Quality

…many people seem to be equating ‘best workout’ with ‘best strategy for a particular workout’, instead of best effort put forth on a particular workout.

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By dogging it on the run, I’ll remain relatively fresh for the things I’m already good at, most likely resulting in a lower overall time. This is great if my goal is to beat Kelly and Angel. This is not so great if my goal includes not being lame at things I’m already lame enough at.

… lower total time/better score does not always equal direct physical benefit)? How do I expect to become better at running hard and recovering if I never subject myself to that at the very time I should be…in Training!

…the focus should be ‘How can I bring my weak points up?’. The answer is to put forth the best effort possible on the things you are not good at, even if it means you blow up later on.

…Will your world end if you don’t finish first, but you really give it your all on something that is difficult for you? My guess is that you will find the final product to be much more capable and complete if the stopwatch or scorecard is not your only reference while training.

Personally, I find that when I start worrying too much about the number on the timer for too many workouts, I train myself out of the ability to put forth a truly max effort:…

… I’m not suggesting that anyone who is gaming or strategizing a workout is not putting forth a good effort, but don’t let this mindset invade every aspect of your training. There is a reason that high level athletes of all stripe do not care about winning at every single practice or training camp. They are too busy trying to get better.

The stopwatch is a useful tool, but it is also blind to the quality of the individual effort.