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<\/a><\/p>\nThree members of the RAAM team, and alternate member<\/p>\n
Having been a lifelong athlete, I\u2019ve had significant experiences with coaches of all kinds, yet they all seem to agree on one thing: that technology is one of the best things to bring into you training plan to give you an edge. \u00a0My first coach was my Dad; I can still hear him as a cross country coach extolling the virtues of this brand new gadget call a \u201cheart rate monitor\u201d back in the mid-80s. \u00a0It seemed very cutting-edge and a very scientific way to train back then. \u00a0Today, we\u2019ve progressed to the point where you\u2019re very old-school if you don\u2019t use a HRM and incorporate technology into your gear bag. \u00a0There\u2019s no end to the gadgets we currently have available to help us train and perform: metronomes, power meters, apps, computer programs with videos, race wheels, carbon frames, etc. \u00a0The list is exhausting and if you\u2019re on a budget, perhaps you feel behind the power curve.<\/p>\n
Coaches are completely on board with whatever gadget may help an athlete improve; it makes sense that taking advantage of science and technology are in the best interest of the athlete. \u00a0And frankly, I\u2019m all in as well. \u00a0Or at least I was. \u00a0My most recent endeavor training with O2Fitness for the Race Across America made me re-think that notion. \u00a0For something of that magnitude, you\u2019d think we\u2019d want the best that science and technology have to offer.<\/p>\n
RAAM transition<\/p>\n But do we?<\/p>\n Interestingly, I\u2019m no longer convinced we do. \u00a0In the end, I don\u2019t think you need a power meter, Sufferfest, or Spinervals. \u00a0Carbon bikes help but I managed to complete the Race Across America this year with one bike that\u2019s 10 years old and another that\u2019s 6. \u00a0Ancient based on today\u2019s bicycle technology. \u00a0What\u2019s the key, then?<\/p>\n Going back to the basics. \u00a0That\u2019s it. \u00a0But what do I mean by that? \u00a0You mean long, slow, miles slogging it out in the summer heat? \u00a0No, again.<\/p>\n Let me back up slightly by saying at the time I started training with Julie, I was also seeing a chiropractor and a physical therapist for chronic back injury. \u00a0I was also newly introduced to something called Foundation Training. \u00a0It took very little time for me to hear a common thread: I needed to go back to the basics. \u00a0A 45-year old athlete who always does one plane of motion left me sort of broken. \u00a0Basics meant structure<\/em>. You can slog out all the miles you want with all the cool toys money can buy but if your base structure is out of balance, weak or damaged, you\u2019re going no where fast. \u00a0The interesting thing is you may not even realize it. \u00a0But keep up long enough and you will eventually be headed for serious chronic injury. \u00a0So the Foundation Training, my chiro and PT all said strengthen and, more importantly, activate the structure.<\/p>\n So how did they tell me to activate my structure? \u00a0The body is designed to move in a very specific and coordinated way. \u00a0All the muscles of the posterior chain are team members and have specific roles to play on the field. \u00a0Much in the same way people preach to pick up heavy objects with your legs (use your structure properly!), my chiro and PT were saying, train your structure to perform the moves functionally, get the team back working as a team. \u00a0My back was doing all the work minus glutes, piriformis, etc. \u00a0After literally a lifetime of one dimensional movement (running\/cycling all forward – nothing side to side), my entire posterior chain was non-functional. \u00a0It doesn\u2019t matter that I could still squat and dead-lift like I could when I was 25. If they aren\u2019t firing when I need them to on my bike or on a run, they might as well not be there. \u00a0My end result was a chronically injured back.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n