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by Coach Eric Kenney

You’re thinking “It’s Thanksgiving! What could I possibly do for training???” However, turkey carving is some of the best deltoid training there is! This will make you more stable on the bike and resist fatigue longer! So don’t miss the opportunity. Actually I’m kidding. Thanksgiving marks the beginning on the holidays and the beginning of the long difficult road to start training again. I have fallen victim to this before. First it’s time to rest, then turkey day. Then comes along Christmas which slams full speed into New Year’s. Throw some travel for work in there, a vacation and maybe a wedding (went to a New Year’s wedding last year - best time ever) and the next thing you know its February, you’re turning 29 - again - and you’re barely going to get in 6 weeks of base training before spring.

What to do?

It’s time to plan. The answer here is that this is not the time to stress about training but to plan ahead. And before we can plan we must look back at the past. Your past year or more of racing and training can be the best thing you can use in planning for the next season.

Here are some steps to get you on the road to success:

1. Write down your general goals, things that you want to focus on in general. For example, to become a stronger runner or to spend more time training on the bike.
2. Next, write down specific goals which can be precisely measured. For example, to increase threshold wattage to 300 or to run a sub 30:30 minute 10k.
3. Finally, write down your goal races, their dates and rank in priority.

Now you know where you want to go. From here you can look back and see where you’re coming from. Look at your results and your notes from training and races. This is where you need to objectively look at your performance and figure out were your weakness, limiters and strengths lie. This is something that should be done with your coach. Don’t have one? Get a consultation. If you have done your part, compled steps 1 to 3, you can have a very useful 1 hour conversation with a certified coach. This is money well spent - I just did this for myself!

You will now be armed with the essential tools for planning and training for your season:

1. You have you goal races down in the calendar.
2. You should know what key skills and abilities you need to meet your goals at these events.
3. You should know your weaknesses (your limiters).

Now you will know the most important things for a successful season. Like our old hero would say. “And knowing is half the battle”
~GI joe~

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