Building Your Annual Plan

Changing Focus With The Seasons

First, a link to everything we already have on the site.

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Year On A Page

You’ll find a simple spreadsheet here.

MAKE A COPY BEFORE YOU TRY TO EDIT

Start by putting everything you are considering into the sheet.

• Travel

• Holidays

• School Holidays

• Work Events

• Family Commitments

Once that’s done, I like to color code certain things:

• Sleeping At Sea Level (I’m normally at altitude in Colorado)

• Driving More Than 2 Hours

• Getting On A Plane

• Crossing More Than Two Time Zones

• Sleeping Above 6,500 feet / 2,000 meters

Then I pause and consider... how much “more” can I fit in for training camps and races.

In the video (below), I talk you through this step.

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Long-Term Goals

With work, kids, family and a desire to improve… often we discover we are over scheduled before we add any races.

The video talks about the role of surfacing what’s not important to our goals.

It also discusses creating a life structure that supports our specific goal(s).

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A Seasonal Focus

Let’s walk through an entire year, starting with the “off-season.”

The picture (below) shows the off-season is really a 13-week block, usually in Fall. In this block we:

• Shed Accumulated Fatigue

• Progress Our Non-Training Life

• Establish Health Baselines

• Establish Training Baselines

From Season Start Up - Part One

The next phase sees us through winter. I recommend an Anabolic Phase, one that leaves you strong, healthy and looking forward to the natural up-swing that arrives in Spring.

As we move into Spring, we add:

• Sport-Specific Strength

• Long Days

• Green Zone Volume, especially Cycling

Late-Spring is an excellent time to place a volume-oriented training camp. If you want to travel to a nice climate then do a training camp¹, rather than a low-priority race. This advice is an extension of my mantra, don’t trade volume for intensity.

The critical success factor missing in many programs is Green Zone Volume. Training camps address this limiter.

A core part of my elite, and amateur, success was a commitment to year-round training camps. They are also where I generated my best memories and made lifelong friendships.

Moving into Summer:

1. Pause

2. Consider When You’d Like To Peak

If you are aiming for a late-season peak then the most important considerations are:

• An Early Summer Unload

• A Return To Base

• Not Overdoing The Specific Preparation

Once we are really “fit” from a General Capacity point of view… it does not take long to get race ready. I gave you detailed Specific Preparation implementation tips in the Basic Week Series that I won’t repeat here.

Across the entire year, bear this tip in mind…

• Green Zone mistakes clear relative quickly

• Red Zone mistakes can end your season

Make sure you have your zones set correctly and be humble with the application of high intensity.

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Stacking The Deck

With race placement, know your:

• Natural Peak Timing - yes, you have one

• Local Climate - don’t fight it

• Local Terrain - work with what you’ve got

Then fit a limited number of events into where/when you are most likely to succeed.

The video (below) brings this entire article together with a case study on my personal race placement.

In my Annual Plan:

• One True Peak A Year

• Nearly Always Building General Capacity

Comments are open for the Paid List. I’m here to help.

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1. The embedded link is a how-to-manual for Training Camps. From the top of that article, you will find a link to a before/during/after checklist that you should review before/during/after your training camp.