Chapter 152: Overload Training
It took Kitasan Black quite a while to react after Makoto's words landed.
"Tr–Trainer, you're… joking, right?"
"Do I look like I'm joking right now?"
As he replied, Makoto began equipping himself piece by piece from the truck's cargo bed—protective gear and the mountain bike included.
Helmet. Back support. Elbow and knee guards.
Special nylon straps looped around the frame, and metal clips locked tight across his chest and waist.
Once everything was secured, he reached back to flick the rear wheel hanging by his side. The spokes whirred through the air with a rhythmic hum as he turned toward the still-stunned Kitasan Black.
"Your stamina and endurance are excellent," he began, "but you've never truly shown what that means in a long-distance race. Do you know what the greatest challenge in a race like the Kikuka Sho really is?"
"Wh–what is it?" Kitasan Black repeated blankly.
"Here."
He tapped his temple—indicating his head—and spoke with quiet gravity:
"For every extra hundred meters in the course—even every single meter—the strain on your body doesn't just increase. It multiplies."
"Maybe you recover faster than others after a race. But during the race, when you're pushing past your limit, your brain stops working as if it's starved of oxygen."
"That's what long-distance racing really tests—when your vision blurs and your mind starts to fade, who still has the sharper awareness and judgment?"
"Who can still tell exactly where the finish line is, what state their rivals are in, and how to run the next few strides?"
For a brief moment, flashes of past training sessions and races flooded Kitasan Black's mind.
She could almost feel it again—the iron band squeezing her temples, the razor pain in her throat, the crushing weight on her chest that made breathing impossible.
Her mouth opened involuntarily as she took several deep, ragged breaths.
"Feel it now?"
Seeing her reaction, Makoto gave a faint smile, though his expression soon hardened again.
"You've done long-distance and endurance drills before, but you should know by now there's a vast difference between training and the real race."
"So far, the longest course you've ever run is 2,500 meters. Add another 500 to that… imagine what that feels like."
He gestured toward the truck. "Go on, take down your bike. I'll help you secure it—we'll start soon, and I'll explain the training method along the way."
Still a bit uncertain, Kitasan Black obediently ran to the back of the truck.
When she lifted the mountain bike down, she muttered in surprise, "It's… so heavy."
Despite her words, her face showed no sign of strain.
Mimicking Makoto's movements, she tried fixing the frame onto her back. Makoto soon walked over, attaching various pieces of gear—heart rate sensors, additional straps, and a few other odd-looking instruments—all in place.
Once he confirmed the bike was secured properly, he gave a signal to the truck driver. The vehicle slowly began to crawl up the mountain road, and Makoto motioned for Kitasan Black to follow.
As they started walking, he explained the details of the special training.
By intentionally placing the body under fatigue, one forces it to adapt to higher levels of strain.
In sports science, this is known as overload training—or post-fatigue endurance conditioning.
Back in his days as an extreme stunt athlete, Makoto had often used this type of training.
He hadn't introduced it to Kitasan Black before—partly because her body hadn't matured enough at the time, and partly because he needed to collect accurate adaptation data for an Umamusume's physiology first.
"The principle behind overload training isn't complicated," he continued. "When the body continues to move while fatigued, the muscle fibers, cardiovascular system, and metabolic functions go through three stages—fatigue, recovery, and supercompensation."
After a sufficient period of specialized training, the body's mitochondria count, capillary density, glycogen storage, and lactic acid threshold would all gradually increase—each of them crucial factors for endurance.
However, the difference in how humans and Umamusumes handled such training was like night and day.
Before ever coming to Tracen Academy, Makoto had already run some tests. The physical limits of humans in this world were about the same as he remembered—an average maximum carrying load of roughly 80 kilograms.
Unless someone was exceptionally gifted, pushing beyond that risked severe cardiovascular strain or even rhabdomyolysis.
Umamusumes, on the other hand, could handle roughly three times that amount.
Some studies had recorded their load-bearing data, though none involved extreme stunt–style training. And just like humans, individual differences varied widely.
On average, an Umamusume's load-bearing limit hovered around 200 kilograms, but between individuals, the difference could reach several dozen kilos.
Kitasan Black, in particular, possessed an unusually strong physique. After several months of conditioning and careful testing, Makoto had finally determined just how much weight she could safely handle.
That was why the mountain bike she carried was custom-made—significantly heavier than a normal model.
According to his plan, by the time she reached about halfway up the mountain under that load, her stamina should be nearing its fatigue threshold.
From there, the remaining climb—switching to cycling mode—would complete the second stage of the overload training.
At first, the regimen would be limited to twice a week. During that period, they would monitor her heart rate and blood lactate levels to gauge her condition and fine-tune the intensity—ensuring progress without risking overtraining injuries.
Once her physiological data became clearer, both this special training and the other aspects of her program would be further optimized.
After listening to Makoto's explanation, understanding dawned on Kitasan Black's face—soon followed by curiosity as her gaze drifted toward his own bicycle.
"Trainer, I just realized… why are you carrying a bike too? Don't tell me you're planning to run in the Kikuka Sho as well?"
Makoto stared at her for several seconds before letting out a helpless laugh.
"…What kind of logic makes you think I'd be reckless enough to try racing in the Kikuka Sho, Kitasan?"
"Uh—well, that's true…"
Clutching the strap running from her shoulder to her waist, Kitasan Black gave an embarrassed grin and quickly clarified,
"I just meant—are you doing the same training as me?"
"You could say that."
Makoto chuckled. "A trainer's job already involves a fair bit of physical work."
"During your regular sessions—and now during camp—we have to keep up somehow. Having poor stamina wouldn't exactly inspire confidence, would it?"
"But more importantly, I want to train alongside you."
"With me… together?" Kitasan Black blinked in surprise.
He nodded, eyes turning toward the steep road ahead.
"I've actually been thinking about this for a while."
"When I was still in school, our coaches and classmates trained and lived together—every day, side by side."
"I didn't do the same with you before because, frankly, most of your workouts are things I physically can't do."
"Like running a thousand meters in under a minute—my best time's over three minutes, okay?"
"But when it comes to extreme stunts…"
He glanced back at her with a grin.
"I'd say there's something that I can do about it."
"I may not match your sheer output, but in terms of technique—I won't lose."
For a moment, Kitasan Black just stared at his confident smile, caught off guard—then she, too, broke into a grin.
"Trainer, you really do love those extreme stunts, huh? Oh, wait!"
Her ears perked up, tail flicking behind her. "How about we make it a competition, then?
"Our goal is that Unkaisō hot spring inn, right?
"Let's race, Trainer—see who reaches it first!"
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