downtime

Now that the race is over, next on the agenda for those who competed in Kona is an off-season. "What," many athletes ask, "constitutes an off season? What can I do over the fall and early winter to make myself faster and stronger for next year?" Rest––that’s pretty much what you do to get faster.

The precise length and list of activities may vary from one athlete to another, but everybody’s off-seasons do have some things in common. This period will usually range from six weeks to eight weeks in length, and does not revolve around training. Most coaches term the activities in which you engage "active rest." You’ll know if you’ve gone about your off-season properly if at the end of that period your body, mind and spirit are recharged and ready to build for the season ahead.

The athletes I coach know better to ask for a regimented training schedule during their off-seasons. They may feel free to contact me, but only from the golf course, or equivalent. They can go surfing, or hiking, or engage in a very casual trail run in the mountains. Call me from the boat, if you want, while taking that cruise you have always wanted––and now can with no feelings of guilt.

The trick is to stay active, but without any sense of schedule, or expectation, or duty. If you’re doing anything because you think you should, then you shouldn’t. If you’re doing more than half your normal workload you’re probably doing too much.

There are some athletes who just like to hang the road bike up for one month (or three) and just hit the mountain bike trails for leisure. I know after Hawaii each year, I would go for long slow outings, exploring the mountain trails on bike and foot. My goal would not be how far I could go nor how fast, but how much I could explore and soak in. I would also sometimes renew my childhood love for equestrian horse riding.

The thing to realize is that this "down time" isn’t a time in which nothing occurs. It’s the time for decompression followed by rejuvenation. This is the perfect time to travel if you can--, and to spend more time with family members––time which no-doubt has been marginalized to some degree, irrespective of how much you’ve tried to keep that from occurring. Be patriotic: Go to New York and see a Broadway show or visit a museum. Make it a goal to see a new movie during each week of your off season.

One more thing: Don’t contact your coach. . None of the athletes I coach can contact me (for coaching-related stuff) during their off-seasons––the last thing they need from me is a training schedule. I don’t take their money during their off-season, and––while I love them––we both need a break from triathlon come October or November. Then, around the first of the year, we can both start fresh and ready for our best years ever.

Further information about JulieAnne's coaching services, contact julieanne@semicolon.org. or visit, Semicolon.org.