What to Do When Your Race is Cancelled
Frank Overton
In light of the recent COVID-19 outbreak, the timing of your training for the 2020 cycling season has changed. Races are in question, stress is high, and a lot of us are wondering how to proceed with our seasons with so much being up in the air. So we decided to sit down and chat about the age old question: what should we do when our races get cancelled? How do we proceed when plans change? A lot of us are in this position, so we hope that this clears some of the worry and unknown when it comes to the next few weeks of the season.
#KeepCalmAndFtFPOn . Here are 3 training scenarios if your plans have changed per our "Timing is Everything" Podcast:
#1 your next race is in 6-10 weeks (and/or you have MORE time to train):
Keep raising your CTL (Chronic Training Load) - everybody benefits from a 'bigger base' so keep building. In other words go from 'race' back to 'base' [reverse!] . In this case we advocate a Sweet Spot Part 3 training plan approach. With a ramp rate of 3-4 TSS per week you now have the opportunity to take your CTL 12 - 16 TSS/day higher from 75 - 90 (for example) which will make a big difference in not only your endurance but also your power output.
#2 your next race is in 6-10 weeks (and you have LESS time to train):
For example, your kids are home from school and you can't ride outdoors like normal. In this case you may adopt a 'go harder to compensate for less time to train' approach to your goals from an interval training plan like the ones here.
#3 you are a cyclocross'er in the off season and don't want to go to the gym anymore [#flattenthecurve]
We advocate making your own home gym with the strength and conditioning movements we prescribe in our 10 week resistance training plan. You'll have to let go of the squat, leg press and leg curl from the plan and double down on these strength and conditioning movements and routines
- Nino's
- Coach Brandon's #secretTraining 5 minute Plank
- Your REVO Physiotherapy Hydrate & Skate band exercises
- EC Fit Strength and Conditioning App
- YogaGlo
I feel great and FAST Right Now:
Good (!) & congratulations! Sounds like your training is working (you've been #FtFP'ing). Here are a few things you can do to flex your muscle:
#1 measure how much faster you are with a 20 minute Field Test - not the 'funnest' so perhaps # 2 is your jam
#2 go for your favorite Strava segment for a PR - take a page out of FasCat Athlete Phil Gaimon's playbook and test yourself agains your previous best.
We hope these suggestions and podcast help - that's what we're here for: to help you go faster on the bike. Should you have anymore questions, concerns, dilemmas, obstacles, etc... reach out to your FasCat Coach, hire one or go to our athlete forum and post your question - we'd be glad to try and help!
Foundation : 3 Weeks
- Perfect for all cyclists beginning off season training
- Raise your CTL and the all-important muscle tension intervals
Phil Gaimon's FONDO
- Complete similar workouts to what Phil does to prepare for all his KOM's
- Sweet Spot training, threshold intervals, and some anaerobic work
Phil Gaimon's Strava PR Plan
- Perfect Plan for Those with Less Training Time, starts at 15 minutes per day
- VO2's, 1 minuters, Tabatas, threshold, suprathreshold, and even Sweet Spot
Road Race In-Season
- Weekend racing and group rides with weekday training and recovery
- anaerobic efforts like criss cross, Over/Unders Sweet Spot, Threshold
Road Racing Intervals
- Increase your functional and race-specific power output
- Includes Sweet Spot, VO2, Anaerobic, Threshold
