Winter Training ~~ Perspective

We humans are designed to function in scarcity.  We are adapted to constantly seek food, to constantly move.  We are beautifully made to do this.  We are constantly hungry, and we have finely honed tastes for sweets, fats, and salts.  For the majority of our species’ existence, these traits have stood us in good stead.  We don’t do so well in plentiful environments.

Our bodies feel the pull of the seasons, on a deep level.  Our bodies know that Summer is plentiful, but that it ends.  There is some kind of tendency to eat heavily, to store fat in the fall, against the coming Winter.  The shorter days tell us to become less active, to conserve energy.  The time of cold and scarcity is at hand.  It is not accidental that we celebrate holidays full of eating in the late fall.  It is no accident that we feel less inclined to become vigorously active, that we want to sleep more.

At the same time, it is possible to use these inherent traits to our advantage.  Now that Winter is upon us, we are tuned to eat less.  Habit argues against this, but this is a time when decreased intake makes sense.  Our bodies are ready to take in less food.  Likewise, the hunter part of our ancestry is waking.  We are ready to start the long chase for food.

If we work with these almost instinctual tendencies, we can make great strides.  In the early winter, the hunt is close to the home.  So, at this time we work in shorter intervals, and with greater bursts of effort.  This begins the process of building endurance.  Endurance needed for the later, longer hunts.  And just so, as Winter lengthens, and the days begin to grow longer, we too must gradually increase the amount of effort, while decreasing the number and duration of those high power bursts.

A subsistence hunter hunts best when a little hungry.  We don’t try to starve ourselves, but we do decrease the amount of food we take in.  We do it carefully.  At this time of the year, strong green vegetables, and fresh fruits make a huge mental difference.  More, they are exactly what we need most.  Use protein carefully.  Don’t overdo it, but do eat some protein soon after workouts.  It’s essential to repair and replenish the muscles.  It’s also essential to replace workout calories quickly.

Moderation is the key here.  Do work with moderate amounts of intensity to build endurance.  Do integration work of moderate duration to build base.  Eat in moderation.  Get outside as often as possible.  Move.