Philosophy: Training with the Seasons and Cowboy-ing Up

I am always astounded at how much the weather of the seasons of New England perfectly match my racing schedule.

In the winter, I am drawn to the gym. Not because of the snow and ice which I actually love, but because I just feel like lifting and doing something different than I've done all year.

Spring brings about renewal for most things, including an evaluation of where I'm at mentally, which has always been a time where I decide to recommit to racing and the demands of the training.

The long days of summer give me additional time to put in the long hours necessary to complete these events. The sunny days provide energy to do so.

Fall brings a lull in daylight, and training. The cooler temperatures give me a good reason to chill out on the bike, do a little more running, and generally tone down the training load. This creates a natural taper for the big fall races.

To follow a training regimen where every workout is planned for the next year sounds awful. I tried that about 5 years ago, and it quickly grew boring. I began to not look forward to training. It became work. The gains weren't even that great.

I see these athletes training by the 10% rule and shake my head. How can you possibly make leaps and bounds increasing things at 10%? The conservative, left-brained athlete is boring... following heart rates and numbers, and letting those things dictate their next workouts.

Did you know most professional triathletes are now doing 90% or more of their rides indoors on Computrainers, where everything is measured and evaluated?
I say ignore all that shit and be reckless. One of my favorite sports stories of all time is from the 1989 Tour De France, when Greg LeMond ditched all technology and told his team NOT to give him splits in the race's final time trial, and he made up an unbelievable deficit-over 2 seconds per kilometer- winning le Tour in one of the closest races of all time.

Believe in yourself, and listen to your body. Will yourself into the fitness you want, and train with the seasons. If you've made a commitment to training and it is your lifestyle, everything else will fall into place. The season is changing right this second, just step out the door.

krp