general preparation phase

Like I said, I finished putting together my training schedule for the next 12 weeks. Of course things can change due to bad weather, training camps etc. but the amount of training stays about the same. And here's an overview of my training hours during the general preparation phase:

week 1: 9,5 hours
week 2: 11,25 hours
week 3: 13 hours (skating race on Saturday)
week 4: 7 hours (rest week)
week 5: 9,5 hours (running race on Saturday)
week 6: 10 hours (running race on Sunday)
week 7: 14 hours
week 8: 6,5 hours (rest week, maybe running race on Sunday)
week 9: 10 hours
week 10: 12,25 hours
week 11: 14,5 hours
week 12: 6 hours (rest week)

Training over these weeks looks pretty much the same every week. I have skating, running, cycling, exercise and off-skate sessions. For example week 7 looks like this:

Monday morning: exercises (upper body 1,5 hours)
Monday evening: skating (Intervals 1,5 hours)
Tuesday morning: running (Intervals 1 hour)
Tuesday evening: cycling (1 hour)
Wednesday morning: off-skate (1 hour 15min)
Wednesday evening: skating (1 hour)
Thursday afternoon: long run (1 hour 40min)
Friday: rest day (stretches 40min)
Saturday morning: skipping and tapping (1 hour)
Saturday afternoon: skating (1 hour)
Sunday morning: off-skate 1 hour 15min)
Sunday afternoon: cycling (2 hours)

It looks like a lot – well it is, but I just have to make sure I get enough rest between trainings, get enough healthy food, drink enough and sleep enough (at least 9 hours a night). And it's also very important that I have a rest day once a week where I try to move as little as possible. Sounds funny but that's the way it is. I even know a trainer who tells his guys to take the lift instead of the stairs on rest days. I don't exaggerate that much, but I do make sure I get a lot of rest on these days. Plus I'm allowed to eat whatever I want on my rest days.