Overcoming Injury with Indoor Training — Mitch Docker on his road to Roubaix.

It’s no secret - I’ve been a bit out of action since my crash at the Benelux Tour in early September. With the end of this season, it had the potential to scupper my plans for retirement in the velodrome at Roubaix. Nowadays though, that doesn’t have to be the case thanks to indoor training.

Back in the day, the pro-peloton didn’t always appreciate what the trainer could help you do – but since 2016 and Matt Hayman’s shock win at Paris-Roubaix – it's been clear to all of us just how good the trainer can be to maintaining your form when you’re otherwise immobile. I was his team mate then – I DNF-ed the same race, but somehow, Matt won despite having broken his collar bone the month before the race. It stunned everyone. How did he do it? The smart trainer.

Now, with a broken elbow – I've been drawing on that result as inspiration. The cycling season is long, but the windows of recovery are short. Injuries set you back, that’s no secret – but the gap isn’t as wide as it used to be. With upper body injuries, there’s a good chance you can immobilize it and use targeted sessions on the smart trainer to not just keep but build strength.

Day one back on a bike after an injury is always about assessing where you’re at. It’s not for putting strain on the body – that just delays your recovery. Instead, you see where you’re at – how you’re moving, how you’re feeling. The next day, you maybe try a low intensity session, something a bit tougher. By the end of a week, you’re in a much better place physically, but also mentally, and ready to really start pushing again.

If you've been off the bike or injured, the first thing that goes are the top end bursts. For riding, lots of people talk about sustained power - but whilst that makes for strong riders, it doesn't give you all that in the races. Rather than going all out on one long interval, my favourite session broke it into 9 threshold intervals at 4 minutes each, and 90 seconds to recover in between.

Shorter intervals give you better chance to analyse your body's response to the training - from heart race to cadence and power. It also builds fatigue into your training - and those are the moments you need to reach deep - and for a race like Roubaix, you're constantly making these sorts of efforts to be the first onto the cobbles. If you're not at the front, you're going backwards.

• Ramp up effort 3 min at 200 watts. Recovery (zone 1) effort with a cadence at 85-88 RPM

• 1 minute at 300 watts. Endurance (zone 2) effort with a cadence of 85 RPM.

• Rest for one minute at 200 watts. Recovery (zone 1) effort at 85 RPM

• Repeat the previous two intervals.

• 1 minute at 360 watts. Sweetspot effort (zone 4a) at 95 RPM

• Rest for one minute at 200 watts. Recovery (zone 1) effort at 95 RPM

• Repeat the previous two intervals

• 3 mins at 200 watts. Recovery effort (zone 1) at 85 RPM.

• 4 minutes at 392 watts. Zone 4 - your best possible effort.

• Rest for 90 seconds at 224 watts - Recovery zone effort (zone 1).

• Repeat the previous two steps 9 times in total.

• Spin the legs for 15 minutes at 240 watts in zone 2 (Endurance effort.)

• Warm down - 5 minute effort at 200 watts in recovery - Zone 1 with a cadence of 85 RPM.

Once you're back on it, indoor training really can let you stretch your legs. We all know that with Lockdowns restricting international movement, virtual Training has taken off in a big way. Apps like Zwift are able to help kindle that fire to compete – for everyone over the last year it’s been an important space for us people who need that social aspect to get on the bike. When you’re sidelined with an injury, I’ve found it can tempt you into going harder than you probably should – before you know it you’re taking turns with someone in Japan for sprint points.

Most of all, if you’re working your way back from injury through indoor training, it’s important to keep your goal squarely ahead of you. For me, it’s Paris-Roubaix. Just imagining how that moment will feel, and capping off my 15 year career as a Pro. When you're in a dark place, aiming for the light is what counts.