REFLECTION
Now that you have begun to recover it is time to reflect on the season. This is the time evaluate the goals that you set for yourself at the beginning of this year and reflect on your success. Review your training log and race notes to get this information or go by your best recollection if you didn’t keep a detailed journal. You will use this information to set realistic goals for the next season.
What do you need to evaluate?
Your best performances. List all of your best or A races. List your times for each event. Make or copy notes about the event. Key things to note are your taper, prerace (meal, warm up, stress level), the start of the race, any moments or conditions that you felt was particular strength or weakness, how you felt at the end of the event and finally how well you recovered from the race.
Once you have all of this in front of you review it. Either make a list or write out a description of your season.
Colleen Lynn, a client of Train Ready, offered her review of her season to use as an example. She used a form from one of Joe Friel’s books as a guide.
Here are five questions to answer at the end of your race (for me recreational)season and before starting to prepare for the coming season:
1. What was the high point of your season? Why does this stand out for you? Was it what you thought it would be at the start of the season?
Mid-July was my highpoint. I bested my RAIN time by over an hour from the previous year and finished much stronger. No tears this year 
Just a couple days after RAIN, I finished w/the leaders on the fast Tues night ride and took the bridge sprint. That was probably the most satisfying moment of the whole season. Especially listening to the excuses the men were making when a girl out-sprinted them. Oh yes, I took first in age division in my first and (so far) only (citizens) road race in early July. That took me completely by surprise yes, kids, periodization does work. Unfortunately I have not been able to replicate these successes since then.
2. What was your greatest disappointment? Why did this happen? Is there anything you could have done to have avoided it?
I enjoyed TOSRV, but ended up riding a much slower pace than I felt I was capable of. Forgot where I parked my car at the finish and lord have mercy, my butt was so sore after back to back centuries. ouchie-wawa Oh yes I lost a toenail, too, which still hasn’t grown back, bad news for my pedicure.
3. Looking back, do you think you trained as wisely and as hard as you could have trained?
Absolutely, I think this is the only year I’ve ever actually trained wisely. It was my first experience this year w/a coach, and his guidance made it possible for me to have the success I had this year. And when I was working hard in June, he encouraged me to push through and keep it going when I was tempted to give in to the fatigue.
4. What is the one thing you most need to work on for next season in order to perform better?
Developing more discipline to do my easy rides easy. I tend to go too hard on endurance rides and develop some really deep fatigue that leads me to taking longer periods than necessary off the bike.
5. What would you most like to accomplish next season? Is it a good stretch and yet within your reach if you do things right?
I’d like to do a sub-5hr century. And knock another 30 minutes off my RAIN time. Complete a duathlon 5k-30k-5k.
We will then use this to develop her season next year and set goals that are realistic and motivating. I will write more on goal setting coming up.
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