Periodization is Passé’

Good now I got your attention. Classical periodization as
most coaching education programs teach is history. The classic X curve of high
volume work developed in a preparatory phase of training then crossing and moving to a high intensity low volume phase
during competition is gone. Why is it still taught? Periodization is about the timing
of the application of the training stimuli, it is not about time. What we are
really doing with periodization is managing the process of continual
adaptation. It is all based on sport science principles coupled with
proven pedagogy. I just saw a coaching journal put out by US Swimming devoted
to periodization. It was vintage Russian training porn from the late 1960’s and
early 1970’s; the only thing missing was a coupon for a Jefferson Airplane vinyl
album. Let‘s get real we have learned a tremendous amount in the last thirty
years. We need to get past Bompa, all he has done is recycle the Russian stuff
of Matveyev from the 50’s. Read it, but keep it in context, that is the past,
we must build on that to move forward. On this one we need to get contemporary.
The competition environment and schedule at all levels of competition has
significantly changed, classical periodization does not come close to
addressing those changes. Ultimately periodization is planning. Dwight D.
Eisenhower summed the value of planning quite nicely: “In preparing for battle
I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”