Off-Season Training, Nutrition and Recovery

October is a quiet month for most cyclists in Europe. Unless you ride 6-days races on the velodromes or ride cycle cross in Belgium, there are no cycling races in the rest of 2008.

Thus, October is when most riders decrease their overall training amount to a minimum to recover after a long season.

It is often said that the three essential elements for a cyclist are: Training, nutrition, and recovery.

Recovery should have the primary focus in October because your body needs rest.

Training

Depending on your fitness level and ambitions, your training amount should be decreased to 50% or less than normal.

From amateur to professional, all levels of road cyclists share one primary goal: to ride faster. But as any rider knows, simply pedaling harder will only take you so far. In order to reach the next level, you need to train smarter, not just harder.

Try some of the bike disciplines that you are not used to. If road cycling is your primary discipline, then go for a ride on a mountain bike or visit an indoor velodrome. There is a great potential for learning skills from these sports and you are guaranteed some enjoyable rides.But remember to invite the established mountain bikers to hit the roads with you when they have taught you a lesson or two off-road.

Nutrition

Don’t focus too much on what you eat and how much you eat. October is when you have the chance to do what normal people do all year around, but don’t overdo it. Just because we’re cyclists doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy a delicious burger and frosty beer from time to time. In fact, October is the perfect time to indulge in some of the foods we normally avoid during the cycling season. So go ahead and enjoy that burger and beer with your friends, but just don’t overdo it!

Recovery

Don’t underestimate the value of a decreased training amount and a period with less focus on target zones, threshold watts and body weight.

One key element of smart training is tapering, or reducing your training volume in the weeks leading up to a big race. The same goes with periodization of your race season. By cutting back on your mileage and intensity in October, you give your body time to recover from the accumulated fatigue of previous weeks.

As a result, you’ll enter the winter training feeling fresh and ready to go. While the exact amount of reduction will depend on your fitness level and ambitions, most riders will benefit from decreasing their training volume by 50% or more. So if you’re looking to take your riding to the next level during the winter, don’t be afraid to back off a bit now.

It clears your head and recovers your muscles. Regarding to the overload principle, training less in periods is an important part of getting stronger.

Over to the readers: What is your primary focus in October?