Fundamentals of Peak Performance: Testing

Jim Terrell's "Flume" Testing Grounds

How are you going to measure your improvement? By establishing a baseline of your performance and then testing against it throughout your training. There are various ways one can go about this. I'm going to assume you aren't going to use a heart rate monitor to test your lactate threshold or a GPS to measure distance or speed. What I'm instead going to suggest you do is measure your distance over a specific period of time. I'm going to suggest seeing how far you can paddle in calm conditions for 30 minutes, after an adequate warm-up. This isn't as simple as going all out right at the start. You'll need to pace yourself in order to finish strong. You want to paddle in that space where you feel lactic acid in your muscles, but your body is able to manage it. On the RPE scale, somewhere between 14-17. Calm conditions mean no wind and little to no tidal currents. Once you know how far you can paddle in 30 minutes, you can test yourself throughout your training season under the same conditions and compare your distances, as well as how you feel while paddling. Of course, another test would be to paddle a specific distance and see how your timing improves with training. But it's a little more difficult to know the precise distance you're paddling with any accuracy, at least without a GPS system.

Next: Periodization & Training Phases

Remember Last December?

We just saw a couple of inches of snow in Olympia. Followed by a day of steady wind and rain. So far this month, we've had some really wet ones. All of this cold, wet weather got me thinking about last December. Remember? 21 dry days. No rain until the 25th of December. Only ten days with any real wind. Clear skies. It was like Halcyon Days went all month long. Now the Solstice is just days away and I fear we won't even see the Halcyon Days I look forward to every December. Halcyon Days? These were days of calm weather, usually beginning before and coinciding with the Winter Solstice. Kingfishers (genus Halcyon) were believed to calm the seas with their wings while brooding their eggs on the beach. Where are they - we need them!

Fundamentals of Peak Performance: Reported Perceived Exertion

The Borg Reported Perceived Exertion (RPE) Scale is tool that allows athletes, regardless of their discipline, to repeatedly measure and report their efforts and intensity. As your fitness level improves, your experience with this scale may change over time. The scale goes to 20 instead of 10 because those numbers are intended to be multiplied by a factor of 10. This should then provide you with a rough estimate of your heart rate. For example, if you are paddling hard, beginning to feel lactic acid in your muscles, you may describe this as a 15 or 16, which would correspond to a heart rate of 150-160bpm. RPE is subjective, but over time, you will learn your body and how it feels when subjected to differing intensities.

Next: Performance Testing

Knots to Know: Bowline

I believe that if you're going to spend time on the water, you really should have some basic knot tying skills. You never know when it'll come in handy. Even though there are plenty of folks that still know how to tie knots, it feels like a lost art. Fortunately, there are a lot of great resources for knot tying, many on the internet. A favorite of mine is Animated Knots by Grog. In my opinion, this site couldn't make knot tying any clearer or easier. 

I'm going to refer to this site from time to time, and the first knot I'll recommend is the Bowline. The bowline is great for forming a loop that can then be used to secure a line to something else. I'd also recommend the water bowline (an extra loop makes it more secure) and the running bowline. 

Pick up a 3 foot piece of nautical or climbing rope and have fun learning a few knots!

Fundamentals of Peak Performance: Assessment

You have your goals. They are specific, attainable, and honest. And speaking of honest, it's time to look at your abilities with respect to performance. This is where you can recognize your assets and develop your weaknesses. Look at these different factors and try to realistically assess and catalog your abilities.

Physical:

There are three basic abilities you rely on as a paddler: strength, endurance, and technique skills. Everything else is built on this framework. Strength is your ability to generate force by propelling you and your body along the water. Endurance is your ability to do so for a long period of time. Technique is your ability to perform the most efficient movements possible.

You want to grade yourself on your strength, endurance, and technique. If you feel yourself lacking, that's okay - commitment can go far with paddling and training. 

Mental:

Consider your confidence, attitude, ability to overcome adversity, focus, visualization, and motivation. These all play a role in training and peak performance.

Additional factors:

Additional factors include your experience and comfort on the water in various conditions, social support of friends and family, tendency to overtrain, adequate recovery, injuries, and nutrition. 

Training factors:
There are a few additional factors that relate directly to training. For examply, the amount of time you'll have available to devote to training and how often. What about your age, i.e. the amount of time it takes to recover from a serious workout. And finally, take your paddling and training experience into account. If you've been training and racing for several years, your body will be better suited to training than if it was the first month on a paddleboard (but don't let that discourage you!)

You know your goals. Hopefully you'll be able to develop some training objectives based on your assessment of strengths and weaknesses. For instance, if you paddle all day long, but lack good paddling technique, then you know you'll need to spend additional time and focus on your technique.

Next: Reported Percieved Exertion

Cold Weather Paddling

You must really love it to paddle out in this mess!

Friends and acquaintances who know I paddle will sometimes ask me if I paddle year round. When I reply yes, they ask how I tolerate the cold? My answer is often 'the same way any other outdoor athlete  does.' Because of the elements, I'll often shorten my paddle outings, especially when going out alone. Long exposure to cold temperatures can impair your physical and mental abilities, so it's smart to be careful and err on the side of safety. Remember that wet exposed skin will feel much colder than if it was dry. And a breeze or wind will only compound that experience. So if it's drizzling or raining, wear a hat and something that will help keep you dry and if the wind is blowing try to wear something that will cut the wind.

I prefer to avoid my wetsuit unless rougher conditions warrant it. For me, paddling in a full wetsuit is akin to paddling in a sweatsuit (the old fashioned weight-loss suits from the 80's). So on calm days when I won't be out for very long or paddle very far from my launch point, I'll often layer with athletic clothing. What and how much I wear really depends on the ambient temperature. I tend to prefer to start out feeling a little chilled because the effort of paddling generates a considerable amount of heat.

I've also found that wearing your PFD with help insulate your core and help keep you warmer all over. By not having to focus on keeping your core warm, your vessels and capillaries won't need to contract, which will keep your extremities warmer. And winter, with typically rougher conditions, is just a smart time to wear it anyway.

Fortunately, for days when conditions are less desirable, there is now a growing variety of SUP-specific wetsuits. They're designed to stretch and allow the movement of paddling and best of all, there are tops and bottoms. I think that having a separate wetsuit top and bottom allows better movement than a one piece suit. I think the only time I'll wear a full wetsuit again is when I'm playing in the ocean.

I prefer to paddle barefoot, but there's a time of the year when this just isn't possible. I've found that wearing wool socks inside of my booties helps keep my feet considerably warmer for a longer period of time, even when they're wet. I prefer DeFeet's Woolie Boolies. I've had several pairs for years and they barely show any sign of wear.

I also wear gloves in cooler temperatures. I often find myself taking them off halfway through a paddle, but they are good to start out with. When it's really cool, I'll bring my paddle inside the night before I go out - a cold paddle shaft can really chill your hands, especially if you don't wear gloves.

A winter hat is a great idea, again at least to start out with. You can always take it off and stuff it inside of your PFD.

Remember, know the conditions and respect the weather. Paddle conservatively in inclement weather. I hope this helps you better enjoy stand up paddling during the cooler winter months. I'll see you out there.

Fundamentals of Peak Performance: Goals

Imagine next summer. What are the things you'd like to accomplish as a paddleboarder? Does it involve racing, fitness, or adventure? Would you like to place higher in a specific race or race series? Would you like to be able to paddle further, faster? Or maybe you'd like to circumnavigate an island. Whatever it could be, you need to figure that out for yourself. You can have more than one goal. Just like you may paddle in more than one race. Figure out what it really is that you want to ask of yourself and your training. Be honest and be specific. If you aren't invested in it, you probably won't want to do it. 

Once you have your list, look through those goals. Some may overlap. When it comes to a timeframe, you may be able to train to hold onto peak fitness of several weeks at most. This could be a specific race you'd like to compete in. Divide your goals into primary, secondary, and tertiary goals. Primary goals are the ones you want to take very seriously. Secondary goals, a little less so - they could lead up to your primary goals. Third tier goals are those that you aren't very attached to. If they happen great, but otherwise, they're just along for the ride.

Now you have your goals. Stack them up and look at the calendar. From here, you can backtrack with your training plan so you know how you'll want to train and when.

Next: Assessing your strengths and weaknesses

Fundamentals of Peak Performance: An Overview

It's the 'off-season.' I remember hearing someone suggest that there is no off-season. And in a sense, they're right. The off-season, as paddlers know it, is now. With the rain coming down in buckets, it's just not the ideal time to be putting in hours on your board. Whether you are a competitive paddler, a fitness enthusiast, or an adventurer (or all three), there is likely a peak to your paddling season, and that peak arrives during the summer. 

Periodization & Training - if only it were this easy

But just because the weather is rough and the days are short doesn't mean you can't be working towards realizing your potential when that peak of your season arrives. If paddling is something you love to do, then working towards that time of year when you can get out almost every day and stay out until 9 or 10PM isn't going to be a bad thing.

What you need is a plan. Something to direct your focus with precision, something that will enable you to actualize the benefits of your hard work and dedication. With this series, 'Fundamentals of Peak Performance,' I intend to outline and explain many of the principles used in endurance racing, principles that translate directly to paddling conditioning and fitness. 

There are several different approaches I take when developing one's fitness. One relies on steady progression and allows you to enjoy its benefits for an extended period of time. This is the one that I'm going to focus on. In this series, I'm going to walk you through the various phases of endurance training: preparation, base, strength & power, and peaking. There are other key topics in peak performance that warrrant discussion and some of those will include training intensity, rest and recovery, perceived effort, and performance testing.

Though this information will be generalized, I hope it will help clear the air surrounding training and periodization. Whether you find a coach or create your own plan, just know that having a training plan is far more focused than 'just going out and paddling hard.' Though it's the off-season, now is the time to start planning for sucess during the 2013 season. Remember: An individualized training plan will allow you to develop your weaknesses while capitalizing on your strengths.