Training plan ·
Polarised training: 80/20
The 80/20 principle aims to raise performance while limiting overtraining and fatigue. Intensity sits in two zones: low and high.
80% of training is easy to moderate, building endurance and aerobic capacity: running, cycling or swimming at a conversational pace. 20% is hard: intervals, sprints, efforts that push the body.
The goal is progress without excess fatigue or injury. The body recovers and adapts. For endurance athletes, that aerobic base is what lasts.
The method asks you to listen. On low days, stay easy. In a 10-hour week, 8 hours stay easy and 2 hours are intense.
Balancing easy and hard work keeps the gains and the habit. Updated 28 January 2025.