The end of one season is also the beginning of another. Your training and racing this past season has taught you a great deal about your strengths and weaknesses, about your mind and body. While the lessons are still fresh in your mind, use them to create an actionable plan for an even better season next year.
We all are familiar with the 80/20 rule: 20% of our activities generate 80% of our results. Conversely, 80% our activities produce only 20% of our results. It’s easy to fall into the trap of spending our time on the trivial details that don’t produce results.
You can follow the actionable steps detailed here to get you headed on the right path. To start, you’ll need a paper and pencil (or your computer screen), a copy of your current year goals and events, and a calendar. And a few minutes of quiet time.
Step 1:
Review the goals you set for yourself for this season (you did have goals, right?). Re-write each of your goals, and then your results. Compare the two. Did you attain your goal? Why or why not? Be as detailed as possible, and be honest with yourself.
Step 2:
Write down your weaknesses. And again, be honest with yourself. Then prioritize them from most important to least, and detail how you plan to address each of them. Keep in mind that weaknesses can take many shapes. They may include the obvious, such as lack of climbing power, poor pedaling mechanics, a poor level of muscular endurance or lack of basic endurance.
Weaknesses may also include less obvious topics, such as poor nutrition habits, a lack of mental preparation, poor planning and goal setting, and poor record keeping (training log) to name a few.
Step 3:
Focus first on the one, most obvious opportunity for improvement, and the one that you can impact the most dramatically. Determine a plan of action for this one piece of the puzzle. Set specific desired end result and timetable for this one piece, then move on to the next. .
Step 4:
Now look at your strengths. You may have heard the saying, “train your weaknesses and race your strengths.” How can you use your strengths to your advantage? Which races and/or event courses complement your strengths?
Step 5:
Now shift your focus to the upcoming season. What is that critical component, that “1” thing you feel you simply MUST do or accomplish next season so that when you look back, you’ll be able to claim the season a “success?”
Step 6:
Consider the critical, key, “must have” goal in Step 5, and set actionable steps as to how to achieve, along with timelines. As you do this, keep the 80/20 rule in mind. Focus on those big, important activities which will generate most of your results.
A periodized training plan is critical to your success. First, plan your year in a detailed fashion, then follow the plan. Many athletes don’t have a plan and train in a hodge-podge fashion, or they simply do what the group wants to do that particular day. Other athletes have a plan but don’t stick to it. Either of these errors guarantees that you will not reach your full potential.
I can help you set your goals and plan for next year, or I can coach you individually if you’re ready for this level. Contact me with any questions. Then GET OUT AND RIDE!
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This year I started racing. The first step was SPBRC’s intro to racing workshops. These helped immensely. The second step was to start racing. I participated in a number of crits and made progress, though I was never sure where I should enter. The Cat 5 guys were mostly lunatics with crashes throughout the race. The 50+ guys ate my lunch. My goals were simple in this order. 1. Don’t crash. 2. Don’t get lapped. 3. Don’t be last. 4. Don’t get dropped. By my fourth crit I achieved my fourth goal, but it was a combination of low turnout and luck got me there. Now as I think to next year, I think I need that high output endurance so I can hang with the pack until things settle down. So that probably means more interval workouts!