Part I ---------- Part II ---------- Part III
Most athletes have learned about the periodization approach to endurance training. But I have only seen few athletes really utilize them in the best way. This blog is to first define what periodization is, why it is the most important part of training, and how to properly plan your best season with it.
Periodization training involves periods, or cycles. Cycles are aplenty in nature. Can you name a few? Wikipedia surprisingly has an extensive list of natural cycles.
So the whole universe is run in cycles. Even if you just take a look around there are easy cycles to spot. There is the daily cycle where day follows night. There is a seasonal cycle, where we keep going through the natural progression of winter, spring, summer, and fall. You sleep to rejuvenate your body after an active day. Your computer monitor displays this blog by illuminating its pixels thousands of times per second (yes, there is a short amount of time in between where the your monitor is actually "off"). Cycles can even work over eons, as with the cooling and heating phases of the earth.
But why is everything in a cycle? Each and every one of these cycles is necessary to keep everything in a natural state of balance. Without them, we couldn't have balance, and imbalances would be very destructive to us and the environment.
Your body is just teeming with cycles, from biochemical to electrical. If you want to see a detailed list of your body's cycles, just pick up a biology or anatomy book; its very thickness tells you that there are many cycles running through your body right now. As stated before, you have a waking/sleeping cycle. Your body goes through numerous growth phases every day. Women have their menstrual cycle every 28 days. All the natural cycles that occur in your body provide the necessary balance needed to keep your body healthy and strong.
Cycles are constantly moving to keep nature, our environment, and our bodies in perfect balance. No one phase of the cycle can continue indefinitely; everything, especially people, need to shift to another phase of the cycle in order to keep harmonious with nature and to help keep ourselves strong.
The next segment will relate your Periodization training to cycles.
On to Part II
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