The off-season is a term usually used to refer to sports. The off-season is the time when the sport is not actively being played though the athletes may or may not be training. Training in the off-season is a major part of many sports where athletes must find some way to keep in shape and continually develop their skills, reflexes, and muscles while not playing their main sport. This may include weight training, running, or cross training.
Off-season varies based not only on the sport but the league associate with it. The National Hockey League, for example, has about a seven-month season, with a two-month playoff period, creating a three month off-season time period that constitutes basically summertime. Many Canadian outdoor leagues, however, do not run for such a long time and therefore those athletes would have a longer off-season. Major League Baseball could play in the spring but they do not making that off-season. Instead, they use that time for spring training. Many professional sports also use the off-season for business transactions. Most trades and drafts are conducted during the off-season.
The off-season can be used to refer to many other things besides professional sports. Someone who enjoys skiing in an area where skiing conditions are based seasonally would say that spring through fall is the off-season for skiing. Being the huge roller coaster enthusiast I am and living in the Midwest suffering temperamental weather conditions, call winter the off-season for coaster riding. I could, however, go to California or England to ride but it is still the off-season for me based on my home location. Many vacationing towns refer to the off season as the time when tourists do not visit (i.e. summer ends or winter ends depending upon which season the town is travelled to during for vacationing). Overall, off-season implies that the main time for the main activity is not happening at current whether it’s the professional schedule or simply wanting to click click click up 115 feet while lying down.