training we do for the first event type will compliment the next, but this is not always possible. Sometimes it requires a major shifting in gears and the sport we were previously training hard for must atrophy as we pursue a new goal.

There is not right or wrong answer here, it is a personal decision. You have to consider why you train and compete and what your ultimate goal is. If you consider yourself a competitive athlete you may only have a window of so many years to achieve your best results. If this is the case it is best to focus on a single A event type and doggedly pursue it. It would be a mistake to try to be great at several different event types in a season. If you simply enjoy competition, camaraderie, and training then it is best to pursue what interests you and what you enjoy doing the most.

By Matt Russ

Matt Russ has coached and trained elite athletes from around the country and internationally for over ten years. He currently holds expert licenses from USA Triathlon, USA Cycling (Elite), and is a licensed USA Track and Field Coach. Matt is head coach and owner of The Sport Factory, and works with athletes of all levels full time. He is a free lance author and his articles are regularly featured in a variety of magazines such as Inside Triathlon, and Triathlete. Visit www.thesportfactory.com for more information or email him at coachmatt@thesportfactory.com

Published in: Quick Tips