ASK THE DON
How do you reduce your training over the winter? I never know if I’m doing too much or too little.
Off-season can be a blessing and a curse. But having a full rest from all training and racing is key, both physically and mentally. Whether you’re a pro, amateur or junior, the body needs to have some down time. And the mind, for me anyway, needs to switch off from all that data – HR, power, etc. – early-morning swims, long runs, track sessions, travel, race weeks, altitude training… the lot! It’s time to give that lot a rest and switch off.
TIME TO PLAN
I normally take about 10-14 days totally off then I do about 2-3 weeks of unstructured training, so by that I mean a few mountain bikes, road bikes, a few runs, and I try and get in the pool and the gym. This is just about getting the body moving, but with no numbers or goals – just getting back to some very basic fitness. It’s in this time that I really like to start planning – just because you’re not racing for 5-8 months you can still have goals, a plan and some focus, just on different things. But to move forward we often need to look backwards. I look at what did and didn’t work last season, what I liked and didn’t like training-wise and how the last season unfolded. I then look forwards to what I can improve on and work out how best to do just that for the next season.
I look at races that fit my strengths, the geography of them and any other commitments that I might have, and then plan my ‘A’, ‘B’, and a few small ‘C’ races. That’s when I can start to really focus.
STAY CONSISTENT
I’m a big believer that ‘consistency is king’ when it comes to training – just look how
good Ali Brownlee is when he’s not injured and has a longer, solid block of training. He’s untouchable, but, when he has a niggle he’s, well, still bloody fast, but you get what I’m talking about!
GET BULLET-PROOF
I focus on strength and conditioning in the winter a lot more than in-season to make the body strong for the winter training load. Like one of my old coaches used to say, ‘Let’s make you bullet-proof then go win some races’. The off-season is a great time to focus on just that; build your base, no stress miles, and work on your weaknesses as well as your strengths. You can still have laser focus just like in race season, but just on different goals and maybe in a less stressful environment.
PUT A RACE NUMBER ON
For me, in the off-season, I don’t like to race. I’m a creature of habit and bloody love routine, so will just get my head down, working on everything that will hopefully make me a better athlete. But some people need a little break from training, and that’s a perfect opportunity to put on a race number and find a race or two. Cross-country and parkruns are awesome races to add into your winter training plan, either on tired legs or maybe a few with a little taper to freshen up. You’ll get to see where you’re at fitness-wise, which will, hopefully, give you confidence going forward.
Do a duathlon – oh my, they are awesome! So bloody hard, all that running and a good chance to try some new equipment as well as work on your transitions. I cut my teeth from March to May on all the local duathlons in the UK, and it definitely toughened me up. Plus it was a great way to put it all together and have some fun, well, kind of!
STAY FLEXIBLE
Off-season is also a great time to rediscover that life balance and think back to everyone in your life who helped you out and sacrificed all those weekends to watch you race and support you in the race season. Now you can be a little more flexible with your training and use all the tools around you to make your training more efficient – jump on Zwift for a high-quality workout done in 60-90mins, use the treadmills at the gym to do double sessions – gym/run or swim/run.
The off-season can be just as fun and you can have just as much focus as in the race season. As I say – focus on the process not the goal. Oh, and if you have to ask yourself if you’re doing too much in the off-season, the answer is always 100% YES, you are!
Need some advice from The Don? Send an email to askthedon@220triathlon.com