Now that September is finally here and the first hint of fall is in the air, it is time to think about what you want to do once your season is officially over.  Depending on where you live you may already be done, or you may have another 1-2 months of racing still to go.  By this time, however, almost all of us are feeling the burnout associated with a long summer of training and racing. 

This is the best time of year to give yourself a mental and physical break from the bike and do things you’ve been missing out on all summer.  Once you finish your last race I recommend taking at least four weeks completely off the bike.  Your body needs the rest, and your head needs a chance to decompress from the rigors of training and racing.  With that being said, I was never very good about staying away from my bike for a month.  September and October are some of the best months to ride bikes here in Colorado so I would often grab my mountain bike and go out with friends for some epic rides in the aspens before the snow started falling.  It is ok if you still want to ride a few times a week.  The biggest thing is that you only ride for fun and you don’t do anything that can be considered “training”.  Yes you will lose fitness but that’s the idea.  Your body needs a break!

This is also a great time to do some hiking, camping, backpacking, fishing, rock climbing etc.  Go out with friends and family and catch up on what you’ve missed this past summer.  Eat ice cream, stay up late, go to movies, or buy something fun for yourself. 

After a month or so of no training, you can slowly start back into a very casual routine of riding.  By this I mean you should try and ride your bike 1-2 hours a day, maybe 5 days a week.  No structure at this point.  You can ride as slow as you’d like.  And if your friends are doing a big hard mountain bike ride on the weekend you can definitely go with them.  Again the goal is to have fun and not feel like you’re “training” just yet.  I would also start a strength training program, lifting 2-3 days a week.  You can still throw in hikes and trail runs 1-2 times a week if you’d like.  Anything aerobic is good.

After your second month of off-season activities it is now probably November/December.  This is the time to get more serious about riding.  Depending on your upcoming race schedule you may want to start doing some intensity mixed in with longer rides on the weekend.  By January you should be back into the hard core training mode and getting ready for the first races of the season.

The off-season is one of the most important times of the year for cyclists.  It gives us a chance to rest and recover from the long season.  It is also when you will build the foundation that determines how successful you’ll be next season.  Most importantly it reminds us of why we love to ride our bikes; because it’s fun!!

Enjoy yourself, enjoy the beautiful fall weather, and rekindle your love and passion for the sport.

Happy trails!

Alison

Posted via email from Alison Dunlap Adventure Camps

Posted via email from Alison Dunlap Adventure Camps

Here is something I was asked the other day.  “If I am having a difficult race when is it OK to drop out?  Is it better to pull out and save my energy or is it bad to give up once I have started a race?”

The answer to this question is easy.  You never want to drop out of a race unless you have one of the following excuses:

1.    Your bike is broken and is no longer rideable

2.    You are deathly ill, throwing up, or running a fever

3.    You’ve crashed and there is blood everywhere or you’ve broken a bone

If you’re just having a bad day, then grit your teeth and tough it out.  You will have a lot more respect for yourself if you finish then if you drop out.  Once you drop out of a race, it becomes easier to drop out of another.  It is easy to race hard when you feel good.  What makes a true champion is someone that finishes the race despite having the “worst day of his life”.  Bike racing is incredibly difficult.  Don’t give up on yourself because you think you’re having a bad day.  The legs might come around and you might surprise yourself on the next lap.  If you quit you’ll never know what might have happened.

Happy trails!

Alison

Posted via email from Alison Dunlap Adventure Camps

Being athletes makes us susceptible to getting sick because of the constant state of fatigue we always seem to put our bodies in.  There are some easy things you can do to avoid getting colds, as well as some good strategies for dealing with a cold once you get one.

Probably the biggest reason we get sick is we let our bodies get run down.  When training, make sure you are getting a lot of sleep.  I always needed at least 8-9hrs of sleep when training.  For those of us that have full time jobs and families this isn’t realistic.  Do the best you can.  Also very important to make sure you are eating healthy.  For women it is important to get an adequate amount of iron in your diet.  Low iron can result in anemia which can make it very easy for your body to get sick over and over again.  Be sure to eat lots of whole grains, fruits and veggies and limit high fat foods such as meat and dairy.  Another reason we get sick is we let ourselves get dehydrated.  Hydration is the key to health!  Did you know a 150lb individual has almost 50 quarts of water in his body?  Dehydration can make you more susceptible to viruses, can prevent your body from recovering after hard workouts, and keeps your body from flushing out the toxins produced over night.  Eating the right foods, drinking water, and sleeping are key to healthy living!

What can you do once you get a cold?  For me the best thing to do is sleep as much as possible.  If possible take long naps during the day and sleep in as long as you can.  If work prevents this, then go to bed early and avoid the usual nighttime activities that keep you up late.  The next thing you need to do is drink a lot of water.  Pure water will help flush out the toxins in your body.  When your body is hydrated, drainage from allergies and colds doesn’t stick and collect in your throat and lungs, and your cough is more "productive".  I like to drink three nalgene bottles of water a day minimum.  Some other things that have worked for me are sucking on zinc lozenges and taking Zicam, a homeopathic anti-cold remedy.  Sometimes these work for me and sometimes they don’t.  Unfortunately a lot of times a cold just has to run its course, which can often be 10 days to two weeks

What about training when you have a cold?  If you have a mild head cold, then easy to moderate exercise is ok.  I would not do any kind of intensity.  If your cold has dropped into your chest, then only 1hr recovery rides are recommended.  If these irritate your lungs and cause you to cough, then ride indoors.  Again, no intensity.  If your cold turns into the flu and you have a fever, then no riding whatsoever.  Wait until the fever is gone before getting back on your bike.  In general, the less “training” you do while sick, the quicker you will recover.  The problem most of us have as cyclists is we can’t stand the thought of not riding and we start to panic that we are losing fitness.  So we go out and train while sick.  This will prolong your illness and can lead to complications.  The head cold might turn into the flu.  The flu might turn into bronchitis, and bronchitis might turn into pneumonia.  Let yourself be sick.  Give your body a chance to fight the cold/flu and you’ll recover faster. 

Every athlete out there will get sick at least once a year.  Everything evens out in the end.  Don’t stress when you get sick.  Do the best you can and hopefully you will be back on your bike in a few days.

Cheers!

Alison

Posted via email from Alison Dunlap Adventure Camps

We had a crazy week!  My husband crashed a week ago riding the Monarch Crest Trail near Salida, CO.  He slid out in a corner and fell on his hip pretty hard.  Nothing that we cyclists haven’t done dozens of times over the years.  But he hit just in the right way that it ruptured is L5 S1 disc in his lower back.  By the next day he had numbness in his leg and couldn’t lift his foot or toes.  We got in for an MRI on Monday and saw a spine specialist on Tuesday.  The doctor said his rupture was so severe that he wanted to schedule Greg for surgery immediately.  Crap!  Greg went in two days later and had a procedure called a lamenectomy.  It went really well and he was back home that afternoon.

Now he is on heavy pain killers, muscle relaxants, and stool softeners.  What a combination.  He takes four walks a day, each 10 minutes long.  For the next 6-8 weeks he isn’t allowed to lift anything heavier than 5lbs.  He can’t even push a shopping cart in the grocery store or open the windows of our house.  That basically leaves me to do everything; clean, shop for food, cook, laundry, house work, and yard work.  Normally it wouldn’t be a problem.  But now that I’m almost 6 months pregnant my energy level is quite lower than normal.  I’m going to recruit my neighbor to help me mow the lawn tonight. 

Eventually Greg will be back on his bike.  But I think he’ll be going a lot slower for a while.  Here’s to pain pills, ice packs, and lots of time on the couch.

Happy recovery Greg! 

Posted via email from Alison Dunlap Adventure Camps