Ah yes, winter season, the off-season for many athletes, like myself in the Northeast. A good time to do something different to give body, mind, and soul a little rest. A shift is great to keep yourself fresh, but it’s easy to get caught up in thinking you have to keep your fitness at the same peak as you did during your “on” season. It’s great to be improvement minded, as in technique, and skill building, but let your level of fitness come down. Allow the body to rest, spend more of your training time doing care and maintenance on both your equipment and your body. This means more long slow swims, long easy spins on the bike or even better get outside and do some pedaling on the snowy trails-FatBoys! Instead of running on the treadmill, see if you can get out onto some trails-dirt or snow-make for a good shift. I find with mountain bike riding on snowy trails enhances road riding skills as well as being more present and more aware of what you are doing. This shift can keep your mind sharp, and keep mind connected to the body. What’s key with the off-season is to keep some level of fitness, do skill and technique work, and don’t waste energy “forcing” or “motivating” yourself to be active. Think more about “inspiring” yourself and therefore others around you. Using inspire instead of “motivate” indicates creativity, fun, and a deeper sense. Motivation sounds like something on the surface, being forced, not my bag, I’d resist that as I like to feel and acknowledge I have a choice! Motivation and sacrifice are two words to abolish from your vocabulary! Replace them with inspire and choice.
I see many people on the treadmill at the club I belong to, yet I don’t get it. We live in one of the most beautiful places in the world, in the mountains of NH, so get out there and enjoy it. I understand some folks like the ease of the treadmill, and I am glad they are doing something. But exercise is not just something to cross off your list of things to do, or to do out of habit or do because you think you are supposed to. That’s all mindless! Do it because you want to, to feel good, to feel the sensation in your body, and to connect to it. The body is a better source of information than google! Keep it polished, the body, by getting outside as much as you can this winter/off-season!
I will do the same!
