AP RACING: A Guide to off-season training
A GUIDE TO OFF SEASON TRAINING
It’s that time of year where all of our AP RACING athletes are wrapping up their current seasons and planning/starting their next racing season.
I thought I would take a few moments to discuss our approach and give you the opportunity to join the
AP RACING TEAM’S OFF SEASON TRAINING PROGRAM.
If you would like to be a part of the AP RACING off-season training program,
you can either sign up for the AP RACING TEAM HERE or sign up for a free 6 week free off season trial.
SO, HOW SHOULD I APPROACH THE OFF-SEASON?
Let’s look at your off-season training in a couple of areas. The key here is to take the appropriate time to get things right in these areas and also to get moving once you feel like you are ready.
STEP 1: Get your mind right.
It is important to be ready to train. You want to take the appropriate amount of time off but not so much time that you become lethargic and lose all motivation. I find that just starting to ‘move’ for 10-20 minutes a workout gets my body and mind ready to go again.
The 2nd part of getting your mind right is doing a full assessment of your previous season and then starting to lay out what is getting you excited for the next year. I make lists. Lists of what worked, what didn’t. What I really want to do the next year, and things I don’t want to do again. The goal of these lists are to start to focus my attention but also to really get me pumped up and excited for what is to come. Nothing is written in pen, and there is a lot of discussion. Beyond the racing, I really look forward to taking my kids to ‘distant’ places as part of my racing. This is something I account for in my season plan. You should look for things like that too.
One other thing that can really help in the off-season is doing a training trip or camp with friends or teammates. We hold camps throughout the year in Chula Vista, Lake Tahoe + Colorado Springs to help our athletes work on specific skills, get ready for key races, and build some motivation and excitement for the year.
Check out the AP RACING CAMPS + JOIN US!
STEP 2: Get your body right
This is a great time of year to address any injuries, weaknesses, or ailments and come up with an action plan. This might mean more stretching, some time off, surgery or simply adjusting how you train. Further, this is also a time to think about your daily nutrition. Because you are training less, you should probably be consuming less. Because you might be more aware of what you are eating, you should also think about cleaning up how you eat- eating more nutrient dense products, less processed/packaged products, and shopping from the ‘outsides’ of the grocery stores.
STEP 3: Get your equipment right
Have you had equipment issues this year? Do you need a new bike fit? Is it time for a new swim suit? Well, this is the time of year to get everything fixed. I would even suggest taking a class or paying a friend or local bike mechanic(I use the guys at Criterium Bikes in Colorado Springs) to give you a few lessons on how to take care of your bike. These lessons have proved invaluable over the years for me when I am traveling or have an issue on the road.
Step 4: Get Moving
Now, this is critical. Some folks like to talk about single sport gains in the off season. Other folks talk about doing high-intensity power or strength building work, and others still talk about Long + Steady base building. I find that variety is the spice of life and what you do will be dependent on your previous year’s assessment. There is no one-size fits all approach and you might even find you have different focus points in different sports.. The goal here is to establish a routine that you can build off of and sustain in the long term because consistency = success in triathlon. For me, my first week back to training usually involves days with 15-20 minutes of running, 20-40 minutes of swimming, and 30-45 minutes of cycling. I’m not breaking records, I am just getting my mind and my body used to moving again.