Fire It Up

Looking for a few ways to fire up your fitness and strength? Here are ten tips to heat things up this winter with your multisport training.

IM Swimming

Not Ironman, IM in this case stands for swimming all four strokes. Regularly adding and challenging yourself with butterfly, breaststroke, backstroke, and freestyle are sure to increase you strength and improve your feel for the water. Drill sets, kick sets, or simply swimming them straight, together all four strokes engage more muscles and make you stronger overall.

Cyclocross Rides

Similar to a road bike, a cyclocross bike is versatile, inexpensive, and a safer alternative for winter rides. Thicker tires make riding over trails paths, and pavement available options. Practice spinning smooth circles and handling skills to improve your cycling all around.

Run Economy & Efficiency

While running is not necessarily a skill we have to learn, learning how to run efficiently and economically is something we can get better at. Strides, fast feet, backwards running, running no arms – these are drills you can include to improve your running form. A quick internet search of running drills will offer options for including 4 x 20 seconds of each drill followed by a short jog or walk recovery.

Functional Strength

Functional strength routines are simple, challenging, and functional for each specific sport. Using your own body weight and resistance, you can improve strength and stability without leaving your home. Lunges, squats, planks, push-ups – variations of these common moves add to our functional strength.

Cycling Skills & Drills

Riding on the indoor trainer is an ideal time to practice cycling skills and drills. 30 second intervals of single-legged spinning, 10 second jumps in cadence, scraping mud off the bottom of your shoes, spin ups while controlling the bounce – these are ways to improve your cycling form and efficiency during indoor rides.

Head Up Swimming

Think swimming – water polo style. Head up swimming is an aggressive drill to add a bit of intensity to your winter workouts. Keep your head completely out of the water while increasing your kick and stroketurnover. Head up swimming is a great way to prepare yourself for mass swim starts or choppy open water conditions all in the comfort of your indoor pool.

Get On The Ball

Balls are excellent choices for improving stability, balance, and core strength. A squat on the Bosu Ball requires you to stabilize and balance your body to hold proper position. Crunches on the stability ball require stabilization in your core. Twists and overhead moves with a medicine ball can build power. Push-ups off the ball, overhead presses while sitting on the ball, squatting with the ball between yourself and a wall – simple moves to challenge your strength routine.

Treadmill Runs

Treadmills provide a safe, consistent alternative to winter running on icy, dark, windy, cold roads. Treadmill runs can teach consistency in pace and quick turnover in stride. Set the treadmill at a .5 – 1 percent grade to simulate outdoor running and be sure to hydrate with increased indoor sweat loss.

Pool Toys

Fins, paddles, buoys, stretch cords, ankle pulling locks – swim toys used sparingly and properly can increase swim stroke and strength. Not only that, but they allow us to mix things up and maintain interest over longer swims. Seek out the advice of a swim coach or website on how to incorporate these toys safely into your current routine.

Tests

Challenge yourself this winter by scheduling a few tests. Indoor time trials, swim meets, and timed treadmill runs are unique ways to measure our winter fitness in controlled environments. Plus, they keep our competitive fire fueled and add manageable doses

of intensity. Afterwards, reflect on the test and use your findings to structure your training weeks.

Adding a few of these tips to your multisport training are sure to keep your fires stoked and your interest piqued for building better fitness and strength all winter long.

Elizabeth Waterstraat