I’ve wrapped up my 2024 events and am enjoying some free time on the bike with less structure and more time outdoors. Typically, I keep this up for about 2 months until the weather turns to winter and then it’s back inside with TR to start prepping for next season.
Historically, my A events have been later in the summer but next year I am targeting Unbound XL (late May) as my A event. I won’t know if I get in through the lottery until the end of November. Wanting to get through the full cycle of base, build, and specialty when is the “right” time to head back to the trainer and focus on the structured training?
Good question! In all honesty, I’d say whenever you feel completely refreshed and eager to get back into training. Some people like to take several weeks off of structured training, while others might only need a few days.
I’d say that if you’re outside, enjoying your time, and riding around a bit, there’s no real rush since you’re still somewhat active, but when you’re ready to jump back in, you’ll probably know it.
Many people enjoy the off-season as a mental break as much as a physical break, so when you feel well-rested and mentally eager to start training again, I’d say go for it!
You can plug Unbound into your calendar and use Plan Builder to generate a custom plan for you which will fill in the time between now and then with the most ideal training, so there’s no need to necessarily time things out perfectly if that makes sense.
Once November rolls around (I’m not sure about you, but fall has been flying by over here) you’ll know your plans for certain and can then make any adjustments you might need to your calendar and things will adapt as needed.
If you haven’t seen it before, this might interest you. A summary of a study(*) to compare the effects of two different training regimes during off-season on performance the following pre-season.
TLDR “Including a HIT session every 7-10 days during off-season seems to prevent loss of fitness and enhance performance 16 weeks into pre-season”
(*) 1. Rønnestad et al. HIT maintains performance during the transition period and improves next season performance in well-trained cyclists. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2014;114:1831-1839
@servman there is a 2024/2025 Off-season thread that might be of interest. For me, I plan to lift weights (legs) and focus on on-bike strength Oct-Dec and start Base training in Jan.
@ivegotabike oooh interesting, thanks for sharing! I’ll definitely take a look at this!
To add to the helpful advice and resources already shared here, the resources mentioned in the thread @rkoswald mentioned may be helpful! I’ll share them below for ease .
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