How much threshold work?

[southernrower]

I have recently gone back and reread a mess of research. I am surprised by the differences in how much threshold training is recommended. I have seen research justifying anywhere from close to 40% to as little as 5-10%. While I assume that there will be some discussion for the correct inflection point for threshold, can we agree it is somewhere near 4 mmol of lactate? I am currently putting together my winter training plan and interested in the views of those more knowledgeable than myself...which is a big list. Right now I am doing about 80% below 2mmol(70% of it closer to 2 than 1), 15% between 2-4 mmol and the balance over 4 mmol( way over 4 mmol, not in the 5-6 area). These percentages do not include warm up and cool down which would skew to percentages away from the harder work.

[MChase]

According to Stephen Seiler' review article, "What is Best Practice for Training Intensity and Duration Distribution in Endurance Athletes?" (International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 2010, 5, 276-291), the ratio is about 80% long and slow and about 20% high intensity among the best in endurance sports, but you really need to read the article, as he refers to the lack of evidence among elite athletes of greater HIT leading to further gains, for example, among other insights.

As a juniors coach, I have the opportunity to talk with our former rowers who are now or recently rowed for universities from Stanford and Cal on the west coach, to Ivies and Dad Vail schools on the east coast, and most of the Big Ten in between. There is enormous variation. In the last 2 evenings, we've had perhaps 10 former rowers come back into town for the Thanksgiving holiday and stop by workout to say hi and to get in an erg workout. One of them, rowing for a D1 women's team, described every workout as "hard" with very little long and slow; another rowing for an East coast school described 70% or more of daily meters as being long and slow; another school was closer to 80% long and slow (but varied with proximity to the racing season).

Among collegiate coaches, there does not appear to be a consensus, but several of the most successful programs seem closer to the "80% long and slow" than the daily prescription of killer workouts.

[southernrower]

80% long and slow seems to be about average from what I can tell in the research although there are outliers. I think ACSM recommends less long and slow and more threshold- somewhere around mid 30% if my memory serves. 3S(Super Sport Systems) has more threshold training in their programs but I am not sure of the percentage- from the short time I took the program it seemed to be close to 15%-25% at this time of year. Bilat seems to recommend more long and slow than 80%. But recommends 2x more threshold than HIT for the balance. Some research I have read suggest that the gold standard for threshold training is 30 min pieces. Other training programs do more 8-10 min pieces. So I guess I am just wondering what most are doing and why.

[JD]

This range in threshold recommendations is typical of a huge problem for coaches. Which expert are we to trust? In the minds of many coaches, especially when looking at good results with varied training programs, the important ingredient in a training plan as psychological - mental toughness, confidence and the like. Whats a coach to think when the recommendations,are so different. "Hey, I know confidence produces results but I can' t say for sure the Anteater Plan does." Seems some of these guys are drinking their own koolaidand want to sell me the same product.