Any offseason tips to keep you motivated in your training?

[svpatel]

I hate the cold and I hate training in the cold.

Do you have any tips that you could share to stay motivated?

Thank you
Sanjay

[spiderbike]

its all about wearing the right cloths out there...just try to stay in decent shape until spring comes

its the winter work more, spend more time with the fam., watch some movies, and build a new bike....

[rplong]

it has been hard. this weekend has been in the 70's, not too bad for NE this time of year. I have heard that if you ever have any warm spots of weather, take advantage and go on a long bike or run. I would like to hear other peoples tips for biking during the winter

[maverick101]

it has been hard. this weekend has been in the 70's, not too bad for NE this time of year. I have heard that if you ever have any warm spots of weather, take advantage and go on a long bike or run. I would like to hear other peoples tips for biking during the winter

I see your from Omaha also. Great weather we had this weekend. I went on a 5K run Saturday and Suday a long bike ride and plan on swimming tonight.

Jason

[rplong]

Hey Jason,

I rode out to Wahoo today from my house. I actually got hot wearing what I was wearing. Loved it. If you want to hook up for some weekend rides or runs let me know. I am assuming that you go to UNO from your name? Have you done any races lately? Take it easy.

[Dalai]

I hate the cold and I hate training in the cold.

Do you have any tips that you could share to stay motivated?

Sanjay

Good clothes for the conditions as already suggested by Spiderbike.

Build a winter bike (I've done so using an old steel bike I had 'retired' and spare 8 speed bits with full guards. So you don't get as soaked from the surface water...

Be flexible with your training plan. If it's pouring with rain reschedule your ride or use the windtrainer instead.

Do 'hill' repeats up staircases within multistory buildings if available. Deep water running at the heated indoor pool.

Join a club and do training sessions with others. More likely to get out the door if others are waiting.

Also as Winters are mild where I live (doesn't snow :eek: ) I try to race the Winter Duathlon Series held locally.

If snow locally look at cross country skiing for crosstraining or other sports which are possible.

[trimonkey]

Invest some money in your DVD collection for those turbo sessions indoors. Other than that, when the weather is really rubbish, just take pride in the fact that no-one likes training in crummy weather, but unlike a lot of other people, you're still prepared to do it because you want to improve yourself. I guess it's a mental thing really, but i know what you mean, it sucks compared to summer.

[Zymosis]

Awesome, my first day on the board and I run across some guys from Nebraska. Gotta love the weather right now thats for sure :) (74 tomorrow)

[rplong]

Hey Zymosis, great to see another Nebraskan. Jaybird is in North Platte and maverick101 is here in omaha too. I am going to give him a call in the next week or two to see if he wants to run. What is up with you, did you just start triathlon? Would you be up for some rides or runs? Let me know.

[svpatel]

Thank you for all of the suggestions.
it's been tough because in the DC area it's been cold one day and warm the next...

[nycom99]

SV:

I live in the DC area as well. Aside from the rain of the past few days, I have continued to ride several days a week. It is all about the right clothes. I bought a WindStopper pair of pants, jacket, and inner layer from Performance. Their prices are reasonable and there is a coupon on this site for 10% off.

Gloves, shoe covers, and head cover will get you riding down into the 30's...

In the DC area there are a few organized rides that leave from Rock Creek Park and/or Silver Spring on Sundays. They'll ride as long as temps are over 28 degrees.

[^*^BATMAN^*^]

take lots of vacations to the southern hemisphere.....its summer all year long baby!!!

hahaha, I wish I could afford that. I normaly take a trip once a year in the middle of the winter to a hot island. Seeing all the hot girls in bikinis, makes me ashamed that I am not ripped, so it normaly gives me about 2-3 months of motivation, then it is outside biking time!!

[TysonB]

Off season tip?

Easy . . . think about how it feels to QUIT! It sucks!

Tyson
I'm 56 and quitting makes me sick.

[CC Rider]

I'm lucky enough that in my community there are several indoor triathlons during the winter and early spring months. While I don't change my training specifically for these events, they do serve to keep my motivation to train high as well as giving me periodic assessments of how training is going. Also, in the winter all training becomes data oriented. Since the variables involved in training indoors are fewer (no wind, hills, extremes in temperature) it allows for more attention to be paid to pace, heart rate, total distance, etc. Block your training early setting specific goals for each period, then document all the appropriate data religiously to monitor the improvement.

[^*^BATMAN^*^]

Off season tip?

Easy . . . think about how it feels to QUIT! It sucks!

Tyson
I'm 56 and quitting makes me sick.

touche

[sweetharriet]

DC Tri club is running its first time trial series starting this Saturday! www.dctriclub.net I've never done one, so I have no idea what it entails, but I imagine there's a stopwatch, a bike, and me, pedaling like crazy. :) That forum also has tons of good ideas on rides to get you out there, or links to other places with cue sheets, etc. Sometimes there's word of winter indoor spinning for 2-3 hours, with some good music cranking it's easier to imagine the hills. I upped my trainer riding the winter before my first 1/2 and it had me with a solid base come spring.

Swimming - well, it's indoors, right?

Running - what they said- layered clothes for variety. Potomac Runners and oodles of other groups if you need a starting time to help you get out of your warm bed. :)

[Ironman Dave]

I’ll go with the video collection. The Road to Paris always inspires me – it has Lance out on the mountains in crap weather.

The next thing to do is enter an Ironman – I do it in December (my winter) – makes me put my arse in gear for training.

Sunday I was out, solo, for 5 ½ houses with the average temperature of just over freezing, this week-end is 100 miles over hills (approx 7500 foot of climbing) – again freezing but that’s what it takes to be an Ironman.

Re-member we are tri-athletes the no matter what the weather there is always something to do – even if it is ½ hour of drills down the local baths then a sauna with a bit of stretching.

Something is always better than nothing.

Dave