Predawn Yo-Yo Workout and Perceived Level of Exertion

I recently did a pre-dawn run that I feel is a good example of applying some aspects of exercise physiology to training. I went up a gravel road that forks and then loops around to rejoin itself at the fork. I completed the loop and then did a workout that I call Yo-Yo’s at the fork. With a Yo-Yo workout, I go uphill for a ways before turning around and going back downhill to the low point of the Yo-Yo and then going uphill again. The benefit of a Yo-Yo workout is that it mixes up the level of exertion and type of muscle activity to make the workout more sustainable and decrease the risk of injury: running uphill continuously can subject you to an unhealthy level of exertion, and running downhill continuously can be tough on your joints as the muscles that control your descent become fatigued. Added benefits of doing Yo-Yo’s in a place where a road forks before going uphill in either direction were that I was able to vary the grade, the footing, and my surroundings- different sensory stimulation is helpful to keep from getting bored during a workout. In this case, the distance I chose to go uphill was informed by the desire to limit the intensity of my workout and to avoid waking up the people who lived slightly up the road from my turn-around point by riling up their dogs.

So you might be wondering why I was trying to limit my level of exertion. After all, isn’t the whole point of a workout to exert yourself? The answer to that is yes, but within some limits. The level of exertion you subject yourself to during a workout should be informed by what you hope to accomplish during the workout and can be visualized with something called the Modified Borg Scale of Perceived Exertion. It turns out that your perceived level of exertion can be almost as accurate of a measure of how hard you’re working as a heart rate monitor.

Image "borrowed" from http://sterlingwins.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/modified-borg.jpg

In the case of this workout, I wanted to improve my overall endurance with a special emphasis on going up and down the steeper grades that are common while running and hiking in the southern Appalachian mountains where I live. For overall endurance, a low to moderate level of exertion is ideal because it improves the efficiency of the circulatory system while conditioning the muscles for longer duration activities. Of course, when running uphill, it’s tough to keep the level of exertion at a low to moderate level. If you look at my Strava recording, you might notice that I walked intermittently during the uphill portion of the loop, but even with the walking, I was approaching a 9/10 or “Very Hard Activity” level. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as “vigorous” activity a few times a week is supposed to cut the risk of stroke among men in my age range, but pushing at this level too often is thought to increase the likelihood of coronary artery disease, so like so many other things in life, moderation is key.

I should also mention that part of the advantage of incorporating hills into a workout is the way the incline can train the musculature of the legs. Generally, muscles develop strength and endurance in the range of motion in which they’re exercised, which means that if you’re always running or walking on flat ground, your legs may be really good at carrying you over flat ground, but your performance will likely suffer if you suddenly try to go up or down a hill. The fact that going uphill forces your knees, hips, and ankles to bend more means that your glute, quadriceps, and calves will be conditioned to contract in a wider range of motion, giving you better performance on a wider range of terrains. Going downhill can have benefits as well because muscles work differently to control the movement during descent than they do generating thrust during ascent. The extra challenge of controlling your speed of descent can help to condition the muscles in ways that will help you avoid injury, particularly while going downhill.

So what does this workout lack? I feel like, from the standpoint of conditioning for running or hiking on a variety of terrain, it’s pretty good. If you look at the Strava recording, you might note that it was fairly short, only 1.94 miles, which is a fair criticism. On the other hand, when you look at the fact that it’s a significant fraction of the distance and elevation gain of the longer hikes I’m trying to stay conditioned for, while investing less than a half-hour in it, this looks like a pretty relevant workout.

If you want a similar degree of insight applied to your exercise routine you should know that I’m preparing to offer one on one fitness and wellness consultation, as well as group instruction. In addition to contacting me through email at everett.stook.pt@gmail.com, you can also follow me on Facebook, Strava, and YouTube. Thanks for reading!