#246 – Alan Couzens “Ask Me Anything”

Alan Couzens answered questions from the Madcrew forum.

Introduction

Quick thoughts on the Madcrew forum? Past / present / future?

Training related questions

You trained a lot all throughout your life, and some of it at very demanding intensities. Did you ever approach a physical or mental burnout? If so, how did you get out of it?

How do we get the running interested crowd to slow it down enough? People want to run. When you then tell them not to run, the exciting prospect of running goes out the window. I’d be really interested to hear Alan’s thought process on how to handle this!

I’d like to ask about injuries. Our discussion on identifying as an athlete, putting on the HRM regardless and hobbling to the bench 50m away when you were recovering from broken bones got me thinking. What were your lessons learnt from that experience of serious injury? Are there more gems that could help others with reframing injuries, the recovery process and managing expectations? That’s if you are comfortable with discussing the subject.

Nowadays that measuring power on the run is possible, would you say it is important that power and heart rate zones match? And if so, and if they do not, how to make them match, adjusting power to HR zones or vice versa?

Is there a distinction between training for performance (for example a competitive age grouper while working full time), and training for health (for example optimizing for later years).

Generally speaking, how does training differ between male and female athletes?

To what extent would you say you’re shaped by your childhood temperament, environment, and experiences with sport, and to what extent is your adulthood a conscious “correction” of the less nice bits of your childhood?

AMA questions