Falling Leaves, Regimens and Seizing the Moment
Autumn here is South Africa means the end of the season for
many endurance athletes. After a summer of preparing for and participating in
some of tougher athletic events on the planet, one could be forgiven in
thinking that these athletes would be looking forward to the onset of cooler
climes and re-charging their batteries for next summer.
I never used to be a fan of autumn. The onset of falling
leaves seemed so final making me wish for an endless summer. Yet ensuing age
and broadening perspectives have led to my embracing this time of the year,
although the term “winter” in South Africa can be almost a misnomer in
comparison to the weather patterns of the Northern Hemisphere.
Having enjoyed a busy summer including several freelance
working jobs within the cycling industry, the onset of shorter days and cooler
evenings is appealing. Shorter days mean less inclination for ultra-early
morning training sessions; cooler nights result in better sleep and
appreciation for just being at home.
While life on the road does appeal to my adventurous nature,
the week immediately following my working
at the ABSA Cape Epic was immensely satisfying in the opposite sense. After the
hustle and bustle of the professional mountain biking scene, the more academic
sphere of my day job proved a great leveler. Interestingly, one of the riders I worked with was actually looking
forward to her mandatory dentistry tutorials post-Epic week. A top professional
rider excited about her studies? As far-fetched as it may sound, it is true and
has occurred on more than one occasion in the past. Former rider and current
team owner Jonathan Vaughters related in his now defunct monthly magazine
columns about how achieving top grades in his part-time chemistry studies
seemed easy in comparison to slogging it out in Europe from January to October.
Upon returning home, he would compress his degree work into the short window-period
that was his off-season bringing him an optimal balance to the physical nature
of his day job.
My own athletic pursuits for 2014 culminate on Easter
Saturday with an ultra-marathon, where I am hoping for peak performance. But
maybe culminate is not exactly the correct term given my preferred specialty of
our local cross-country league here over the winter period, beginning about a
month after the aforementioned long distance event. Training by the day as
opposed to a rigid weekly structure truly does have its benefits, one of which
being an athlete’s ability to compete whenever the urge strikes, conventional
seasons and the much flawed notion of periodization aside.
My ultra-marathon buildup has definitely erred to that of
the underdone, admittedly somewhat deliberately but also due to circumstance.
Combining my full-time job as a cartographer with my sideline industry of
massage therapy and sporting team support does eat into free time. Not that I’m
complaining though; far from it in fact as I am living my dream. The point here
is that I cannot realistically expect to perform the sheer amount of training
that many of my running or cycling peers churn out on a weekly basis. And to be
honest, I don’t have the inclination to mimic these mega-mileage routines in
any case. Following a pre-determined set of numbers in a spreadsheet is at odds
with my love of nature and adventure. Rather, a loose regimen that fluctuates
in volume and frequency with respect to daily life lends itself to optimizing
such factors as energy levels, mood, weather and sleep among others. Peak
performance in your chosen sport can therefore be achievable
without the constraints of accumulated duration or miles, flat-line consistency
and staleness so often seen in athletes of all levels.
Having maintained a daily regimen of 20 minute jogs and
supporting calisthenics whilst away on tour, stepping back into a more normal
routine has been seamless. Had I tried to maintain my usual exercise volume
during this period could have resulted in a delayed onset of fatigue, illness
or even injury upon returning home. Add in the unnecessary stress of trying to
squeeze in training sessions into an already hectic work schedule and you would
have the perfect recipe for imminent disaster. The key is to do a little
something every day, thus getting a taste of our usual exercise routine and the
accompanying heightened mental-state without taxing the body and mind.
The penultimate day of my time away was a bright and sunny
Saturday, our location being in a region of extensive pine forests and
mountains, rural and tranquil. The nature (sic) of that days racing afforded us
support staff the luxury of some time to ourselves. Those couple of hours
before the resumption of my working duties opened up the opportunity for an
extended period of running in this amazing area. A leisurely breakfast with our
hosts to the sounds of their bird colony followed a most inspiring and exhilarating
eighty minute excursion up into the nearby woods.
That Saturday morning excursion was a pivotal moment for me.
Having felt slightly fatigued and “niggly” during most training sessions in the
weeks immediately prior, scaling back on my usual day-to-day regimen was what I
needed, not to mention the marked change of environment. Feeling like my usual
self was gratifying, reminding me of the importance and value of such
excursions as opposed to merely going through the daily motions.
Sometimes we all need a bit of that.
