The end of the road?     

For many racing cyclists October represents the end of the racing period, and the beginning of the winter recuperation period. So, what do you do now?

During October - for those that have finished racing this season, it's time to recharge your batteries, both mentally, and physically. I call this period "Rest and Recovery".

Rest and Recovery
Rest and recovery training should last around 2 - 6 weeks, depending on various factors including:

· Duration of race season
· Mental fatigue
· Physical fatigue

Does rest and recovery mean not exercising? No. Rest and recovery means taking it easy, allowing your body to recuperate from the stress you've been placing on it for the last 9 or so months. It also requires that you still do some exercise!

For 99% of cyclists I believe that cross training is an ineffective method of training for anyone above 'novice' level (and I've yet to see any research to prove to the contrary). However, cross training maybe beneficial for cyclists who've had a specific injury that requires some other form of training (e.g., after a broken bone, you may be required to do some strength training, or if you've broken your leg it's unlikely you'll be cycling, so some weight training will be beneficial). However, the rest and recovery period is a good time for some athletes to partake in cross training, for a mental break from cycling.

The main benefit of cross training is that it keeps you active without over doing your cycling, and therefore, helps keep you mentally fresh. By definition during the rest and recovery period, the intensity of 'training' is low, so you don't need to be a 'expert' in another mode of exercise. However, you should practise other sports carefully, so as not to injure yourself. Ideas for cross training could include (but, isn't limited to):

· Mountain Biking (if you're normally a road rider, or vice versa!)
· Inline skating
· Cross country skiing
· Running
· Swimming
· Weight training

If you have a partner, one suggestion is to choose something you could both do together. If there is a fitness disparity between the two of you, then you should exercise at the more sedate level. If you are both similar in terms of fitness, then please don't make it a competition, and take it easy…

Yet another option for this time of year is the ubiquitous club run / café stop. Normally, I don't recommend these rides as they are generally pretty poor as a training tool, however at this point you're not looking for a training effect. So for some sociable riding this could be good - just don't turn it into a 'burn up'.

What to do?
Now that you're training time has decreased, you'll be left with more available free time, here are some things to do:

· MOT - Get all your maintenance work done on your bike(s). Clean and polish your bike(s)
· Family and Friends - Spend some extra time with your partner/family/friends
· Lighten Up - Don't stress over your diet - keep it healthy, but have some treats
· Relax - Chill out, watch some TV, have half an hour longer in bed, read a book
· Learn - How about learning something new? What about a unicycle?
· Map reading - Work out some new training routes? Ride regular routes in reverse, for a 'new' route
· Massage - Get a massage, or better still take a short course in massage

Next Season
After the first couple of rest and recovery weeks, you should start planning for next season. Goal setting is an exceedingly important aspect of training, without it, it's a bit like driving somewhere without any idea of where you are going and how to get there… difficult, frustrating, and you'll lack direction. I like goals to be SMART

· Specific - (e.g.) take 1 minute off your personal best
· Measurable - (e.g.) ride a 40km TT in 58 minutes (rather than beat my regular training partner)
· Agreed - if your goal(s) is set with a coach/parent/partner/etc. then the goal needs to be agreed by both parties
· Realistic - your goals should be possible to complete with the correct training.
· Pointless setting the goal "to win the Tour de France" if you've struggling behind the main bunch in a road race
· Time based - short, medium, and long, term goals should be set. When does each goal need to be completed by? This week, next month, 2 years?

Enjoy!
During this reduced period of training, the self-coached athlete can often feel guilty at not training 'properly'. Don't. It's vital that you take sometime off to recover. Enjoy it, and just remember that it won't be long before training proper starts!