The world of endurance athletes can often seem complex. Balancing priorities can be tough when there are so many activities to balance.

It can help to have a tool to step back and assess your efforts. The above graphic illustrates the primary activities and values most endurance athletes use to plan their activities.

You will notice there is a somewhat oppositional construct to the Endurance Athlete Matrix; from racing to solo training, from performance-based to fitness and health oriented training.

ACTIVITIES

RACING The peak performance of individual and/or team effort.

COMPETITION Sub-peak races or events used to hone fitness.

EVENTS Fundraisers or other opportunities to test and use fitness.

GROUP EFFORTS Joining others for workouts.

SOLO WORKOUTS Any effort or training done on your own.

TRAINING Workouts planned for a measurable result.

FITNESS Activities done for general health, balance and cross training.

CLUBS A serious or even paid commitment to group workouts and racing.

VALUES

The “Inner Ring” includes four value measures that include:

GOALS The objectives for performance.

FUN Enjoyment of the activity or sport.

HEALTH Lifelong benefits and current status.

SOCIAL Relationships and bonds.

If you were to take this Endurance Athlete Matrix out a step and mark activities in which you participate each year, you would essentially be able to establish what percentage of time you spend in each category or activity.

Naturally workouts and training activities would dominate the activity level. But how many are done with a group as opposed to alone?

Also, how many types of events, races or competitions do you do? And how do you determine which are the most important, or how hard to tackle each one?

The truth is that simply being aware and keeping track of your annual matrix of activities can help put your fitness, health, social and goal values in order.

We hope this helps you assess your own objectives. Endurance sports are a great way to enhance life and enjoy fitness in a variety of ways. May you find your balance and your best performance as a result.

All graphics copyright 3C Creative Content, Christopher Cudworth