Fit Tip: Vary Your Training Rate

We’ve probably all heard that we need a mix of light and hard training days, but what level are you typically working at? That question came up when I recently I met Rebecca Rusch, a world champion mountain biker, an adventure racer and an overall bad-ass. She was telling me a little about her routine, saying she works on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being the rate at which you pedal alongside a friend for a cruise through the park, 5 being a flat-out being-chased-by-the-bad-guys sprint.

Great, I thought. I train at a 3—right in the middle. That should be perfect, right? Not so, says Rebecca. It turns out that 3 is what most coaches call “the garbage zone.” You’re working too hard for your body to rest, but not hard enough to make any substantial gains in strength, endurance or performance. Essentially, working at this mid intensity is a waste of time. I’ve since begun to push my workouts, running faster than I thought I could and adding in more intervals, and I’ve really started to see a difference. The next time you head out for a cardio session decide if you want to go light or go hard, then stick with it.