Summer is in fully swing. Temps are soaring, humidity is excessive, and training blocks are at an all time high. Am I right?! Training in these less than ideal conditions is tough stuff. It requires a bit more planning and the willingness to throw pace out the window. For a lot of us, that’s hard. But, I have a few tips to help you get through the dog days of summer.

Setting goals. As the off season wears on, now is the time to start defining what you want to achieve in the upcoming racing season. One of the biggest limiters an athlete can have is not setting clearly defined goals to help with accountability throughout a season.

When setting up goals, the best way to go about defining them is by using the SMART method. SMART stands for:

Specific

Measurable

Attainable

Realistic

Timely

Let’s dive into each of these in a bit more detail.

I find indoor training to be useful for a variety of reasons. While I use it a lot more in the winter months, I will also use it during the summer if I have a specific session that requires focus. Here is a list, not extensive, of benefits of indoor cycling:

Focus. I will do a lot of key workouts indoors if it requires me to hit specific power targets. Outside riding has too many variables that might prevent a solid workout (such as stop signs/lights, cars, terrain that is not ideal for the session).

Work on Weakness. If you are weak in an area then the trainer can provide an uninterrupted space to allow you to focus. Do you need one leg drills?

The ending of triathlon season should be a joyous time. Don’t think of it as the off-season, but as an opportunity to try new things and exercise in different ways than you could during the peak of race season. In fact, I would say it is good for your mental health to turn off the triathlon training and focus on different types of exercise for a couple of months. Below I’ve listed out some great cross training alternatives to help you through the winter and leave you feeling strong and excited about the next triathlon training and racing season.