#1 Reason To Do Winter Training: To Change Your Body

The power and importance of building a good base at the start of any training plan can not be over-stated. None of the training that happens after base building will be as effective if the base is not secure, like the very foundation of a building. Weak or shallow foundation, and the entire structure is suspect.

This is why the winter makes the best time to do this - no distractions of competition or competing interests outside (except for some ski slope time now and then), and so it is the perfect time to build that base. The beauty of Winter Training is that no matter what sport you engage in, if it has an aerobic component, it requires base building and this is where Winter Training shines. Winter Training will not only make you better for the Spring and Summer that follows it, but year after year you can expect to get stronger and stronger, fitter and fitter.

Research has shown consistently that training just below the first aerobic threshold produces enlarged mitochondria (the transport containers for Oxygen) and increased capillary density (more pathways for those containers to travel on). Thus the gains of a true Periodized Based Building program (Cycling Fusion’s Winter Training is a prime example) are at the cellular level. Translation? It’s literally changing your physiology.

So rather than just improving how your body responds to exercise stimulus, ie, your performance, we are making positive, physiological, healthy improvements – and you thought you were just spinning your legs. However, that’s not to say we are not improving your fitness or performance. It’s just that the improvements are specific to a particular level of exertion or intensity; specifically while you are working in Zones 2 and 3 of your Heart Zones – the continuum of your personal and specific cardiovascular capabilities.