I often refer myself to the opening post of the K.I.S.S. training thread on the trainerroad forum:
On here and many other forums, I see many people seeking the “perfect” training program. As my brilliant wife once pointed out to me, there is no such thing. To reinforce that conclusion, I submit that there are really only three types of workouts (not three training “zones”):
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Sprint (and/or weight- or plyometric-) training aimed at increasing maximal neuromuscular power;
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“Go hard, puke, go home” intervals (i.e., high intensity efforts with lots of rest in between), intended to enhance fatigue resistance during non-sustainable exercise; and
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Everything else, which is meant to improve our ability to perform aerobic exercise.
Recognition of this fact (if you accept the premise anyway) makes it a lot easier to understand why “all roads lead to Rome”. That is, there are numerous tactics that can be used to achieve this strategy, with success coming not from some “secret recipe” but simply the diligent application of established training principles (esp. overload).
Discuss!
A later post sums it up even more concisely:
“The “real world” application is to stop obsessing in pursuit of the perfect plan and get on with the business of actually training.”