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MAIDENHEAD & DISTRICT
CYCLING CLUB

Training rides

Members and non-members are welcome.
Medium RoadSunday 9:30am at Maidenhead Railway Station. 30 miles / 2 hours on road, plus café stop.
Hard RoadSunday (8:30am BST; 9:00am GMT) at the Bird's Hill Golf Centre entrance (A330 / Drift Road roundabout, SU873750). 40-60 miles 20 mph+ on road.

Training guide

Fitting it in

OK, so none of us are pros. This means we need to juggle our training into the rest of our life - important things like housekeeping, family commitments, work or school, and a social life. Probably the most important thing is to calculate how much time can be freed up to fit in some serious training. Keep a diary of your week.

Goals

There are two types of goals (or three if you include watching England in your social life diary):
  1. Outcome goals
    These are the obvious goals - achieving a personal best (PB), race placing, losing a few pounds, etc.
  2. Process goals
    These are internal goals - perfecting technique, learning skills, improving your diet, etc.
Think about what your goals are for the season - grab an event calendar and look for any events that catch your eye. Maybe you want to do better in an event than last season; try for a longer distance; or you've an chance of grabbing some silverware. Then think longer term. Where do you want to be next year? The Commonwealth Games and Olympics occur only once every four years, so you will probably only have one, or maybe two, chances at the top of your form.

Set your goals

Don't just list them, but really think about making them happen:
Specific - what are you trying to do?
Measurable - always set a goalpost.
Achievable - put the goalpost above the horizon!
Realistic - do one thing at a time.
Tierd - split into short and long term milestones.
Exciting
Recorded - back to that diary again.

Identify your weaknesses

Assess what is stopping you from achieving your goals, e.g. endurance, sprinting, hill-climbing, etc. Plan progression into your goals' milestones - train to improve these weaknesses.

Training plan

By now you should have a list of events you aim to PB on, and a list of weaknesses that need overcoming before that date. There are two main overall season plans to consider:
  1. The One Step
    This is where a single event dominates your calendar. Typically chosen by Lance Armstrong with a single goal of winning the Tour de France. It builds up over the season to a single 'golden' period. Major events before this are avoided, as they may drain energy for the important event. Afterwards there's no energy left in the bank, and you're straight into the recovery period.
  2. The Double Bubble
    This is where the season is split into two. You might choose this if you've an important, non cycling, event within the main cycling season, for example exams or a family holiday. It has the advantage of generally extending your competition season over a longer period at the expense of a mid-season dip.
Copyleft 2002-8, Maidenhead & District Cycling Club. This is an open source document.