Tips to Maximise
Your Cycling
Training Camp Gains
128 | Cycling World
By Chris and Carrie Collerton of www.whichtrainingcamp.com
Your Aims
ifferent eo le think about going on a cycling training
cam for different reasons.
For some, the motivation is covering high mileage when
the conditions back home are cold and wet, anticipating
the pleasure of cycling with a warm sun on your back.
For others, it is the opportunity to do some early season
training with more s ecific training sessions, led by a
coach’s structured program. While some people may
be looking for a pre-race camp as they approach their
A-Race or an opportunity for team building within their
club or racing team.
You may be thinking of a training camp as a way of
gaining more information about your own training
physiology, enhancing your technical ability so you can
ride further and faster, or simply looking for ways of
gaining an edge by training smarter and following a more
structured program.
ther benefits from going on cam may include better
nutritional knowledge, new recovery techniques such
as yoga, stretching or sports massage, or the chance to
learn and put into practice visualisation techniques.
Your training camp gives you the best opportunity to
focus on your training by stepping away from your busy
work and lifestyle with limited training hours, rushed
meals and possibly less sleep than required.
Coaching
The choice of coach is crucial to the camp’s outcome. A
good coach will replicate a professional camp as far as
possible, looking after all those little things which can
detract from training in your home environment.
Your relationship with the coach is important and a
mutual understanding should be established before you
depart for your camp. We would suggest making a short
list of potential coaches and then talking with each one.
f they don’t return your calls, cross them off your list.
Your coach should be looking to make your training
ex erience fit your needs and not ust su lying you with
a one-si e-fits-all rogram. Their instant feedback and
your input about how you thought the session went will