Years and years of training. Kilometers, intervals, altitude, retreats... Can the body really get used to it? Can it get used to it? Could it be that a 200-kilometer, 3.000-meter-high session no longer brings benefits or improvements?
We talk about it with Andrea Morelli, one of the historical preparers of the Mapei Sport Center. «If you always apply the same methods, the body no longer improves – he says – it stops responding to stimuli. In fact, we are talking about “less training stimulus”, that is, how much I have to do to improve. It's not a given that to improve by 10 I have to do 100, I can also do 50. But over time this threshold thins out, I'm forced to do more than that 50 and it's not easy to change things."
The right stimuli
«Often – says Morelli – it happens that to continue improving you train too much and two conditions are created: over reaching and over training. The first is a state of physical fatigue that not only resolves after 4-7 days of recovery or rest, but can even lead to improvements. The second is a more complex state: the body can no longer perform, you're constantly tired, and it's a state that lasts for very long periods, even months. Psychological and hormonal factors come into play... and not just physiological ones.
«There are mathematical models (Performance Modeling) in which you see that if you apply the same stimulus for 20-30 days you no longer improve, it's called stagnation. But be careful, the reality is different. The climate, the temperature, the psychological aspect vary... And then every year is different from the next."
Margins at the limit
Based on this topic, we are led to think about Nibali. He has separated from his historical trainer, Paul SlongoIt seems the Sicilian felt the need to change his working method, probably to experience and explore new stimuli. But certainly, at 36 and over, it's not easy to embark on a new path. It's certainly commendable, because it speaks to the Shark's desire to bite again.
«In general – Morelli continues – professionals have room for improvement that diminishes with age. You are forced to do increasing loads in the face of very small improvements, especially for very strong athletes. Over the years, all mechanisms are optimized. The athlete learns to use sugars, to consume less, reaches the top technically, and his pedaling becomes more efficient. They are called “marginal gains” and it takes a huge amount of motivation to continue on that path, to refine something."
In short, it's a bit like a funnel that's constantly narrowing. More sacrifices are needed, there's little room for improvement, and everything must always be top-notch. Furthermore, there is the aggravating circumstance that the subject may have reached his maximum. In this case you can only keep.
The head counts
"So habituation exists," Morelli continues. "There are examples of very long-lived athletes who continue to perform, but perhaps over the years they have opted for different management methods, with long breaks during the seasons. At 35 you can no longer think of doing what you did at 25, recovery alone changes. Maybe before that athlete was able to go fast in all the races, now instead he has to select periods.
I was also very impressed by these young riders in the Grand Tours today. Usually, the third week favored those with a certain amount of experience and accustomed to certain efforts, but last year that wasn't the case. And we can't even say why the others went slowly. No, they're the ones who performed exceptionally well. Therefore, we need to consider this. It has significant psychological implications for the others.
Morelli often talks about the importance of the head. The psychological aspect is primary for him. In this sense, remember how Low ed Evans, even though they knew they were doing the wrong thing, they asked him and the professor Aldo Sassi to get a super workout in before a big date.
«Ivan in particular wanted to do a destructive session of 8 hours, 8 and a half hours. Heated discussions also arose. But if he came out of this session well, he knew he was ready for the Giro or the event he was aiming for. He felt strong and ready. At that point, we just tried to get him to do it at a time that wasn't too damaging, so he had time to recover.
Running to win, always
Of course, to think that Nibali in Prati di Tivo, in the last Tyrrhenian, that he went a minute faster than in 2013 and that he also dropped off makes us think and is a potential "blow" for the athlete.
"We've certainly been seeing some extraordinary performances since last year, but be careful about trusting the numbers alone. Nowadays, power data is being touted, especially the slightly higher normalized one, because it's "cool" and attracts viewership... From the athlete's perspective, I'd say he can be satisfied because he's seen improvement; on the other hand, he himself says: okay, I've improved, but I've also gained more than a minute. We need to see how realistic all that data is."
Finally, Morelli offers a very interesting perspective. It concerns Nibali, but not just him, mind you.
«Once upon a time – concludes Morelli – people also went to competitions to train. In some races, especially if you were strong, you might not be at your best and do that work that you evidently can't do in training. The psychological stimulus can't be the same if you have to do hard repetitions; you can't reach certain levels of fatigue in training. After a while, you slow down. In a race, however, you can hold on and push further. Now, all of that is no longer possible. In Nibali's case, thinking about Prati di Tivo, maybe eight years ago he wasn't at full strength."
This all fits perfectly with what he told us. Pino Toni A few days ago: new-generation athletes are more inclined to do high-intensity training before competitions. And those who used to exploit competitions no longer have this option.
