It's that time of Year AND Athlete Updates!

First things first ... a shout out to some TTE athletes racing recently:

* Marie Muchow ... for her efforts at the Run for Hunger 10k ... a nice prep as she rolls into the final stages of CIM training!

* Mike Starkey ... a new TTE member, Mike kicked of his partnership with us by executing a great first event at the Santa Barbara Half Marathon. Great to have you Mike!!!

* Leslie Shaw ... for her terrific execution at the Ironman 70.3 WC's in Clearater and top 20 finish in her age group. John & Phil

* John Lander ... the ageless wonder chalks up another gutsy finish in Clearwater at the Ironman 70.3 WC's

* Phil Johnson ... finally wrapped a long season with a fast finish at the Ironman 70.3 WC's as well!!

As these folks are finishing up their season it leads me into the following piece ...

Transitioning Back to Training

Below is an article that I like to re-visit on a yearly basis as we hit a period of recovery or a transitional time of the year where we move back to structured training. These periods are often October or November depending on the athlete, sport or length of season. Currently some athletes are just finishing their 2009 season while others are beginning their 2010 campaign Take a read through the following, it may help you gather some ideas when you think about your 2010 season.

As athletes come off a break and move back to structured training, it’s what I like to refer to as a transitional phase of your endurance sports season. Some of us have started to prepare for next year, some of you are running a December marathon, and some of you are taking this month as a period of recuperation but as some point we all go through this phase. The first thing I should note before addressing my “rules” of the transitional phase is this. It is crucial you have had some recuperation from your season and a break from structured training before you begin this phase. This recuperation period can range from 3-8 weeks of un-structured exercise at low intensity with frequent days off. This period is especially important for those who have had any injuries so that they may be addressed properly. The last thing you want to do is start a new training period dealing with injuries from the last season. Take care of those first before moving on! Of course I'd structure this time differently for each athlete depending on the past year(s) of training and racing. Things you should consider? How much training you did, how much you raced, the type of training and racing you did (long vs. short course distance) are you truly motivated to start back to structured training, and do you still have any existing “injuries” or major deficiencies?

DL's 10 Rules as Applied to a "Transitional Period"

1) Start this period physically and psychologically 100% "ready to roll". If you have to force any part of your training at this point you need to spend more time recuperating.

2) Do NO sustained training above heart rate Level 2 to low Level 3. (relative to my HR Scale) This means very aerobic! NOTE: this does not mean you can’t do some shorter efforts to train “speed”, “power”, accelerations or strength. If you are structurally sound this is a time you can include short hill repeats (full recovery), short strides, accelerations especially into your running.

3) Do strength train. Pay special attention to weaknesses and injury prevention, especially since I am talking about us “older” athletes!

4) Work on being consistent with your training. I'd prefer to see athlete's complete short, frequent training sessions, not big sessions infrequently.

5) Train with more frequency in your weakest discipline. This means short, frequent, high quality, technical sessions.

6) Work on technique often, in all disciplines. Starting with your weakest discipline, make sure you do some technique focus for all activities. Start working on your economy NOW and you'll be better for it in the middle of 2008.

7) At no time should you feel "nuked" from your training. Days off / easy days should be scheduled into our programs or as a result of "life issues", NOT because of fatigue.

8) Better Nutrition! Almost all of us can benefit from this and there is no reason you can't start NOW! Think about changing a key factor that may be detrimental to your daily training, recovery and general lifestyle.

9) Be Patient. This is simple, keep putting money in the "fitness bank" without withdrawing any. You'll need to spend this money later in the season. Any questions see Rule #7.

10) Finish this phase physically and psychologically 100% "ready to roll".

OF NOTE: How long does this period last you ask? For some it’s as short as 3-4 weeks, for others they get a lot of benefit and improvement by rolling it for at least 8 weeks!

Until Next Time ... DL