Christmas is a time to kick back, eat cheese footballs and cheat at Monopoly. Biking takes a back seat, as we enjoy some time off with family and friends. Right? Well, maybe, for some of us. Others have a bit more difficulty letting go of routine. If you’re worried about your training suffering during the festive period, we have some solutions.
- Work out how many miles you should be riding over the festive period, and do them all at once. You’ll have the added pleasure of qualifying for the Rapha 500 overnight, and the calorie deficit will require multiple slabs of Christmas cake to put right.
- Plan your training meticulously so Christmas coincides with a two-week ‘recovery’ segment. Recovery, as we all know, is best achieved by parking yourself on the sofa in front of Love, Actually with three cats, some craft beer and a family tub of roasted cashews.
- Cross-train. Remember the weird exercise routines in the back of every cycling magazine? Now’s the time to try these out. Not only will they limber you up for a game of Twister, you’re bound to crick your back trying to get your ankle behind your neck, which leads us neatly to…
- Get injured. Maybe you decide to go for your first run in twenty years. Or set up the rollers in the hall. However you manage it, once you’ve injured yourself properly, you can sit about without guilt for the next two weeks, rousing yourself only to lift your glass feebly for a refill every hour or so and fret loudly about how you wish you could help with something.
- Get ill. Socialising with friends and relatives is an ideal way to pick up something debilitating and long-lasting. With luck, you’ll be able to get out of that trip to Whitstable altogether. And at the very least, no-one will let you do any of the food prep.
- Book a Lanzarote training camp and ignore the whole thing.
Alright, everyone! That’s it for a few days. We’ll check back in next week for a couple of days before we sign off for New Year celebrations. Have a fun and safe Christmas, and be sure you get in some gritty riding. See you next week! – Ed.