So many Valby threads trying to justify the implausible, that she makes big improvements on less running than other athletes and while training for other unrelated sports like swimming. It doesn't wash.
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Don't believe for one second that she rolled off the couch, started training 2-3 times a week, and, bam, she is a sub-15 5ker.
It's a body of work for 15+ years of hard aerobic training.
The body does not care where the aerobic stimulus comes from, you'll still get the benefits if you built it up over many years. It falls in line with what Gjert said in an interview about early-life training.
Actually lacrosse was her number 1 sport not swimming. Her goal as a middle schooler was to play lacrosse in college.
There is a long thread already on her training. Why did you need to start another one?
Because it didn't look convincing to say that she could be far superior to other runners while doing less training - running training. So now it's "swimming" or even "lacrosse" that has made her such a superior runner. Really?
Actually lacrosse was her number 1 sport not swimming. Her goal as a middle schooler was to play lacrosse in college.
There is a long thread already on her training. Why did you need to start another one?
Because it didn't look convincing to say that she could be far superior to other runners while doing less training - running training. So now it's "swimming" or even "lacrosse" that has made her such a superior runner. Really?
You have made your point. No need to repeat the same question, and cast the same aspersions on the athlete.
More swimmers can run than runners can swim from my experience.
Swimming training is more demanding run training but run races take more out of you than swimming events. You might get more cardio from swimming because you can do more volume. Both sports develop cardio.
Because it didn't look convincing to say that she could be far superior to other runners while doing less training - running training. So now it's "swimming" or even "lacrosse" that has made her such a superior runner. Really?
You have made your point. No need to repeat the same question, and cast the same aspersions on the athlete.
My "point" is a response to those made by others. That is called a debate.
So many Valby threads trying to justify the implausible, that she makes big improvements on less running than other athletes and while training for other unrelated sports like swimming. It doesn't wash.
It is a fair point. People want to believe in things like Santa Clause, and Lance Armstrong. Or massive gains while not running, without help.
Seriously it is a bit sus when you really look at it. She also seems a little too effortless after races, just like our current crop of record holders.
More swimmers can run than runners can swim from my experience.
Swimming training is more demanding run training but run races take more out of you than swimming events. You might get more cardio from swimming because you can do more volume. Both sports develop cardio.
I believe that one of the reason that makes the transition from swimming to running easier than the other way around is that, in swimming, proper technique makes a huge difference and it can take many years to learn it. In swimming, you can be the fittest athlete in the world, but if your technique sucks, you'll get beaten by 10 year old girls.
She couldn't have been that competitive of a swimmer - there don't seem to be any results for her on any of the swimming sites. Gwen, for example, has hundreds listed for her.
I believe that one of the reason that makes the transition from swimming to running easier than the other way around is that, in swimming, proper technique makes a huge difference and it can take many years to learn it. In swimming, you can be the fittest athlete in the world, but if your technique sucks, you'll get beaten by 10 year old girls.
Let us all agree that the transition from swimming to running is easier than running to swimming. It's still a much less valuable transition than from running to running more. I have no idea if she's doping, but it isn't unreasonable to question high level running success that attributes the gains to non-running endeavors with minimal running.
People doubting her arc trainer training should try it at the highest setting. It's not a joke. If you see her running form, it kind mimics what arc trainer does. She drives her forward motion a lot from her arm swings. Then you look at the runners behind her.
Highest resistance? I wouldn’t want to do that because there’s no way I could manage a decent “strides” per minute. I’ve started using the arc trainer at the Y recently and I try to always maintain 150+ spm so it’s at least comparable to the rhythm of running.
But your point is valid, the arc trainer is basically as hard as you make it, just like running/cycling/rowing/swimming…and the particular kind of stress/exertion feels more similar to running than any other X-training I can think of. Doing 80 minutes on that thing regularly will get you extremely fit.
Don't believe for one second that she rolled off the couch, started training 2-3 times a week, and, bam, she is a sub-15 5ker.
It's a body of work for 15+ years of hard aerobic training.
The body does not care where the aerobic stimulus comes from, you'll still get the benefits if you built it up over many years. It falls in line with what Gjert said in an interview about early-life training.
She also said she was running 65 mpw under solinsky until she broke her foot, and then she/solinsky said she was cross training 2 hours a day.
I personally think she is running more than 30 mpw some weeks now based on her answers during some interviews. but nonetheless her cross training includes a lot of doubling. Easy days are supposedly 70 min arc / 40 min swim, that kind of thing.
Others have posted on here she was high mileage in highschool but idk how true that is...
What answers during interviews? She mentioned 90 min for a long run, but that could be only on 2 day weeks. Also, only XT doubles twice a week, not "a lot". Also mentioned being in the 30's in HS. It doesn't seem like she goes over 30 now.
People doubting her arc trainer training should try it at the highest setting. It's not a joke. If you see her running form, it kind mimics what arc trainer does. She drives her forward motion a lot from her arm swings. Then you look at the runners behind her.
Highest resistance? I wouldn’t want to do that because there’s no way I could manage a decent “strides” per minute. I’ve started using the arc trainer at the Y recently and I try to always maintain 150+ spm so it’s at least comparable to the rhythm of running.
But your point is valid, the arc trainer is basically as hard as you make it, just like running/cycling/rowing/swimming…and the particular kind of stress/exertion feels more similar to running than any other X-training I can think of. Doing 80 minutes on that thing regularly will get you extremely fit.
But the even bigger point, which has been repeated over and over and over here—and yet a particular troll chooses to ignore it, (and instead continues to repeatedly cast aspersions)—is that one can both run hard on running days, and then train hard (with elevated heart rate) on the functionally resistant Arc Trainer, on those days that would typically be done running easy. Thus, Valby is getting in a lot more aerobic threshold work per week than the typical collegiate.
The contradictions around here are laughable. Everybody says that basic training at sea level isn't good enough. Yet when someone at sea level undertakes a different approach than mile after monotonous mile, it is condemned and considered dubious.
There have been countless studies on the immense benefits of swimming, how it improves the body in more ways than other sports. It didn't require 35 seconds to find this:
The benefits of swimming for runners are astounding - we always recommend cross-training for runners since the body needs variation to reach its full potential, and swimming is one of the best methods you'll find.
"Lung capacity is a key indicator of athletic performance (as anyone gasping through a hard workout can attest) and swimming is at the top of the pile when it comes to improving lung volume and strength.
Research has borne out the superior lung power that comes with swimming. One paper found that elite swimmers scored significantly higher in pulmonary function compared to football players.
Another paper examined the difference between swimmers and middle-distance runners and found the swimmers had markedly stronger lungs.
Regular swim training can be used to increase pulmonary function and help you breathe better and stronger out on the road.”
Don't believe for one second that she rolled off the couch, started training 2-3 times a week, and, bam, she is a sub-15 5ker.
It's a body of work for 15+ years of hard aerobic training.
The body does not care where the aerobic stimulus comes from, you'll still get the benefits if you built it up over many years. It falls in line with what Gjert said in an interview about early-life training.
I question your 14 years of competitive swimming. Where did you get that? Was P Valby on high school swim & team, 9th & 10th grade? Was P Valby on swim club team while in high school? On another thread, I asked if anyone has her swimming results. I am a huge advocate of cross - training. Advocating for alternative training requires honesty. Don't exaggerate P Valby's swimming.
He was a world class runner. Was he a world class swimmer?
That's a fair point. When a successful runner mentions that they had a background in swimming, people immediately want to credit the swimming for their success at running. But the more likely explanation is that they quit swimming because they were better at running - quite possibly because their physiology made them better suited to running than swimming.
She said she swam 14 years. Sounds like her parents put her in the pool at a young age. If they were in Conn at the time, it probably implies some Indoor rather than backyard pool.
Was it ALL competitive swimming? Does it really matter?
He was a world class runner. Was he a world class swimmer?
That's a fair point. When a successful runner mentions that they had a background in swimming, people immediately want to credit the swimming for their success at running. But the more likely explanation is that they quit swimming because they were better at running - quite possibly because their physiology made them better suited to running than swimming.
That’s not necessarily true why they ‘quit’. I did some marathon training runs with a post-collegiate gal that had gotten a full-ride at UW on a swimming scholarship. (She was a non-pro runner, full-time PT, maybe going to grad school at the time(?))
She mentioned the long hours, including early mornings, in the pool she put in, from an early age, club swimming.
