No, this is not about running in circles. Nor has it anything to do with bicycles. I want to talk about the fact that, contrary to most training advice, your running does not steadily progress in a (hopefully upward) linear fashion. No: if you listen carefully to your body or, for those of use who do the proper thing and keep a running diary, analyze your log, you will note that your running performance follows not one but many wave-like patterns or cycles. Not convinced? Lets start with the most uncontroversial one.

We all know about this one: it is a physiologically well-documented body cycle. Luckily, for the majority of people, most races in South Africa are held in the morning. I say luckily, since at least 70% of people are said to be "morning people". I am an evening person. I cant get out of bed before seven, my body doesnt respond to any command until eight and my mind hardly gets working until ten or so. (My boss complains that it never works.) I do virtually all of my training (and creative thinking) in the afternoon or the evening. Perhaps I should have stayed in Europe where many races there are held in the afternoon (I am only kidding, Madiba). Most of us know whether we are morning or evening persons. If you are training for a specific race which involves running at your daily low, it pays to do a couple of training runs during that time, just to prepare your body and, perhaps more importantly, your mind. Perhaps a good example is the Washie: any Washie veteran can tell you about that horrible time period between four oclock in the morning and sunrise when your body is at an extreme dead low. If you are training for the Washie, you wont be able to change your physiology, but the mind will be so much better prepared if you do a training run from say 1:00 till 6:00 in the morning. And tell your seconds to have a lot of caffeine ready for those wee hours!

Again, this ones got a proven physiological basis: it takes at least some 36 hours for muscle tissue to recover from a strenuous workout. In fact, it is during this recovery period that the muscles are said to be building their strength, not during your actual training. Hence any training programme worth its salt will never schedule two consecutive "heavy days". Un-coached ambitious novice runners switching to a daily schedule often sin against this rule and wonder why their legs feel like lead when attempting consecutive hard runs. Follow a tough day with a recovery day. Or target different muscles groups e.g. hill running as opposed to speed work or gym work. In fact, the two-day cycle underlies what may be a very contentious statement: for most amateur runners: I would argue that there is little additional physiological benefit to be had from training every day as opposed to having only three or four (equally spaced) quality work-outs each week. I hasten to add, though, that there are a number of psychological benefits (routine & "mind space") from daily running, though these must be weighted up against other factors such as e.g. family time and work pressures.

Okay, I have to confess that this is the real agenda for this article: to convince you of my little pet theory about our monthly physiological cycle. And here I am talking specifically to the majority of readers/runners: males. Women already know about this. But even many of female runners would question the existence of a monthly cycle their male counter-parts. Yet, there it is. I admit that I dont think it is equally pronounced for all males (the same is true for women, by the way!). But I am convinced it is there. Check your running log if you dont believe me. I "discovered" this one during my trans-Europe run: although I ran more or less the same distance each day with the same level of fitness and on similar flattish terrain for many months on end, some weeks would just be easier and some a lot tougher. At that time, I was not really concerned with my objective running time and speed; but more with the subjective perception of effort. I have since found much more evidence: check your own time trial times during a long period of consistent training. Or think back how many times you were training for a specific race and you felt exactly right two weeks before the race only to have a most disappointing race on the day. Or the other way round. To me personally, this four-week cycle has become a law, even though a psychologist will attribute a lot of it to self-fulfilling prophecy syndrome.

Does this mean that I subscribe to the biorhythm theory? Actually no: although I am convinced that it is rooted in the same phenomenon (physiology? phase of the moon?) I do not subscribe to the belief that the cycle has an absolutely fixed period. I believe that the length of this cycle (just as its amplitude, or severity) depends from individual to individual (anything from say 25 to 35 days). Also, I believe that it is possible to shorten or lengthen the cycle slightly e.g. by pushing your training extra hard just before reaching your peak, I believe that you cut your upper part of the cycle short. Alternatively, by taking it somewhat easier, you will actually extend your peak period and thus extend the cycle length by perhaps two or three days. So no, I dont think that it works to plug your date of birth into a formula to find out whether youre on a physical peak today.

I must admit that there are lots of caveats here which weaken its value as a proper scientific theory. The cycle is more pronounced for some men than others (and, of course, for women), so much so that other factors (training, work pressure, racing) can easily override the effect. Also, I believe it is perhaps more pronounced with long-distance (i.e. marathon) runners than for "shorter" distance runners (e.g. 5 or 10km). And I already mentioned the psychological "self-fulfilling prophecy" aspect: long-distance running is 90% mental and it is so easy to tell yourself that "today is the wrong time of the month". Finally, please, when you go off and complain to your wife/girlfriend about male PMT, keep me out of it!

No big surprise here: most of us increase our training substantially during one specific part of the year e.g. training for the summer season or a specific event (Two Oceans or Comrades!). Even Bruce Fordyce followed this cycle! However, for individuals training more or less regularly all year round, may I proffer the bi-annual cycle? I think it may be healthier for your psychological self, your family and your work to push yourself hard one year and then take the next year somewhat easier.

And yes, I still have many more cycles up my sleeve. We all know about the weekly cycle, more or less forced upon us by the work environment which leaves us week-ends with races and LSDs in between hectic work weekdays. (Push me a bit further, though, and Ill tell you that I also believe that there is some more fundamental physiological basis for a six, seven or eight day cycle.)

Finally, I also believe in a life cycle: in different stages of ones life, one is likely to return to running after periods of "abstinence". How many of us did athletics at school or university, abandoned it during our twenties, only to return to it in our thirties and then, perhaps but hopefully not, abandon it again when we hit our mid-life crisis?

Okay, some of these cycles you knew about and others I just threw in for fun. But I am very convinced of the existence of a monthly cycle for male runners. If you know about it, youll recognise it, learn to work with it and, sometimes, you may just be able to tweak it a little in order to ensure that you peak for that one big race youre aiming for this year. And this is really where the cyclical East meets the linear, progress-oriented West. Sometimes you mustnt fight your cycle: just submit to it. Other times, you may be able to take control of the cycle, push it and ride it all the way to your next PB. So dont cycle, rather run!

Id love to hear your views.

© 1999 Jean-Paul Van Belle