Can Triathletes Surf during the off-season?

TRIATHLON OFF-SEASON PLAN – PHASE 1: RECOVERY

So you “your coach” decided its time to turn on the off-season mode, KHALLAS!

The first phase of your off season should be your recovery; don’t feel bad about it: it’s a well-deserved time, or at least it should be. The biggest issue I see as a coach is that my age group athletes spend a lot of time in the grey zone which at some point sees them end up in fatigue; this means athletes do not push hard enough when they need to and similarly do not rest enough when it’s time to.

So back to the topic at hand: Time to recovery. What does that mean exactly?

Shall I put my foot on the couch, watch TV shows, eat ice cream and fast food?

The answer is: NO….. NOT AT ALL.

The recovery phase of your Triathlon Offseason Training Plan should lead to you feeling recharged and energetic (ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE AN AGE GROUPER). This means having some more freedom to feed your mind instead of your body, so if you want to consume a little bit of comfort foods, go on now is the time.

Stay active but feel free to be more relax, do not over exert yourself and perform a sport you don’t want; off season is a period without guilty!

“From my experience, the athletes who text me during the off-season asking for harder workouts; generally have me needing to adjust the peak phase of their periodisation lower because they come close burning out”

But coach, so should I gain 10kg and just party?

The answer is: NO, DEFINITELY NO!

My advice is to always stay active but mix it up and explore other sports because when the season comes around you will be consumed with swim, bike and run. Athletes I work with generally go skiing, play football or go out on the trails and in my case I brush the dust off my surfboard. Any waves in Dubai this time of year? or maybe just settle for beach volleyball. Just be careful, we don’t have the same skills we had before entering the endurance world so do not over due and get yourself injured

Phase 1 of your Triathlon Offseason Training Plan could include something new and fresh, something fun with your partner or friends, maybe an adventure like hiking.

ENJOY, the off-season is for filling up your soul, body and mind. It’s your pit-stop.

Bellow you can see a chart showing an athletes training stress score per day, and how this goes from an overload phase to a FRESH/TRANSITION phase.

This chart basically should waver during your season, and your coach is always keeping his eyes on that, especially if its a BR coach. When your coach tells you to slow down; it’s not that they don’t want you to have fun; but they are simply managing your load to stay healthy and strong. LISTEN!

Listen your body, listen your coach, listen your mind during this first phase of your offseason; we promise, you won’t regret it.

There are times to act and times to plan, and on the next article we are going to talk about reflections/planning as the next step of your offseason.

Stay tuned for the next phase of our Triathlon Offseason Training Plan.

Leo