We need to change the verbiage of one of the oldest cycling training methods: Long, Slow, Distance (LSD). I’m a fan of keeping the acronym, but its (new) meaning should be “Long, Steady, Distance”. Agree with me now, and you can stop reading. However, for a full explanation, enjoy the following (that may also be considered a rant):
The idea behind Long, Slow, Distance is a core philosophy and practice of endurance training. While I 100% agree with the philosophy and methodology, I believe “Slow” should be replaced with “Steady”. I may be nitpicking, I believe that the core of endurance training is a steady pace, not a slow one. While one can ride “slow”, it’s actually the steadiness of the pace that is paramount.
You can call it a myth or misnomer, but the idea that these core endurance rides need to be “slow” is misleading. There are hundreds of scholarly articles on the topic of these types of rides. The central idea is cyclists need to spend a significant amount of time (usually during the base phase) riding in the endurance zone. Generally speaking, this will increase the utilization of fat for fuel, along with building a foundation on which the body can perform at its maximum.
You Can’t Cover a Bad Cake with Frosting
My favorite analogy for this, or for life, is that these LSD rides are the base of the cake. You can pile on all the frosting but if the cake itself is not well built, then it will collapse on itself. I have real life data (for a future article) showing that without a solid base, cycling performance is severely limited. After all, if a rider’s long ride is 90 minutes per week, they can only go all out for a limited amount of time (let’s say 30 minutes), before blowing up. In theory, if a rider’s base included 3-4 hour rides each week, they could go all out for up to an hour.
I understand the generalities in the aforementioned statements, but there’s plenty of data that support’s what I have said.
Why nitpick an acronym?
The answer is very simple: you get physical adaptations by being in the endurance zone – speed simply does not matter!
For instance:
I can ride on a flat, paved, trail for 3 hours at 22mph. My heart rate and power will remain in my endurance zone (56% – 76% of FTP/69% to 84% MaxHR). Alternatively, I can go out into some rolling terrain and average 14 mph, while my HR and power remain in the endurance zone. While this difference may seem obvious, I believe that “Long, Steady, Rides” provide an additional benefit.
Uphill/Downhill Rider vs a Metronome Rider
One of the most important parts of the LSD ride is the “steady” aspect. Riding at a steady pace without major changes (like a metronome) allows you to become incredibly efficient. It also makes you more of a joy to ride with (in my opinion). We’ve all been on group rides where there’s one or two riders who push hard up hills and then coast down. This creates a more disruptive ride, versus a rider who maintains a steady pace uphill, downhill and on the flats. While I cannot find any concrete study to support this, I also believe that a steady pace during a ride, especially a long one, fatigues the muscles more quickly. Thus, providing greater adaptations longer in the ride.
With all of this said, I’m going to get off my soapbox and just urge you to use the term “steady” instead of slow. The Long, Slow Steady, Distance ride will always be a cornerstone of cycling. Maybe over time we can shift the lexicon.