Prepared by Steve Brand Start tomorrow and change the way you do business! Get into a daily routine that includes balanced nutrition, rest, exercise, riding and vehicle service. You can't change a week before your first race and undo habits that you may have taken years to perfect! It is not easy for most of us. 1. Consume a high carbohydrate diet (see nutrition tips). These foods will nourish your muscle sugars (glycogens). The better your muscles are fuelled the less fatigued you will be during and after training and on race day. The less time you have for training the more important it is to eat properly and lets face it we all have jobs that get in the way of our sport, so plan accordingly. 2. Right after training or a race start consuming carbos such as fig bars, fruit etc. to start replacing depleted stores. 3. Drink lots of fluids to maintain hydration. H2O is good however a sports supplement will quickly restore your body's fluid chemistry. Make sure you warm down after training to bring your heart rate down slowly and to gently work out the by-products of exercise. 4. A small cup of coffee might be consumed just prior to the race. It may enhance your performance by making you more alert. This should be experimented with first in training to ensure there are only positive effects. 5. Endurance type training activities that enhance your stamina and breathing control are best. Cycling or running at an aerobic level for periods exceeding 30 minutes are great ways to improve stamina. The more and faster you cycle or run the better your breathing control will become. These abilities will pay off in short burst Snow Cross events and long distance events like the I500. When you lose breathing control and start hyper-ventilating you quickly lose concentration and then 2 things generally happen; You fog up, slow down and get passed or you suddenly become part of the landscape adjacent to the trail or track. 6. Try cycling 10 miles in 30 minutes or running 4 miles in 32 minutes. Concentrate on finishing the distance first before looking at the watch. The real mental test and training opportunity will come around the 1/2 way mark when your brain is telling you to quit. You must fight these thoughts and concentrate on positive things like how to spend the prize money or getting a factory ride. 7. A good daily routine should involve a cheap and highly portable format that relies on no equipment and can be done just about anywhere therefore making it "excuse proof" Try this one: As you start training, quality is more important than quantity. Therefore do 1 good chinup at a time if that is all you are capable of completing. The next day try 2 and so on until you are up to 8. You will see more progress by doing 1 good chinup 8 times daily than doing 8 poor ones once a day. You must pace yourself or you are inviting muscle damage that will prevent you from riding. 8. Train while you work and drive. As you will likely find out some day, arm pump can hit with little warning and can be so painful that you have to pull over. Keep a couple of sets of hand squeezers at home, at work and in the car. Get into a daily routine and start with 10 reps per hand. Eventually you should be able to build up to 50 squeezes per hand - per session. Try reversing the squeezer in your hand to exercise muscles in a different direction. Remember quality vs quantity is important! 9. Become familiar with all of your personal riding gear and how it works for you. All combinations of clothing must be tested well before race day and in all weather conditions so that you know how they will affect your riding style. There should be no surprises on the start line such as goggles fogging because you taped up a different way than normal. You have to develop and follow standard operating procedures that work for you. The biggest mistake made by new drivers is to overdress. On the start line you should almost be shivering. Maintain warmth before the start by wearing a Tekcape which is then handed off to your mechanic as you move to the start line. 10. Know your sled and it's systems. Even if you have the best mechanic the driver is ultimately responsible for any failures. The driver must be able to conduct all trailside repairs to get across the finish line. The driver and team must train together regularly to get to know the sled. Do not test any setup during competition, this is the quickest way out of the winner's circle. Test one change at a time and verify against an untouched referance sled. Keep detailed notes on all tests or you are doomed to repeat past mistakes and waste valuable time. You owe it to yourself and your sponsors to deliver the best return on time and money invested in your effort. Good luck! |
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