Break Time | Recovery Versus Training 1

Training and peak physical performance are crucial to success for a professional motocross racer. Motocross is considered to be one of the most physically demanding sports in the world, as well as extremely mentally straining. The top riders in the world all train hard, watch their diet, and know how to go fast on a dirt bike. It could be said that the ones who prevail are the ones who can recover and get back to peak health the quickest.

In this day and age, training is highly regulated and calculated by professional trainers. Training programs vary slightly from trainer to trainer and rider to rider, but everyone is putting in the work. Equally important to training is understanding when to rest and recover. How does a professional athlete find the balance between training and testing to be the best they can be while also being able to back off and let their bodies and minds rest?

Riders get a very small window for an 'off-season." Most start their pre-season boot camp by November to prepare for the season, which means gym, cycling, and motos almost daily leading up to January for the start of Supercross with no significant time off until Loretta Lynn's Amateur Nationals summer break in the first week of August. They get two full weekends off, which means three weeks between races. 

At this point in the season, the 450SX/MX class riders have raced 17 rounds of Monster Energy Supercross and eight rounds of the Pro Motocross Championship. That's 25 weeks of travel, racing, and training during the week. Most of the athletes are physically and mentally exhausted. Their bodies are breaking down, they have nagging injuries, and they need to recover. At the same time, there is still a championship going on, and each of the riders is still looking to improve, move up some spots in points, and get ready for SMX. So, with a few weeks off, do you choose to rest and recover or keep at it to make improvements on the track?

The answer to that question depends on the individual. Most riders said it's recovery over training at this point in the season. They know how to ride a dirt bike and that isn't going to be lost if they take a week off. It was mentioned that once they are at their physical threshold, they may only be giving it about 80% during the week, and they're just trying to get through the day and get home. Their trainers know this and generally adjust their week to allow for recovery.

Troll Training’s John Wessling said, "This week is crucial to chill out and take a day or two off that you otherwise wouldn't. Relax with lower heart rate training or shorter duration motos depending on who it is and what they need. Most of the 450 guys are cooked. They may feel good, but on a cellular level, they need rest. Just the travel can fry you at a cellular level."

Troll Training partner and ex-professional racer Alex Martin explained how training stress, travel, and expectations can also take a mental toll. Understanding what's happening physiologically with the body is important. He said, "Thyroid hormones, testosterone hormones, cortisol levels, and everything else are getting depleted. As stress levels rise from travel, sickness, and training, a lot is happening mentally in the body." 

Thyroid hormones control your body's metabolism, which is when your body transforms food into energy. Cortisol is a glucocorticoid that mainly helps your body's response to stress. They suppress inflammation in all your body tissue and control metabolism in your muscles, fat, liver, and bones. It can affect your sleep/wake cycle and help regulate blood pressure and blood sugar. The bottom line is that if you don't take care of your body and get rest, you eventually will struggle and won't be able to maintain peak performance. In post-race interviews after Washougal, Honda HRC's Hunter Lawrence told Lewis Phillips he hasn't been the same since his crash at Red Bud. He mentioned he may be working too hard during the week. He said it's been a long season, and he's mentally willing to go through the motos because his body hasn't been helping. It would appear Hunter needs the rest as much as anyone.

Active recovery is a term used to describe what many of the riders will be doing the first week of the break. Peter Park, who works with Chase Sexton, Levi Kitchen, Tom Vialle, and others, said his guys would focus on that this week. He expected Vialle and Sexton would do some surfing and Kitchen would go fishing for a couple of days. They then will get into some weight workouts, swimming, running, and cycling. Next week would be a mini bootcamp with higher volume and longer motos. He said, "It's better to be under-trained than over-trained because you'll also be off mentally if over-trained." Most riders and their trainers agree that rest is needed to be mentally and physically fresh again when the series kicks off at Unadilla on August 10th. 

Alex Martin mentioned that throughout his professional career, he tried both options of recovery and pushing through at different points. Alex said, "I've tried to hammer through with a lot of volume, intensity, or riding. The times I took a break, gave my body a rest, and then tackled the rest of the season, I did better in the second half. Over the years, you learn to give your body a rest. You first have to have the confidence to do that. It's important to take some time off, go to the beach with your family, or do something else fun. Our whole lives revolve around dirt bikes 24/7."

Veterans like Ken Roczen have been doing it long enough and know there is a fine line between doing just enough or too much and overdoing it. He told Steve Matthes on a recent episode of the PulpMX Show that it’s more important to be in a good rhythm of training during the week because you aren’t going to lose fitness at this point of the season. 

Some still choose to push through, keep grinding, and hope it has a positive effect on their season. Honda HRC's Jo Shimoda recently said on the MotoXpod Show, "We only have six more races if you count SMX. I really want to win. Is it time to take a step back and recover? I feel I should keep pushing and not back off. It's go time."

So, what is the answer? There isn't a right or wrong answer across the board, so each rider and their team have to decide that for themselves. What can't be argued is how taxing and demanding the sport of motocross is physically and mentally. There is much more to consider than spinning laps on a dirt bike and twisting the throttle. It will be riveting to see who comes back fresh and if any riders chose not to rest.