The Four Seasons

I was looking up an assortment of books, notes from lectures and stuff picked up from other coaches the other night and was struck by the number who said that some sessions, even in winter, should be fast with long recoveries. It brought to mind the definitions of the four seasons in Scotland:

Spring: Lasts for about 6 weeks, rains a lot and can be windy;
Summer: Lasts for about 4 weeks, rains a lot and can be windy;
Autumn; Lasts for about 4 weeks, rains a lot and will be windy;
Winter: Lasts for about 41 weeks, snows a lot, rains a lot, will be very cold and icy, may have 1 or 2 days of sunshine and will be very windy.

I used to coach a guy who came to me the week after the Edinburgh to Glasgow Relay (last week in November) and said "Brian, I don't know why I'm doin' this, y'know." My reply was always the same - "If you don't do it in December and January, you'll regret it in February and for the rest of the year."

If you want long recoveries in Scotland in winter, use the Kelvin Hall or Scotstoun indoors .... or forget the idea! We need to get the work done even if the weather is bad. Explosive hill reps or specific indoor circuits will do what you want or need in winter - get them in and you can forget the long recoveries when the temperature is at -4 degrees.
Check that it is working by doing some warm weather training in early April in Portugal or Lanzarote: if it's not working there is time to tweak the training before the summer, if it is then you gain reassurance. And have a nice holiday devoted entirely to athletics.