Hi there,
“Am I still an athlete if I don’t have races on the calendar?”
I get asked this question regularly by athletes. In fact, some find it as stressful to have an empty calendar as they do a big race looming.
2025 races are already starting to appear on the calendar, and you may be one of those folks stressing about which race to enter, so I’m going to offer up an alternative.
What about if you had a season with no racing?
You redirect your focus from race outcomes, to the journey of training itself. Working out regularly would then become a process rather than an outcome. No need to hit weekly mileage goals or do regular tests to see if you are improving.
Instead you could focus more on the journey of exploration and fun, fall in love with the idea of unstructured training. Going for a run to enjoy feeling the autumn leaves crunch under your feet as you run on new paths through the woods rather than having to run for 20 minutes in zone 4. Or riding your bike with friends to discover a new coffee shop rather than some big gear efforts on the local hills.
I know that for some this might feel very uncomfortable and I totally get that. I’m not suggesting that you never race again, merely that it is OK to have a season or two with no races.
If you still aren’t sure, how about this as a suggestion? Spend just a month or two building these 4 key foundation stones for long term fitness and health:
- Easy endurance work - you may know this as MAF or Zone 2 training. Regardless of the title you give it, this type of training is the cornerstone of great endurance. It’s what helps to build your engine by encouraging your body to build more mitochondria. In fact, for athletes over 50 this is vital because loss of mitochondrial function is a natural part of growing older. Swim, bike and run training is great but you can do pretty much anything at low intensity. So long walks with your family are just as good!
- Recovery - these are the building blocks of good health and longevity so pay attention to sleep, nutrition and associated practices like meditation and deliberate breathing practice
- Mobility & strength - endurance athletes often relegate these to the bottom of their priority list. Building a sustainable training routine means moving well and being robust (another essential for athletes over 50!!). When you do race again, you’ll also find it helps your overall performance. (You can get a FREE copy of my daily mobility plan HERE
- Sprinkling of speed and intensity - we don’t need as much high end work as we think, but we do need some. Speed is about moving the limbs quicker and I like to have these in the plan year round, and even on recovery weeks. Threshold and Vo2-max work is important, so it should be part of your specific race plans. But for sustainable fitness, short efforts at random intervals sprinkled through your week are fine. It doesn’t need to be more than 5% of your total weekly volume.
Last week I wrote about end of season break, and it’s clear that many folks don’t like to have a complete absence of exercise from their schedule. So if it’s a mental break you are looking for, this is a perfect time of year to try this out. You can do this without pressure. And who knows, you might even enjoy the focus on process and stick with it for longer!
With that being said, you might still be anxious about whether you are an athlete without races in the calendar.
This is the definition of an athlete that I found: “An athlete is someone who trains and excels in competitive or recreational physical activities or sports, demonstrating skill, endurance, and dedication.”
Think long term. If you could do this for the next 3 years without major interruption you would have a sustainable balanced approach to long term fitness. Then you will have enough to enter any race you like!
Feel free to share your thoughts on my Facebook page.
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I really appreciate you being part of my tribe and I look forward to helping you achieve better health and better performance.
Simon
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Please check out these podcasts and articles
PODCAST: Dealing with motivation, self doubt and anxiety before big events
When you're getting close to the day of your big event it’s natural to feel some nerves and even a little anxiety. It happens to everyone, even the very top performers. In fact, if you felt no anxiety or nerves at all, that would probably be a bad thing. Josie Perry has some suggestions on how you can conquer these issues.
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ARTICLE: It's not just you. Even Olympians have challenges
I hope you were able to enjoy the Paris Olympics as much as I did. Many of the athletes you watched had overcome some big challenges. Like GB Rower Georgie Brayshaw who recovered from a 9 day coma and temporary paralysis after a horse riding accident to rebuild her health and fitness and eventually win a Gold medal in the Women's Quadruple sculls.
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