Stronger and Faster Published June 21, 2010 By 1st Lt. Phil "PJ" Menagh Ramstein Health and Wellness Center RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany -- Every month, the KMC members who score a perfect 100 on all categories of their official Air Force Fitness Assessment are recognized with a certificate (or a letter of recognition) and their picture displayed in the base newspaper. Last month we got some great tips from a future triathlete. This month we will learn from another endurance athlete who has incorporated high intensity functional training into his workouts to reduce mileage and improve race performances -- including a well-deserved 100 on his annual fitness assessment. Maj. Richard Soto 86th Medical Operations Squadron PT Score: 100 percent, May 2010 Q: How many races have you competed in? A: I have done one marathon, and I do at least 7 half-marathons each year. I have been in 5 half iron man triathlons, and I'm training for a full iron man this summer. Plus, I do a lot of little events throughout the year. Q: What does your training look like leading up to a race? A: The summer is race season, so I will do more endurance type activities--swimming, biking, and running. In a given week, I will do 3 strength workouts, 2 swims, 3 bikes, and 3 runs. I make sure to take at least one day entirely off. For strength, I do a lot of pull-ups, pushups, and situps in intense circuits. I will also do some functional lifts such as shoulder presses and power cleans. My endurance workouts are varied within the week. For example, I will do a short interval swim (such as swimming 50 meters at all out intensity, resting, and then repeating 8 times) on one day, and then a longer, steady 1.5 mile swim another day. I'll vary my runs and bikes in a similar manner. Q: What is the purpose of varying intensity in your endurance work? A: Your body adapts very quickly to things. If you do the same thing over and over, you will peak and plateau. You need to change things often to keep progress going. Additionally, intervals help condition you for higher intensity work. When you are conditioned for maximal efforts, then slower paces don't seem as hard. Circuits work in a similar way--by choosing several high intensity strength exercises and moving from one to the next with minimal rest, we've found a unique way to train the cardiovascular system and keep progress going without overuse on the joints. Q: Why do you do strength training during race season? A: Traditional endurance athletes do upwards of 20 hours of endurance training per week. I generally do around 8 hours per week including my functional strength work. I have friends who run 30, 40, or 50 miles per week--I usually won't go above 20 miles. They get hurt more often while I stay healthy. In the end, my times are just as good as theirs with fewer miles. Additionally, functional work has improved my strength and speed. My arms used to get tired from constant swinging over long distances. When I added strength work, I got better arm swings and that has really helped with my running--especially when going up hills. Q: What foods do you eat to fuel your performance? A: I eat everything, but I try to find good stuff--stuff that's not processed. I eat a lot of fresh chicken, turkey or fish, avocadoes, and get lots of fruits and vegetables every day. I tend to eat more bread, bananas, and other carbohydrates when I do a lot of long distance work. On days that I am not exercising, I will reduce my food intake and avoid things like ice cream because I know that I won't be burning as much energy. A lot will also depend on what Trish (my wife) picks up from the commissary. Q: Do you have an "off season" training plan? A: Since most of my races are during the summer, the winter is my "off season". During the winter I'll add more strength and conditioning work and spend less time doing endurance work. I usually cross train with another sport like basketball. Changing up my training throughout the year keeps me fresh. I've been training like this since 2006 and have had no injuries. Q: What aspects of racing have kept you motivated to compete for so long? A: I'm very competitive. I love to try to beat my times and improve from year to year. It feels really good to be able to do things at my age (38) that even younger people can't or won't do. Plus, it is a great stress release. Germany is a beautiful country and I love to explore and see new scenery. For me this is like play. When you are younger you go out with your friends--adults don't play enough. Q: Any last tips for our readers? A: Set up or find a training plan because it will take the guess work out of preparation. There are some great websites out there with suggested workouts and areas where you can log and track your workouts. Trainingpeaks.com and Crossfitendurance.com both have some really great workouts that have really helped me improve. Final words: Maj Soto brings up the importance of having a plan. Whether it be simple (adding workouts on to your outlook calendar and setting up times with a training partner) or more complex (varying your training volume throughout the week, month, or year to peak for an event), having a tangible plan helps us to stick to it. Part of his plan includes basic periodization--he splits the year in to a "race season" where he increases endurance work and an "off season" where he cross trains and adds a greater strength focus. By separating a training year into different phases, athletes may be able to more effectively bring up weakness or target areas, avoid or heal overuse injuries, and come in at greater peak shape. Another great lesson we can learn is how to match our nutritional inputs to our exercise outputs in a dynamic manner. Endurance athletes do tend to burn more calories in a day than recreational exercisers. However, if athletes eat every day the way that they eat on race day, most would have a much harder time controlling their weight. Maj Soto points out that he is not burning as much energy on his rest days and on days with shorter workouts, so he reduces overall calorie intake and especially reduces "junk calories". On days where he is exercising for very long durations such as on the day of a half marathon, he will need to take additional precautions and can be more "relaxed" with what foods he eats. Smart planning, hard work and sound nutrition are key to Major Soto's success in endurance competition and in maintaining his membership in Club 100. Are you ready to join?