
We all know that the winter training period is very important to build your organization ready for the upcoming season. But can you do things on the bike that could be detrimental to your fitness gains?
1. Getting the wrong clothes
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First, not wearing enough set. It can be so easy when you’re used to wearing shorts and jerseys to mistreat your ensemble and not wear enough when the temperature starts to drop. If you don’t wear enough kit, it can be difficult to warm up enough to enable you to perform well in whatever effort you have to do. Not getting warm enough can increase the time it takes you to recover from training sessions, even if you spend a lot of time in low cycling training areas.
Both will have a negative effect on your fitness in the short term, and if you get too cold and become unwell as a result, it will affect your training and fitness in the long term. Even just forgetting your winter cycling gloves or cycling shoes and getting your hands or feet numb can take a toll on you, as the hands and feet have a very high level of nerve endings which means that if they get cold, the rest will feel cold and so will you. You will not feel good on the bike as a result.
Secondly, a lot of wear and overheating. When winter comes around, it can be tempting to pack plenty of gear to stay warm and reduce the chance of catching a cold. I’d say it’s always best to have plenty of tools and then unzip/unzip them if they start to get warm. However, if you can get your kit right the first time, it will reduce the need to carry more gear and stuff your pockets. For example, Sunday club runs (Zone 2 endurance riding) are a staple of most winter cycling training plans.
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However, if you were to leave the house at 8:30 in the morning, it would probably be cooler than it would be at the halfway point. Wearing a lot and getting too hot are two potential problems. First, fluid loss increases and dehydration can become more likely. The easy solution is to drink enough fluids as well as consume salt. But in the winter, it can sometimes be difficult to drink a lot. If you become dehydrated, it will not only impair your training sessions but also your recovery from training and therefore your overall fitness.
Another downside to dressing up is that unzipping to cool off can lead to quick chills. If you make an effort over the top of a climb, you’ll sweat. We know the purpose of sweating is to help get rid of heat, so when you combine that with decompression and a rush of cool air, you can catch a cold pretty quickly.
2. Forget about sharpness
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It is common in many people’s winter training routines to neglect intensity when cycling; It is often seen as all about the base (training). Although this follows a traditional cycle training plan, there are several issues with the course when trying to emulate the pros. Although pros spend a limited percentage of their time training at a higher intensity when training is in the winter and off-season, they do spend a small percentage of their much larger total training volume.
If you’re not training 30 hours a week, say only 7 hours, then your training period would suggest you have maybe 1 hour and 24 minutes of time over Z1/2. If you’re training that total volume, you’re mostly doing Zone 2, with such Limited time at a higher intensity, it is likely that you will not make the most of your training time and during the winter you will lose shape.
3. Ride indoors only
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Training indoors with one of the best indoor cycling training apps is great, no doubt about it. However, limiting your training to only being indoors may negatively affect your overall fitness as well as other important elements of cycling.
Riding completely indoors – stuck in a turbo trainer – does nothing for bike handling or big riding skills. These are skills that many can strive to improve and see their racing results improve alongside. A purely internship not only limits the opportunity to practice these skills, but can also lead to the loss of some.
Another area where indoor-only riding can negatively affect your fitness is that you may overlook easier rides or longer endurance rides. Some people are die-hard fans of indoor training and are happy to ride 5 hours or even longer indoors. However, for most people, this isn’t their idea of fun, which is something a good training plan should always be about. Intensity is needed to improve and maintain physical fitness, but the best plans balance intensity with volume, or else your physique will suffer.
Finally, training purely indoors can lead to a higher chance of burnout in the long run. Spending time outside is not only good for your physical health, but it also benefits your mental health. Add to that the lack of in-person social interaction and the fact that there’s no let-up on pedaling while indoors, and mental fatigue is a serious consideration if training is entirely indoors.
4. Neglect of the work force
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This is an area that many cyclists neglect throughout the year. Dedicated strength training can be a huge benefit, both for increasing strength while reducing the likelihood of suffering from common cycling injuries. During the winter, many people try to increase their cycling volume to get those base miles. However, undertaking high volume work and neglecting power work puts you at a similar disadvantage.
Workforce has been shown to increase time spent, increase peak power output, and decrease time trial. For those worried that they will put on too much muscle and become heavy, unless you are very genetically gifted, you will not gain kilos of muscle. You may gain some, but as power increases, you’ll increase in watts per kilogram as your Watts/CdA increases by even more. In other words, you will be faster everywhere. So, if you’re just doing the drills, or just going turbo and neglecting the power, you could be ruining your fitness and your ability to be faster.
5. Overdoing it
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A common mistake made by those transitioning from the end of the season break into their winter training is to overdo it. Doing too much too soon is a sure way to get sick, burn out later in the winter, or injure yourself. Any of these will significantly and negatively affect your fitness.
When starting to ride again after a break, it is very important to increase the training load, be that intensity or duration, gradually and sustainably. It is also worth keeping in mind that winter is when many diseases are more prevalent. If you have children at school or work in an office, you are likely to catch a cold virus once or twice during the winter.
This may require that you take some time out from training to recover from the cold properly. If you train through it, you may be sick longer, and your training will be negatively affected along with your fitness. If you do have a break to recover again, then you have to be careful not to overdo it soon afterward. Cycling too much can weaken your immune system, making you more susceptible to disease.
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