Keep Active

Thoughts from Chris Carmichael:
Committing to your local cyclocross series is one of the best ways to prepare for a strong road or mountain bike season next year. Athletes who race cyclocross retain or improve their aerobic conditioning, power at lactate threshold, and power at VO2 max while athletes who focus solely on long endurance rides through the fall tend to lose at least 10% of their power at threshold and even more of their high-end power. Athletes who back away from training altogether can lose 20% of their power at threshold between October and January, and the lack of training decimates their high-end fitness. So if you want to see significant performance gains next season, it’s crucial that you don’t let the improvements you made this year slip away due to inactivity or a lack of focus.