Taking Stock at the End of Tri Season

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At the beginning of the season you set goals. Now, as your triathlon season draws to a close, you should compare your performances to those goals. Which goals did you reach? Which did you miss? No excuses, no ifs and no explanations! This is the time to be objective. You either reached a goal or you did not. Period.

Once you’ve assessed your season, you can plan your winter training and set goals for next year. Without an objective list of your strengths and weaknesses, your goals will be unrealistic or not challenging. Your training will not be focused on your weaknesses and will not help you reach your goals next year.

First Things First

After a season of racing, you need to give your body and mind a break. Take two to eight weeks to refocus, recharge and recover. During this period of recovery, you should not do any planned workouts. It’s fine to swim, cycle and run, but, make those sessions fun or social, not training. They should be easy, short and casual. Group rides or runs with stops for a cup of coffee or to take some photographs are perfect.

What did you learn?

Look at each area of triathlon across all of your races and make a list. The swim, the bike, the run and don’t forget transitions. Your assessment should be divided into:

Performance: Were you as fast as you hoped? Were you strong on the hills? Did you have enough speed?

Technical Skills: How did you handle the downhills? The corners? The rough water? The crowds?

Equipment: Do you need to repair or replace any equipment? Are you ready for aerobars? Do you need a bike fit? Do you need to replace your running shoes?

Set Out a Plan

The end of the season is a great time to upgrade equipment. Most vendors have sales before the new models are introduced. Often there are only minor changes from season to season, but there are big savings.

Next, how are you going to get more speed? More strength? Better swim technique?

Speed comes from strength and good technique. So the first thing you need to do is improve your technique. Make a list of the areas of each sport where you struggled, then decide how you will go about improving. Will you join a training team? Work with a coach?

Next, set out a strength-building plan for the offseason. This should be simple and straightforward. Build core strength. Build balance strength. And finally, build explosive strength.

Winter is a great time to improve your swimming and running. Enroll in a stroke clinic and focus on your swim technique. Then focus on swimming short and fast. Build your running by improving your balance muscles and your explosive strength. Cycling indoors can be used to improve your pedal stroke, cadence and strength. 

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