I am going to start this off by saying that I have not forgotten about this blog. I am as or more dedicated than I was when I started it.  The unfortunate circumstances that have prevented me these past few days from continuing my posts have solely stemmed from a lack of time and a reoccurring exhaustion at night. I am going to have to work my schedule out and find a better time that I can put my thoughts and theories down, I think that's going to end up being in the morning.  We shall see what comes of my new plan this next week.

But back to business.  Oh have I missed running.  Nearly 20 miles on my legs this week, and they are feeling soooooo good right now. The first couple of 5 mile runs were a little rough, and then a hard 2 mile trek along a road near my house was little to be desired, pushing out some pretty good times I was actually feeling drained from the runs, but after putting out my soul onto that 4th 5 mile run of the week, it was almost like my legs just broke free from the braces that they had on and took me floating over the pavement.  I honestly am not one who runs very often with headphones, I like to take in my surroundings and pay attention to what is happening around me.  Many of my most inspiring moments and thoughts have been a product of a good long run.  And right now I just have every intention in the world to putting on more and more miles on my legs, each mile makes me stronger, leaner, and more determined.  And one of my biggest philosophies to speed training, comes from a certain track and field coach who have an amazing record when it comes to his sprinters, Clyde Hart, and he says "Speed is synonymous with strength." You have to be strong to produce speed, and it takes volume and time to create strength!
The next topic of discussion for this blog is Periodization.  What is it? Many ask.  This seems to be a concept that is not very firmly adhered to when it comes to conventional strength and conditioning programs. And what is scary is that this particular principle to SC programs is not that difficult to implement.  Simply stated, periodization is the progressive change of training over the course of a season or set time that you are training. This comes from the ideas of on and off season training and from further investigation people have found  that with varying training techniques on average every 12 weeks, the body tends to produce and experience more gains, in quality and quantity.  When you are training you should never follow one single method of training for years and years, this will also produce a plateau in your progression and create a difficult staleness to overcome.  The body is an adaptive machine, and it will adapt itself to any stress placed on it, making the stressor less and less stressful. So to ensure the body continues to create changes and doesn't over adapt to specific exercises, change your training around, do some bodyweight exercises, run more distance, steer away from Olympic lifts, focus on supplemental lifts, get on the underground strength training train for a bit... drastic changes in your training can help you avoid or even overcome plateaus in your progression. Remember it, Periodization, variations to your workout routines.

Sunday is Mother's Day, and a day to rest! Next week starts a whole new week and better workouts!