Winter BaseCamp training focus: Building the foundation for your season

Every successful season starts with a strong foundation. That's why we dedicate our winter BaseCamp group coaching program to the work that matters most: developing the aerobic, muscular, and metabolic systems that allow us to train harder, race stronger, and ride with confidence when the season kicks off.

As head coach of BaseCamp, I write all of our training plans, and while each plan is customized to your needs, they are all built around a proven system: periodization.

Periodization: The backbone of smart training

One of the most important principles in endurance coaching is periodization. At its core, periodization is the structured organization of training into distinct phases, each with its own purpose and progression. Instead of repeating the same type of workouts all year long, we cycle through phases that balance stress, adaptation, and recovery to steadily build your performance.

The goals of periodization are simple but powerful:

• Progressive overload: Training stress increases in a controlled way so our bodies continually adapt without breaking down.

• Specificity: Training shifts from general fitness toward more event-specific demands as the season approaches.

• Recovery and supercompensation: Planned rest allows the body to adapt and grow stronger.

• Peak performance: By following this rhythm, we arrive at our key events with the right fitness at the right time.

This approach is the opposite of random or "always hard" training. It's systematic, science-driven, and proven to get results.

How BaseCamp applies periodization

We design our winter program around a classic generalized periodization model, carefully adapted for today's busy athletes. We start with the foundation, building aerobic capacity and strength, then progressively introduce more intensity and race-like demands.

Our winter program covers 16 weeks divided into four cycles. This is what I call the "training to train" phase: it's not about being at peak form in January, but rather preparing the body to peak in the early spring, when the calendar is already full of rides, races, and events.

The four cycles of BaseCamp winter group coaching

• Cycle 1: Building the Base

  • Focus: consistency, rhythm, and aerobic foundation

  • Establish training habits and structure

  • Build early endurance with manageable volume

  • Cadence work

  • Begin basic strength training

• Cycle 2: Expanding Aerobic Capacity

  • Focus: increasing the endurance engine

  • Extend duration of Endurance work

  • Add controlled Tempo and sub-threshold efforts

  • Increase neuromuscular manipulations and training specificity

  • Progress strength training to build durability

• Cycle 3: Introducing Intensity

  • Focus: preparing the body for harder work

  • Introduce more intensive interval sessions

  • Improve fatigue resistance, durability, and early threshold development

  • Blend nutrition strategies for fueling both work and recovery

  • Strength training focuses on power

• Cycle 4: Pre-Build Sharpening

  • Focus: bridging base to early-season fitness

  • Increase event-like intensity with targeted intervals

  • Develop resilience for repeated efforts

  • Set the stage for peak performance 2-8 weeks after the winter group coaching program

  • Transition strength toward maintenance for the season ahead

This four-step progression ensures that by the end of winter, we're not just fit, but also prepared, ready to convert our training into speed, power, and confidence when the season begins.

Personalized for every athlete

While the framework is consistent, the execution is personal. Your plan is customized to your:

• Training maturity – whether you're new to structured training or a seasoned veteran

• Sport type – road, gravel, mountain bike, triathlon, or multisport

• Training hours – aligned to your available time so you get the most return on investment

• Goals – from completing your first century to chasing a podium finish

This ensures you're always training at the right level, challenged but not overwhelmed, and progressing at the right pace for you.

A full 360° program: More than just cycling workouts

BaseCamp isn't just a set of cycling workouts; it's a 360° training experience designed to make you a stronger, healthier, and more complete athlete.

• Strength Training: Our dedicated strength program, led by expert strength coaches, runs in parallel with your cycling plan and focuses on durability, stability, and power transfer, ensuring that your body can handle the training load and perform when it counts.

• Nutrition Services: Under the guidance of Dr. Namrita Brooke, our nutrition program integrates directly with your training cycles. You'll learn how to fuel and recover properly, optimize body composition, and build sustainable nutrition habits that support your performance goals.

• Mental Performance: Training the body is only part of the equation; training the mind is equally important. That's why our winter BaseCamp program also integrates mental performance coaching to help athletes build focus, resilience, and confidence. Just like your physical training follows a periodized plan, mental skills can be developed progressively as you learn strategies to stay motivated in the dark winter months, manage pre-race nerves, and push through the inevitable tough moments in training and competition.

This full-circle integration means you're not just training harder; you're also training smarter, with every piece of the performance puzzle working in sync.

The motivation of community

Consistency is the cornerstone of base training, but it is also the hardest thing for most athletes to maintain through the winter months. Cold weather, dark mornings, and busy schedules can chip away at motivation. That is where the power of community makes all the difference.

In BaseCamp, you are not training alone; you are part of a group of athletes all working toward their goals together. Our structured group workouts on Zwift and TrainingPeaks Virtual, team challenges, interactive learning, and shared experiences in the Facebook community create accountability and support. When you know others are showing up, pushing through, and sharing their wins and struggles, it is easier to stay on track. This collective motivation transforms consistency from a challenge into a habit, giving you the steady foundation every successful season is built on.

Why winter BaseCamp group coaching works

The winter months are the time to invest in ourselves. The work we do now sets the trajectory for our entire season. With the right structure, progression, and support, you'll enter spring not just fit, but also prepared to convert all the work of "training to train" into speed, power, and results.

That’s the mission of our winter group coaching: to build the foundation, give you the tools, and surround you with a community that lifts you up every step of the way.