As surely as spring brings daffodils out of the ground, cyclists too start emerging from their garages and basements, where they’ve spent the winter safely but boringly spinning the wheels but not moving.

Still, Spring weather can be as changeable as it is promising, the days are still short and sometimes the dreaded turbo trainer is the only option for keeping up the training. Apart from iron will power, how do cyclists keep up their efforts on the human equivalent of a hamster wheel?

Motivational videos are one approach. We tried some at T-Zero recently, but weren’t overly impressed. It made a change, but it also made us resentful of those lucky people who live in places with 300+ days a year of sunshine and have the option of swimming in the ocean in the morning and cycling into the mountains in the afternoon. Not only that, the commentary and music both irritated after a short time.

One suggestion is to use the video but turn off the sound and use your own music, which is OK, up to a point. The accompanying music is often set to match the tempo of the pre-recorded ride and unless you’re prepared to spend hours mixing your own playlists (we guess some people are), yours will not.

Along with most big brands interested in triathlon, Speedo made sure it had a big presence at the annual TCR (Triathlon, Cycling and Running) Show at Esher last weekend. Speedo set up an endless pool and invited the likes of Helen Jenkins and Hollie Avil to demonstrate their new TriElite wetsuits in it.

Most intriguing though was the Big Black Box. The Big Black Box takes some of the art out of finding the right wetsuit and turns it into science.

When you step into the Big Black Box a Speedo technician (who waits outside) asks you to strip down to your underwear. You then move into the inner sanctuary, a dark cubicle about the size of a photo booth.  A woman’s voice commands you to stand straight with your feet shoulder width apart, hold your chin up and grab the two handles to your left and right. Press the start button when ready and stay still.

A humming noise starts and lights flash. Is this a prank? Have you volunteered for a walk-on part in Dr Who?

Steve Trew is one of the UK’s top triathlon swim coaches and he will be present at the Speedo stand (B4) at the upcoming Triathlon Cycling and Running Show (TCR), at Sandown Park on 11-13^th February 2011.

What’s more, by entering our easy to enter competition hosted in conjunction with Speedo, the world’s leading swim brand, you could win the chance to meet Steve and enjoy a private 45 minute swim coaching session with him which includes 15 minutes in Speedo’s infinity pool at TCR. The training session will take place on Saturday 12^th February at 11am. In addition to the swim training session with Steve, the competition winner will also be presented with a goody bag from Speedo’s new TriathELITE® 2011 collection.

For the chance to win this exciting Speedo Triathlon training package including a Speedo TriathELITE® Goody Bag, simply answer the following question:

Q. At whose stand will Steve Trew be on at the 2011 TCR show?

Answers by email to marketing@tzero-tri.com

Deadline: Midday 10 February 2011

*Terms and Conditions Apply.

SPEEDO STEVE TREW COMPETITION

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Triathlon Europe logo

Book your place on either the Olympic distance or Ironman training week and go into a draw to win a one-to-one training session with a World Champion triathlete. We are offering a complimentary 50-60 minute session with one of our coaches and World Champion triathletes Spencer Smith or Fiona Ford, if you book your training week by February 10th (extended for T-Zero readers)

The training weeks in the French Alps have been developed to meet the needs of aspiring and competitive triathletes, with a balanced program of sessions throughout the week. Be inspired by the surrounding stunning alps, first class training facilities and proven performers who encourage you to improve and develop throughout the week as your personal coaches. The week centres around you obtaining the most benefit from your time away, with luxury accommodation, catered meals, daily sports massage if you require and triathlon workshops such as nutrition, swim technique/ filming and stretching/ core conditioning.
For more information and to book your place on one of the training weeks, contact Triathlon Europe.
2011 Dates
Week 1: Ironman / long distance Triathlon Training week
• Thursday 26 – Wednesday 1st June 2011
• 6 nights/ 7 days coached swim, bike & run sessions and guided or supported rides
• Coaches: Spencer Smith and Fiona Ford
• Inclusive of B&B + 3 fully catered 3 course evening meals, luxury chalet accommodation
• Cost £695

H2Open Magazine is a new publication for anyone who loves open water swimming whether you are a beginner or an experienced veteran, taking on a long-distance challenge, doing your first mass participation race or simply looking for a beautiful place to take a dip.

The magazine’s writers include Kate Rew, founder of the Outdoor Swimming Society, Simon Murie, founder of Swim Trek, Dan Bullock, founder and head coach at Swim for Tri, Paul Newsome, founder of Swim Smooth, and Rick Kiddle, ex-international triathlete and coach to model Jodie Kidd. We also have a panel of experts to answer your swimming related questions including Steve Munatones, Editor-in-Chief of the Daily News of Open Water Swimming, and Colin Hill, organiser of the British Gas Great Swim Series.

As well as regular features on training, nutrition, iconic swim locations, classic swims and the latest training and racing gear the magazine will include race listings, news from the world of open water swimming and interviews with open water swimming heroes starting with Keri-Anne Payne.

Launch date: 11 February 2011

Frequency: bi-monthly, plus one summer special (7 issues per year)

Cover price: £3.50

Subscriptions: www.escosubs.co.uk/h2open

Web: www.h2openmagazine.com

Winter in the northern hemisphere is traditionally the time to build your endurance base through long, steady efforts. It’s also a time to develop your mental toughness whether on the turbo trainer or dragging yourself out into the cold or wet or both. You’ve probably packed your best bike away for the winter and are now riding something several kg heavier. You also have to wear lots of clothes and thick gloves, and you may have added the odd pound or two to your own body weight.

After two to three months of this you might begin to feel a little sluggish and your motivation may be dimming. The obvious solution would be to mix in a couple of cross country races or a winter duathlon. Failing that, especially if injury is preventing your from running, how about turning the last hour one of your long rides into a high-speed chain gang.

It might not be on the training programme, and it almost certainly isn’t something you would want to do every week, but you might be pleasantly surprised. Assuming you’ve put in the endurance building training, you should find you can hold a high intensity for a sustained period, and it won’t hurt as much as you think it should. With any luck you should also get a pleasant endorphin rush and a boost to your motivation.

Amy Lunn is a sports therapist with Ontrack Sports Therapy. Here she outlines what sports therapists are and how they might help with injury treatment and prevention.

Sports therapy aims to provide sportsmen and women of all levels of activity with professional care and management of sports injuries. Sports therapy is not only concerned with injury prevention, but aims to bridge the gap between injury recovery and optimal performance, at whatever level you seek to perform.

Sports therapists specialise in helping athletes get back to their optimal level of functional and sport specific fitness in order to reduce the likelihood of injury reoccurrence. We do this through a number of treatments including: manual therapy, sports massage and specific strengthening and stretching techniques. Not only do we offer treatment, we also aim to identify the cause of the injury and look at preventative measures, such as proprioception work, biomechanical analysis and correction of muscle imbalances.

A sports therapist’s knowledge is underpinned by a sound understanding of the principles of sport and exercise science, sports injury pathology and the physical and mental requirements of sport on the human body. Sports therapists have a wide spectrum of knowledge, which helps provide a multi dimensional approach to the treatment of the athlete.  This plays an important role in the transition between general rehabilitation to facilitating the athlete back to full functional fitness.

Lucy Gossage in Hawaii with her prize a Kona wooden bowl.

Lucy Gossage is an exceptional athlete with successes under her belt ranging from winning the Outlaw Triathlon in a relay with her TFN teammates to an individual course record for the Vitruvian Triathlon. This season she trained harder than ever in preparation for the ultimate Ironman race: Kona, Hawaii. Tzero caught up with Lucy at the Cancer Research Institute in Cambridge where she is busy completing her Ph.D. and discovered how Lucy caught the Ironman bug, and what she would do in a parallel universe where triathlon doesn’t exist. She also shared some top advice for anyone undertaking an Ironman Triathlon.

When was your first race?

LG: 2005, The London Triathlon

Do you have a training philosophy?

LG: Train hard but clever.

What is your favourite diet component?

LG: Coffee and Chocolate

What music do you train to?

LG: Infinity by the Guru Josh Project is my number one motivating song.

If triathlon didn’t exist what would you do for kicks?

LG: I’d go walking in mountains or travel the world. Maybe some watersports too!

Transport for London (TfL) have dedicated a page to safe riding in winter. It’s mainly aimed at commuters but the points apply to anyone wanting to keep training on the roads through the cold and dark months. It also has links to advice on bike maintenance and courses in bike maintenance and safe cycling. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/13160.aspx

Joel Enoch raves about ORCA’s new merino wool clothing, and reveals how to save 15% on any of the ORCA range.

When finding an edge over the enemy, James Bond has Q supplying him with all sorts of gizmos and techno wizardry that can help him overcome whichever metal-toothed, hat-throwing or cat-stroking evil villain has surfaced. The equivalent in the world of sport is ‘Operation Squirrel’, the secretive department of the British cycling team that looks to utilise the most recent research and technology to maximise ‘marginal gains’ over the competition at Olympic Games.

Eventually Operation Squirrel’s innovations in sporting equipment filter down to us, the general sporting public, but it can take us a while longer to cotton on to their advantages and to cut through the myths surrounding them.

One of the most recent developments to be released onto the open market is a new range of clothing made by ORCA, constructed from New Zealand merino wool. When I first came across this new range I was sceptical; after all, my opinion of wool is still based on the scratchy, knitted wool jumpers I was forced to wear as I was growing up. However, wool has come a long way since then and just might be the next big thing in the world of sports clothing.