For most endurance athletes, there comes a time each year when they are evaluating what is next on their calendar.  Many athletes choose to just continue down the path of race, race, race, race, then the weather gets cold, so they do marathons, half marathons, and more race, race, race.  At some point, the body is going to start to reject this mentality and regiment.  Overtraining can cause a deep level of fatigue that only rest and time away from the sport can cure.  This is where “offseason” comes into play.

Joe Friel has trained endurance athletes since 1980. His clients are elite amateur and professional road cyclists, mountain bikers, triathletes, and duathletes. They come from all corners of the globe and include American and foreign national champions, world championship competitors, and an Olympian.

Sweat Rate Testing. Most athletes this time of year find themselves measuring and analyzing things like VO2 Max, Lactic Threshold, etc. On the hydration side of this is Sweat Rate testing. Understanding the amount of fluids your body uses and loses on a per hour basis can give you a much better understanding of how many ounces of fluids you need to be replacing each of activity. Below is a great way to find what your sweat rate is.

After you have made some strength gains in the gym, the time is ideal to build sport specific power.  The goal is for the strength gained in the gym to translate into added swim, bike, and run power.  Here are some high resistance intervals you can do in the pool and on the roads to build strength and power for each of the three sports.  As these intervals involve explosive movements, you should be warmed up before beginning them to reduce the risk of injury.  The first time, just do one interval toward the end of your workout.  Assess your body’s response to the first interval to determine how many you will do the next time, and gradually increase the number of intervals.

What zone am I in? What’s my cadence? How many calories have I burned so far? I bet I can catch that cyclist in front of me. OH WAIT, I’m not wearing my heart rate monitor! Slight panic sets in before a headwind blast off the Hudson snaps me out of it. Tri season is over. I’m not supposed to be “training.” My therapist said I need to practice simply enjoying my occasional ride to work. Appreciate the views along the Westside highway, gaze at the changing leaves in Riverside Park, ride around the pedestrians with patience rather than anger. OK, I’m not REALLY in therapy for my type-A, rigid, all-or-nothing personality, but I’m sure many of you can relate. Now that we are entering winter, especially in the Northeast, what is your off-season plan going to be?