Resolutions

Right now is the time of year when most people set New Year’s resolutions for the coming year. They set goals like eating better, working out more, losing weight, getting a new job, etc… For most triathletes though, the “new year” already started at the end of last race season and most of us are already working our way towards our New Year’s resolutions.

What were my resolutions for the next race year? I posted about them in November when I wrote about wrapping up my race season. My goals were pretty simple: getting faster and stronger on the swim, bike and run. Actually, that’s easier said than done, but I did have specific targets I wanted to hit. I wanted to shave off ~4 minutes from my open water swim time (12% improvement), improve my watts by 15% to hit a 3.5 W/kg power rating on the bike, and shave off ~30 seconds on my 5k time. The way I was going to get to these goals during the off-season was by focusing on strength training and technique.

The New Year is a good time to do a progress check on your next race season goals, since it falls more or less halfway through the off-season. How am I doing so far with my goals?

Swim update: I’ve been working on my technique and aerobic base through an off-season conditioning program offered by my local swim club, the Chicago Blue Dolphins. We worked on slowing down our pace and focusing on an efficient stroke throughout the classes. I always feel like I’m working way too hard during the swim, so these classes really helped me slow things down and keep my heart rate low while I swam. I’m going to keep taking swim technique classes over the next couple of months and then start adding in more anaerobic efforts as we get closer to the race season. Swimming is all about technique so I’m hoping this “train slow to go fast” program pays off this summer.

Bike update: I’ve picked up roughly 5% on my W/kg rating so far this year, and I’m excited for what’s to come during the second half of my off-season improvement plan. I’ve been focusing mostly on strength training and S-E work on the bike, with some interval work sprinkled in just to keep me honest. My pedal stroke is feeling stronger and smoother all around; I think the strength training is helping with some leg muscle imbalances issues I’ve had in the past. Overall I’m feeling a lot stronger on the bike and I’m looking forward to adding in more threshold work and re-testing again over the next couple of months. I’m hoping to see a big pop on the bike!

Run update: Towards the end of the race season I was experiencing some nagging running issues. I wouldn’t call them injuries, but they were definitely aches and pains that made me enjoy the run less (IT band issues, ankle/calf issues). I was trying to PR the 5k towards the end of the year and so I was doing a lot of speed work and tempo runs, which didn’t help with my problems. I stopped by my local running store last fall and apparently my stride needs a bit of work since I was told I might be landing a little too much on the front (toes) of my feet, rather than in the ball of my foot. So I purposefully took a month off of running so I could re-work my running stride when I came back. I’m happy to report that my run form is doing a lot better and I’ve been running pain free for the past month or so now. I’ve really been focusing on landing on the ball of my feet and keeping a high cadence going. Also, I’ve incorporated yoga into my training schedule so that’s helped me stay loose and limber and injury-free. I’ve been doing short tempo runs lately and I plan on adding more speed work soon. I’m hoping that with the smoother form and strength training I’ve been doing I can reach new PRs on the run in the spring.

As you can see I’m putting down a solid base right now, which is the key to any off-season training plan. Strength training and technique have been the major focus points for my training, and once we roll into the second half of the off-season I will add more threshold and anaerobic work on top of the base. I definitely feel a lot stronger this year than I did last year, so I’m hoping that feeling continues throughout the rest of the year. I’m looking forward to the 2011 race season!

How about you? How are you doing with your next race season goals?