Ah the offseason.
This means long, low intensity rides with all your friends. This means beer and carbs galore. This means playing in the dirt in cyclocross and frequent rides into the dark of night. I was looking forward to it. However, my decision to be a track sprinter means that I can't partake in most of these things. What does the offseason mean for a track sprinter? Gym.
I've never really had a gym phase in my life. Sure I dabbled in some bench pressing a few times in high school, but never any real training. First few days were horrible, but I'm starting to get it. My body is recovering faster and my legs are feeling less fatigued. All good things. I do miss how fresh legs feel, though.
If I said everything was perfect, I'd be lying. My body just isn't used to structured training. It's both physically and mentally draining. I'm slowly beginning to realize just how specialized track sprinting is. The deeper I get into the world of sprinting, the worse everything else seems to get. My average road ride speed seems slower. I struggle more on longer rides. I hurt more on climbs. It has been a really tough pill to swallow.
Without any actual sprint events, all I felt was that I was just getting slower. I eventually faltered under the pressure I had put on myself, questioning my dedication, fearing failure. I was on the fence with just giving up on serious competition and returning to just riding for fun. In short, Amy did the heavy lifting of talking me out of it. In the end, it came down to just sticking to it, and seeing how far I could really with this so called "natural talent." Who knows, maybe down the line I'll really fall in love with it all.
An important role to note when it comes to any sport is the role of the coach. Not only is it a coach's job to look after an athlete's physical well being, but also look after an athlete's mental health. For the short time I've been working with my own coach, he's been great at both. Thanks, Lee.
P.S. I can get a decent sprint on the rollers after my first real session on them. Woo hoo!
This means long, low intensity rides with all your friends. This means beer and carbs galore. This means playing in the dirt in cyclocross and frequent rides into the dark of night. I was looking forward to it. However, my decision to be a track sprinter means that I can't partake in most of these things. What does the offseason mean for a track sprinter? Gym.
I've never really had a gym phase in my life. Sure I dabbled in some bench pressing a few times in high school, but never any real training. First few days were horrible, but I'm starting to get it. My body is recovering faster and my legs are feeling less fatigued. All good things. I do miss how fresh legs feel, though.
If I said everything was perfect, I'd be lying. My body just isn't used to structured training. It's both physically and mentally draining. I'm slowly beginning to realize just how specialized track sprinting is. The deeper I get into the world of sprinting, the worse everything else seems to get. My average road ride speed seems slower. I struggle more on longer rides. I hurt more on climbs. It has been a really tough pill to swallow.
Without any actual sprint events, all I felt was that I was just getting slower. I eventually faltered under the pressure I had put on myself, questioning my dedication, fearing failure. I was on the fence with just giving up on serious competition and returning to just riding for fun. In short, Amy did the heavy lifting of talking me out of it. In the end, it came down to just sticking to it, and seeing how far I could really with this so called "natural talent." Who knows, maybe down the line I'll really fall in love with it all.
An important role to note when it comes to any sport is the role of the coach. Not only is it a coach's job to look after an athlete's physical well being, but also look after an athlete's mental health. For the short time I've been working with my own coach, he's been great at both. Thanks, Lee.
Forget that you might have talent. Just be patient and it will all be more fun. Your body and mind adapt. You are at the beginning, the beginning is always the hardest part.
There is no pressure except that you feel from yourself
I would like you to do well, but I don't need you to. So don't think you owe me, anyone else, or that you owe your "talent." That's just bullshit. Look at it one day at a time
Here's to a rocky, but so far successful start to the offseason.
No comments:
Post a Comment