While the idea of off-season sounds wonderful—free weekends, waking up after sunrise, later bedtimes, and added energy—it is a struggle for me to actually relax and take time off! I know that I am not the only athlete that wrestles with the ideas of off-season weight gain, the challenge of starting fresh next season, and maintaining fitness level while giving our bodies a break. Questions of what to do differently, how much more to train, or when to begin training again fill our thoughts.
Please let me help in answering these questions as someone who has faced the same challenges for years. For starters, what you can do differently this up coming season is grant yourself time off. Not only does your body need a break physically, but mentally as well. Designate a time-frame to be off (3 months, the winter, 16 weeks) and stick to it! During this time, remain active. Athletes often believe time-off equals weight gain, however this does not need to be true. The body naturally adjusts to a reduced caloric expenditure and does not require as much fuel (calories). You will have to listen to your body and not eat when you are not hungry. You may not need the additional snack you ate before or after a four-hour bike. However, stay active and find new sports/activities to participate in.
Learning a new sport can be exhilarating and remind you of how far you have come in your current sport. This off-season, I decided to learn tennis and golf. Both are activities I chose because I live in a warm climate year-round. They are lifelong, social sports, and family and friends all play! The new challenges have taught me patience, respect for sport, and admiration for other athletes. It has given me the opportunity to think back to my early days of triathlon when I became acquainted with my bike clips. I feared stopping, and oftentimes would fall over scraping my entire side. How quickly we forget the struggles we overcame to get to where we are today! Sometimes we only focus on what’s ahead (very important in athleticism), however equally important is an appreciation of how far we have progressed.
Even though these two new sports are extremely challenging and cannot be perfected overnight, I bring the same drive and motivation I have in triathlon to the court and course. It’s not always how much more time or training we invest in sports, but the approach in which we train. Maybe this off-season will be the key to technique improvement, which in the end will make you more efficient while using less energy.
Starting your training NOW for the upcoming season may seem like the best way to improve, however it may only be a direct path to BURNOUT. Sports seasons are long, and there is plenty of time for training. Give yourself the training gift of REST. Find a new endeavor, and who knows? Maybe it will make you a better athlete than you thought you could be.