Finding the right pace for running, swimming or cycling is easy. Wear a heart rate monitor and adjust your pace accordingly.
But how do I find my pace for juggling kettlebells, kicking the heavy bag, light sparring, or (in extreme cases) fighting without gassing out?
PACING!
Create your FLOWS!
A flow is a repeatable, short sequence of movements including breathing patterns. A good flow is well thought out and proven to work.
Examples:
Know your ZONES!
You need to know how many BPM your heart is beating while you can do the movements for hours, while the movements tire you out in 3-10 minutes, and of course your individual barrier to gassing out in less than a few minutes.
Find the right INTENSITY!
If you go full throttle, you'll get tired in less than a minute. The reason is that muscle tension blocks your blood flow. Without blood flow, your energy systems cannot recover. You gas out. Move fast and loose! You'll be surprised how much speed and power you can generate with this small change!
TEST!
Wear a heart rate monitor and repeat your flow with pauses between each flow. Use an interval timer with an audible signal to ensure you are moving at a set, repeatable pace. Start with longer pauses to find the right pace that you can sustain for hours. Note the flow, intensity, and time for future progress.
Reduce the breaks between each flow and find the pace you can sustain for 10 minutes. Reduce the breaks until you find the pace that gets your heart rate above your anaerobic threshold (the barrier) in less than 2 minutes.
PRACTICE!
Stay away from your barrier! Practice flow at a pace that is between your 10-minute pace and slower. Slower is better!
IMPROVE!
Practicing flows is endurance training. Do not try to reinvent the wheel. This should be your guide.
COUNT your breaths!
You are practicing flow with an interval timer. Count your breaths to find your perfect pace. After a few training-sessions, you'll know how many breaths is just right. Check your heart rate. Reduce your breaths if you are advanced.
RESULT
The exercise of staying fast and loose in the right zone while counting breaths improves the ability to feel the right pace. Slowly the body adapts to faster tempos.
UNDER PRESSURE
In a competition or in a fight there is no timer. Especially in a real fight, you can't do the same flow 10 times in a row, but you can feel the right tempo and take breaths between the different flows by moving to the side or back.
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