Connie's Seasonal Training Tips

1. Off season!
It's time to build, strengthen, diversify and enjoy! We favor cross-training at this time of year - including all forms of cycling (cyclo-cross, mtn biking, and of course, road cycling) mixed with some basic core strengthening program. Add in some hiking, running, swimming, and/or Nordic skiing. What proportion of these certainly depends upon your goals.

"Prepare...and be happy!

Connie personally prefers the following: 2-3 x week strengthening and basic core work; 3 x week aerobic exercise (7 hours total time for the week of aerobic base work). What type of aerobic exercise is best? Try to ride at least once or twice per week even if it means indoors. Indoor riding options are many - the most specific would be a computrainer workout, the least specific would be a spinning class. They both count! Nordic skiing, uphill hiking, running and swimming are all options to mix into your winter program. Variety is the spice of life - spice it up! Try something new!

One or two days a week, I do nothing..., which gives me more energy on the days that I do train.

Another winter goal is to maintain your ideal body weight. This requires some will-power and continued exercise. Cut back on alcohol and desserts, keep the fresh fruits and veggies flowing. Some goals/ideas: Minimize carbs, especially at Christmas time (limit alcohol!). Ice cream or dessert just once/week is a good plan. No carbs after 4pm is great if you can do it (difficult for me). No fruits after 4pm. They tend to 'ferment' in your gut - eat them in the morning instead. No more than one type of dairy/day is especially helpful in weight control (that is, if you have cheese - no yogurt or milk that day).

2. The Base Basics (a review)
Improving your cycling during the summer requires that you build a solid base in the spring. What does that mean?

Aim for a base of 1000 miles. That's anywhere from 50-100 hours depending on your speed. At ten hours a week of riding, you will need 5-10 weeks to lay a solid foundation.

What kind of riding should you do? If you have fresh legs, meaning that you don't ride much in the winter, then you need to keep the rpm (cadence) up (90 rpm) and the resistance low (that is, lifting a light load with each pedal stroke. Why? Give your connective tissue (ligaments and tendons) a chance to ease into the grind of cycling. In fact, cycling shouldn't be a grind, which is why you need to build the base. You can start some easy climbing when you get into the early weeks of the base season, but again - the gear needs to be easy (light load). Don't worry about the mph (your speed) but focus on cadence and heart rate. Your heart rate should be in the 'endurance' zone of 120-140 bpm. Steady heart rates now will help to produce good capillary development, providing much needed blood supply for the harder efforts to come.

Knee or back pain can be addressed via improving bike fit, cleat adjustment, flexibility and strengthening exercises.

WHAT if you've already built the base and are already up to 100-200 mile weeks at this time of year? Then you're onto the next level and ready to start flying.

3. Beyond the base: summer season
Add some speed and start to build power during this phase.

Power can be built by short bursts of increased resistance. Power training should only be done once/week and should be followed by a day of active recovery (that means, an easy endurance ride).

My favorite power workout is uphill sprints (!). You can start by sprinting explosively uphill in a moderate gear (39-17, moderate grade). Try doing 5 repeats with several minutes rest between (actively pedaling during the rest phase to enhance recovery). Increase this to 3 sets of 5 repeats over the next few weeks. When this feels easy, you're ready to increase the load. That means sprinting either on a steeper grade or with a bigger gear. Ultimately you want to work up to sprints of 100 meters or more in the big ring. Repeated no more than 10 times (usually more like 5 once the resistance is high).

Power can also be worked on when you are climbing longer climbs, try working a bigger gear for part of the climb. Shifting up instead of down, standing instead of sitting, and generally varying the cadence and pace. If you always climb in the same gear, at the same speed, you will not build power.

Power is what enables you to bridge a gap, sprint faster, and is part of what makes you feel all powerful on the bike. It takes work. Aim to reach your peak power in JULY... by starting now.

Other speed drills can be added for fun and variety. Do practice your sprinting (sprint your mates for town signs, not stop signs!) at least once per week. Even if you never plan to race, sprinting is FUN and it helps your bike handling. It can also help you get out of trouble (avoiding dangers).

To increase your anaerobic threshold, or your sustainable pace, you will need to work on sustained efforts. If you live near the mountains, this means repeating 20-40 minute efforts at a moderately high heart rate. Your perceived exertion (how you feel) should be 'somewhat difficult' but not hard. This is the pace where you can no longer maintain an easy conversation, but you aren't totally gassed.

If you don't live near the mountains you need to do repeats of 20 minutes (2 or 3 repeats) where you spin let's say at 100 rpm (uncomfortably high cadence) which will drive your respiration up without making your legs too tired. If it doesn't make sense, try it. You'll see what I mean. A high cadence is uneconomical, this means you work harder. Fortunately for the legs, the load you pick up is lighter so you should be able to recover quickly.

What this means is that your average week for those of you riding 150 or more miles/week:

• Monday - easy or off
• Tuesday - 1-2 hours with Power work
• Wednesday - 1-2 hrs - Endurance/recovery
• Thursday - 2 hrs Anaerobic Threshold plus 2-5 sprints
• Friday - easy or off
• Saturday and/or Sunday - long ride (2+ hours) with group, some sprints and speed changes.

Use your diary to plot progress and help you realize your goals.

Got a goal? Go for it!

Good luck, be safe... and tailwinds to all.