COAC H novice to well-trained endurance athletes. Strength training sessions should be tailored to the athlete’s needs based on their experience and current strength level. Strength training should be viewed by endurance athletes as an additional tool in their goal to improve performance. Many strength and conditioning experts moved their gyms online and classes were given using online platforms like Zoom or Facebook Live. Classes were kept basic and required little to no equipment but were still effective enough to allow cyclists to perform resistance training. Many of the athletes we work
with have continued to include strength training in their programmes due to benefits they experienced during lockdown. The lockdown demonstrated to many cyclists that there is sufficient time to include strength training and you don’t need access to a gym to perform strength training. MANAGE YOUR EXPECTATIONS One of the biggest challenges to performance in 2020 was getting the timing right. Races were cancelled or rescheduled which meant training plans had to be adjusted accordingly to peak
later or sometimes earlier. The lack of “tune-up” races meant that often when cyclists arrived on the start line, it was their first race for quite some time and their form might not be at a level they would expect. Managing expectations appropriately due to changes in race dates can help reduce pre-race anxiety and deal with the disappointment if the race didn’t go as well as they had hoped for. It was certainly a challenging year, and 2021 may have a bumpy start too, but we can always learn from the past and apply that knowledge to future endeavours.
BENOIT CAPOSTAGNO currently works for Science to Sport in Cape Town. He is currently completing his PhD at the University of Cape Town and is investigating training adaptation and fatigue in cyclists. For more info: www.sciencetosport.com