Understanding the Purple Patch Season Structure

In endurance sports, consistency is the key, which is why we approach triathlon training as a 12-month progression.  

Season Break Down

Our season starts, somewhat paradoxically, with Post Season in November.  From here we move through the Prep, Build, and Race-Specific phases of the year.  The focus and purpose of each phase is outlined below.

Overview of Season Phases

Post Season:  The preparatory phase of training, with the highest emphasis on technique and skills (lowest physical stress). For many, this occurs between October and December in each season and prepares you for the upcoming load. Here is a great article on the value of the Post Season.

Prep Phase:  This is a very short phase of just a few weeks but signals an intention of purpose, as we transition from Post Season into more specific and stronger work. We build resilience, endurance, and overall capacity of the muscles to do work. We retain a heavy emphasis on technique and form, but be prepared for some strong load.  As we are far away from key races, we take the opportunity to work on some speed, power, and other building block work in swim-bike-run.

Build Phase: As early season races begin for many, we sharpen and begin to hit some classic threshold and sustained effort work. This phase represents the backbone of developing your physiological capacity as an athlete, and also a time in which we don’t get too shackled by key event-specific training as a global emphasis.

Race Specific 1 - This represents 50-60% of the season, with the major emphasis being on the training required to excel in your chosen key events. You can expect a high variance in intensity between key and supporting sessions, with added emphasis on race-specific warm ups, skills and calls for a focused approach to fueling and hydration..

Race Specific 2 - We are big believers in taking a short mid-season break and the second Race Specific phase starts after this where you will ramp into late-season and championship races.