X-country Skiing

With more then 5 months of winter this year and sixty x-country ski outings, it was perfect for low impact and long duration off season training. An average week of x-country training consist of 6 hours/week of nothing but fun. With numerous x-country ski trails no more than 30 minutes from Newmarket, it is a great way to train and spend time with your riding bros.

Spinning

A combination of spinning on a trainer and life cycle work will ensure your legs never forget how to work on the bike during off season. As race season approaches the intensity picks up and the transition to out door riding is a welcome change after 4 months of staring at fluorescent lighting. Average training time consists of 5-6 hours per week.

Weight Training

To ensure your body does not turn into a pencil with nothing but cardio, I try to circuit train 3-4 hours per week using various weight training techniques. The trick here is not let your self bulk up so you look like your ready for your first body building competition, but rather to keep the core and supporting muscular structure strong for the rigors of cycling.

Training Philosophy

I find the most important part of training is to be consistent, even on the days when you think the couch sounds better than heart rate, circuit training, and duration the best thing to do is to simply try to accomplish a few sets, an hour on the bike or a few spinning drills. Another important element is to train as hard as you can each day and employ proper training techniques for each exercise. Don’t forget about lots of rest to ensure muscle growth and recovery. Last but not least always be positive and supportive to yourself and the others you train with.

Race season starts April 27th, and with seven races planned it should be a whole lot of back slapping and trash talking (all in good fun) with the finals Sept 7th at Mountain View.

I look forward to this race year for a few reasons:

1. I am on a well organized competitive bike team;
2. I worked diligently in the off-season to improve my fitness;
3. It will be my second year of committed bike racing and – with a new Rocky Mountain Element 90 from Spoke O'Motion – I am sure it will prove to be my most successful year of bike racing yet.