Fedofsky Friday

Fedofsky Friday: Indoor trainers, coffee & building your base

Coach Elizabeth Fedofsky Waterstraat shows
how the run is done at the Timberman

A few Fridays every month, Elizabeth (Fedofsky) Waterstraat, a top age-group fast rising professional triathlete, national age group champ, USA Cycling Coach and USA Triathlon Coach, drops in to answer your training questions and to brighten our day with her witty wisdom.

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Question: I am dreading, dreading, dreading, dreading getting on the trainer this winter. We’ve already had our second snowstorm and I have to finally get off my ass and get it done. First, do you have any tips on how to make sessions on the trainer more bearable? Second, is it true that 30 minutes on the trainer is the same as 60 minutes on the road? - Giovani A.

Fedofsky: Ah the trainer. There is nothing more that we, as winter imprisoned athletes, love to hate than the trainer. Expect maybe the treadmill. Yet we have no choice – bitter winter, icy streets, and snowy paths force us indoors to our respective pain caves. Don’t be fooled – some of the best triathletes in the nation work their way through winter on an indoor trainer. Trainers allow for high quality, steady, consistent sessions where you can achieve very specific goals. Ever tried a one-legged drill on the road? Take it to the trainer. Want to hold a steady wattage for more than 5 minutes? Trainer time. Steady climb that lasts for 20 minutes? Again, climb thee trainer.

Here are a few tips for how to make the trainer bearable?

1. Enlist a friend! Everything is better with friends. Make it a weekly date where you pop in a good movie and spin away. Each week switch off who chooses the movie, the genre, or duration of the film. Use the movie to dictate your workout. Have fun with this – you can sprint every time you hear a certain word or sense a recurrent theme. You can do a climb when the music plays. Mix it up, get creative.
2. Break it up. If you have a long ride to do, break it into two segments, one done in the morning, one in the later afternoon. Make one ride a quality ride with some low intensity or strength intervals while the other is simply an easy ride maintaining good form now that you are tired.
3. Invest in good gear. Thickly padded shorts, two fans, a new playlist on your IPOD – these are all comfort musts for riding indoors. Be sure to position your bike near a counter, stool or tall table so you have somewhere to put your towel, remote control and nutrition.
4. Treat it like a real ride. For some reason, athletes tend to skimp on calories and hydration when indoors. Keep in mind you tend to sweat more and burn through more calories on the trainer. Why? Because it doesn’t let up – there is no coasting, no stoplights, no down time. Trainer time is a great time to overfuel yourself so you can start training your gut to handle calories in both liquid and solid form. Be sure to drink sports drink and water as you will lose electrolytes and dehydrate quicker indoors.

To answer your last question: is it true that 30 minutes on the trainer is the same as 60 minutes on the road? Last I checked there was no secret time portal you enter when on the trainer. Time is time. There is no secret way to make 1 minute on the trainer equal 2. Time analogies like this are surely the doing of a fair-weathered cyclist that wear booties when it’s under 60 degrees. You know what I’m going to say – HTFU and ride. Time is time. The only thing that is certain is that it will always pass.

Question: Do you have a favorite pre-race coffee? - Mark B.

Fedofsky:The one that is in my hand! Once, and only once, did I make the mistake of missing my pre-race coffee ritual. Worst race of the year. I will say, though, that on race morning with so many things to do (pre-race potty, breakfast, warm up, set up transition, socialize, psyche self up in port-o-let) often finer coffee tastes fall to the wayside. I’ve been known to settle (reluctantly) for gas station coffee or – even worse – coffee at the hotel.

(moment of silence for all the coffee that just died)

Knowing the potential for a coffee meltdown was imminent at every race, my darling husband bought me a French press mug. With this, I am able to bring along my preferred coffee and make my own coffee on race morning. The only thing I need is hot water (I just run water through the hotel coffee maker). Now that I think about it, I usually drink a flavored coffee on racing morning. I have no idea why. I prefer dark roast but for some reason my ritual is flavored coffee – black. It’s always done the trick!

Question: I live in a fairly warm climate and can train outdoors most of the year and have been racing with fairly mediocre success for two years. My first 2009 race will be a sprint triathlon in late April and I want wrap my training around a better structure than my haphazard way I’ve done it in the past. Should I focus on building an aerobic base for a few months then start speeding up my work? I’m at a loss as to how to broadly plan for this. - Adam K.

Fedofsky:I honestly believe that in the Midwest, winter is our secret weapon. Why? Because it forces us to shut down and rest. The problem with warm climate athletes is that they have sunny days and 70 degrees available year-round. Training is just too damn attractive. As a result, athletes often do too much, too long and end up stagnating at the same level because they never get deep rest.

Start off 2009 (read: December) with a good, deep rest. This will mean saying no to friends and staying indoors on that beautiful day. It will mean delaying instant gratification for what will come to you long term – improvement and success. Spend January through March building a solid aerobic base. Focus on building strength, improving technique and keeping effort mostly low. A few increased efforts here and there will keep your fast twitch muscles firing but in general, slow things down and take your time.

Without knowing what the rest of your season looks like, I assume that the sprint race is just the beginning. So, really your task is to prevent early peaking and burnout by mid summer. That will mean holding back for most of the winter and then ramping things up slowly once spring arrives. Use the sprint race as a kick off to a season – not an evaluation of yourself. In other words, use it as an indicator of areas you need to improve and as a fun way to get back into the racing groove. Don’t expect or strive for peak performance so early in the year (unless your year ends in early summer).

Timing is one of the hardest things about putting together your training phases for the year. Knowing how much to do and when to do can be a delicate balance at times. It may help to talk with a coach to determine the best approach for your training phases. Best of luck in 2009!

If you have triathlon-related questions for Liz, or just want to know more about the ways she drives her husband nuts, fire ‘em off to us at questions@theoutdoorjourney.com. You can read more about Liz’s adventures on her blog at http://elizabethfedofsky.blogspot.com/ or her coaching services at www.multisportmastery.com.

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