The mid-season break

With the National Road Series taking an eight-week pause from competition, it was time to take a short break from training and hang the bike up for a week.

The most important part of the mid-season break is to rest and regenerate the body after what’s already been an intense season of racing. It’s always been something I’ve been very disciplined about, my recovery time is equally as important as my riding.

My favorite part of my recovery is relaxing in the local Hydro Pool, doing my exercises and getting to know the locals, especially the friendly elderly who regularly use the pool for rehabilitation. I also spend my recovery time stretching in front of the TV, or watching the Tour de France and my favorite television series’ with my legs up.

Some of the benefits of the Hydro Pool include:

·      Muscular relaxation and decreased muscle spasm, 

·      Decreased pain due to warmth and support, 

·      Improvement in swelling, 

·      Enhanced balance and stabilisation, 

The mid-season break also gave me a little more time to travel and more opportunities to socialize with my friends and family. The ability to switch off, relax and unwind is something that everyone needs to do at some point and it is something I am still mastering, but knowing I don’t have to train the next day really helps me to switch off.

A great way for anyone to unwind and relax is to go on a holiday, and this year, I spent some time with my girlfriend Lucy in Rye. We also spent time to going to the cinemas and eating out at trendy restaurants in Melbourne.

I also caught up with a couple of my teammates. when I visited Canberra with Lucy, I went out for a ride with Mitch Lovelock-Fay and in Melbourne, Mark O’Brien and I caught up for a few hours’ training. Most of us on the Avanti Racing Team live in different parts of Australia and New Zealand, so catching up for a ride in-between our Tour’s is a really nice change.

At home, listening to music and reading my favorite magazine or book are other ways I like to relax and take the mind off the bike.

After one week off the bike, I was itching to get back to training and focus on the next block of training and racing!

Usually in the first few weeks of training back from a break, longer endurance rides, high cadence and longer efforts on the flats and the climbs help my body get back into shape. Training with my younger brother Jarryd, and a few small bunch rides with the locals is something I always make time to do.

The Warragul Cycling Club hosted its Club Championships, a mass start with the first across the line to be crowned the winner. I won the race for the fourth time in five years, but I was challenged by a number of young up and coming riders from our area, it was good to see. 

Training aside, there is a lot of planning that goes on behind the scenes before heading off to race for the Avanti Racing Team.

 As riders, we really have it easy! All the hard work gets done before and after the racing. Selecting the teams, organising logistics such as flights, bikes, wheels, accommodation and race entries are just a few things Andrew Christie-Johnson and Steve Price have to keep front of mind.

It’s an important part to our success and is something that I believe our team does very well.

My next race will be the 104^th Melbourne to Ballarat, followed by the National Road Series Tour of the Murray River, which starts on the 29^th July. My season continues with the NRS Tour of the Great South Coast (13^th - 17^th August) and then the Tour of Gippsland (3^rd - 7^th September).