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Since I am "different" I did the 3x20 high end tempo workout on the TT bike Saturday in the back half of the park. Average watts were 246, 247 and 248, right on the money! Skipped Monday to watch field hockey. Monday was two hours of E on the rollers.
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Aint no mountain high enough Edit | Delete
ReplyDelete13 Feb 16:26
But the col du Paint Can is a bitch. The climbing LT's just plain sucked. Everyone was a struggle to keep cadence and power in the LT zone. I hope it was from training fatigue and that the rest week will see the appropriate adaptation. Watched the latest Rocky movie "Balboa" last night. Truly the last of the middle age fantasy. I stiil got ONE great moment left.
Another Day in the Park Edit | Delete
12 Feb 14:19
I agree with Greg's Blog. Even though I was outside, it is hard to just putter around for an hour or so by yourself. The five sprints were definetly the highlight of the ride. Inside on the col du Paint Can tonight for climbing LT's.
Pounding in the Park Edit | Delete
11 Feb 15:07
I managed to get out to the park for Tuesday's workout on the TT bike. The LT's went well with the first at 282Avg, second and third at 274 Avg. My objective after the first LT was to keep as smooth as possible on the rollers in the back half of the park. Not to over cook the rises and to keep power flowing down the backside. This resulted in a lower average but a smoother profile. Where are LT's 4&5 you ask? Elton John could not help and the sun went down on me before I could finish, together with a 6:00 meeting to attend and I had to call it quits. Not optimal, but any workout is better than no workout.
Sweet Recovery Edit | Delete
09 Feb 14:24
Sunday I felt like a school kid let out for recess on the first warm day of spring, and perhaps that is what I was. What a great feeling to be out in the sun, pushing some gears and feeling the speed instead of in the basement, wiping sweat and feeling the fan. Although I could have done without the sight of Bill's "wool sweater", it was great to see the paceline roar along the road. After a walk downtown and the usual Sunday chores, my legs were asking WTF? Arnica oil, compression tights and some time in the recliner are what the doctor ordered. Thankfully we have the Monday rest day, which for the first time in a long while I feel like I have earned.
Some Days Edit | Delete
06 Feb 13:27
It's always something, as Rosanna Danna Danna used to say. Fell off the rollers using the TT bike. (The front wheel is squirly and has a tendency to turn perpendicular to the roller. Not good.) That hurt only a little. So I put the frakin bike in the trainer and started all over again. But by this time I was beyond annoyed with just about everything. It was begining to look like the worst type of workout. Thank the gods, my little hybrid daughter decided to spill sugar all over the kitchen floor. It gave me an excuse to pull the plug and jump. All tolled only 57 minutes of pedaling. No time to ride Saturday morning for me. Have fun BWR and Renegades.
Working Man Edit | Delete
05 Feb 13:27
Wow, two days in a row of pedaling in the the confines of the cyclotron. I may be able to see the back of the pack yet! LT's on Tuesday were hard but manageable. The further into each interval the smoother I seemed to get. I would like to see higher power numbers, but will build toward them as opposed to forcing the issue and causing so much pain there is no train for a week after. The cylons share the human ability to create their own reality. My reality is on a bike in the basement, for now.
Weekend Work Edit | Delete
02 Feb 13:30
After having missed the prior weekend's work it was with some trepidation that I went out on the road with Coach Bill and the Power Boys. Saturday's fast ride was a good measure of how far I have come and just how frakin far there is still to go. The Power Boys are just ripping the teeth off the big ring. Saturday night I was down and out. Sunday morning was just a good endurance ride. It is so much fun to be outside on a bike that it was hard to to adhere to the discipline of endurance riding. But if we are to progress to another level, discipline is what it takes. Thanks to the Renegades for recognizing that discipline to program and helping BWR get to the next level. Glad Monday is a rest day.
Half as Good Edit | Delete
29 Jan 23:58
You guys are amazing! I can't do half the work that I see in your blogs, but am motivated to keep at it in the hopes that time is working for me as opposed to against me. It is my honor to ride with a dedicated group like Bikeworks Racing! Ka-Plah (Klingon for "with honor")
It has all happened before ... Edit | Delete
28 Jan 14:03
In keeping with my usual training scenario, illness and work has put me at the back of the pack. A very light spin Sunday was an exhausting work out, fell asleep at 7:00 pm! By Tuesday I felt ready to attempt a few LT intervals, alas work and home managed to foil that plan as well. I WILL get a workout in today, just so that I can suck Greg's wheel (illegally) as he goes by in the TT. Cunning over talent.
Not quite but close Edit | Delete
25 Jan 13:31
So no cookie tossing, but close enough not to be able to ride. Completely wacked out for the last two days. Headache, dizzy, stomach and some very strange fever induced dreams. How do sock puppets learn to ski anyway? Now I know how Leobon felt on the space station (season 1).
Toss your cookies Edit | Delete
23 Jan 15:58
If you don't know it by now, just wait. A stomach bug is circling Fredericksburg. My youngest daughter seems to be near the epicenter. The three girls that sit at her table at school and with whom she has had play dates are all sick. We will see what the next 24 hours brings. Can you say pepto bismal?
Back is Wack Edit | Delete
21 Jan 20:33
Yep, the back is still wacked. Managed one tempo interval and one LT interval before it just became obvious that I should not be on the bike. It feels like a combo lower back muscle and Sciatic nerve. Heat, cold rest. frustration are in store. I will probably add some single malt therapy to help loosen the muscles. Just say piNOt.
Now What? Edit | Delete
19 Jan 17:01
Great long ride on Sunday, BWR and Renegades. That ride was exactly what social riding is all about, yet with a specific training purpose. Good football games in the afternoon evening made it all together good day. Today is a bit different. Just standing in front of my sink brushing my teeth I felt a slight twinge in my lower back. Now 5 or so hours later it is a full on tight, sore, aching lower back! Wish I had a good reason for the pain, but alas no. Good news is that it is a rest day today and for the week. Cat and cow stretches along with the semi-fowler position should help get back on track. The Old Man!
Sweet Relief Edit | Delete
17 Jan 15:28
Amazing what a day of rest will do for you. Still feeling a bit stiff, but at least the desire to train has returned. Coach Bill has advised that I should keep it easy, so I will. Ellen the fifth Cylon? I don't believe it.
Pain Edit | Delete
16 Jan 15:42
Gym work Wenesday, followed by PE3's Thursday, NOT! Half way through the second PE3 interval last night my legs said ENOUGH! This time my body shouted so loud I had to listen. Fifty may be the new thirty, but the legs reminded me that thirty is still not twenty. I climbed down the Col du Paint Canne and spun easy for fifteen minutes and called it a night. I little heat therapy is scheduled for today and that is it. Hopefully I will get some recovery. What was that line from the poem Ozymandius about the sands of time? (Translated, getting old sucks.)
Not Worthy Edit | Delete
15 Jan 16:59
I am not worthy! The BWR team is working hard this winter and it looks like everyone is preparing to race their best this spring and summer. Meanwhile back at the ranch I did my first set of PE3's (4 as a starter) and learned a few lessons. First, fast twitch muscles are the first to go. (good info on the sex front), second, doing reps on the trainer is as much about mental concentration as physical effort. There were times during an interval where I lost focus and let cadence and power drop. (Unlike Bill, I cannot watch cycling and ride at the same time.) Third, there is an area not here nor there that aches like a Mother F@#$#$ around the one hour mark. Four, my knee needs some rest from skiing and cycling (but won't get it). Dress warmly and ride hard.
Meetings, Meetings, Meetings, started at 8:00 AM finished at 8:30 PM no ride Tuesday, Power Starts and E on the trainer for Wednesday. Trying to keep working into my week of muscle tension/ altitude drills on the slopes.
ReplyDeleteI want Bill's trainer. In order to do the power starts with any smoothness I had to use the little cog (11). Even then it just never felt like a real power start. watts were 1110, 1111, 1120, 1119, 1125, 1129. Do middle age guys loose that much power? Someone call A Rod and see if he has any leftovers he would part with.
ReplyDeleteI was expecting to do an hour of E in the park and catch up with Bill. Then he says, "why don't you do the test, BITCH". Twenty minutes later and that bloody taste in my mouth I was done been done, as they say in Kentucky. Although I dropped two watts from the last test, I am not worried (299 from 301). I have enough excuses to make it palatable. The best part of the ride was "motor pacing" behind Bill as he finished his workout. I was easily able to hold his wheel even after the prior bloodletting. Now I am off for altitude training and strength work.
ReplyDeleteAfter thinking more about my test yesterday and looking at the data. I can see where I needed to "manage" the course differently. I was expending way too much energy on the climbs which caused a corresponding drop off over the top. Further, once on the flatter sections where I could settle in I was holding 318 to 320 watts. The mind set for the next test will be to watch the power up the climbs so that I can push over the top and down. I've known this from my experience at the TNP TT and prior tests but did not mentaly focus for this test. Even TT's are as much about the head as the legs!
ReplyDeleteThis is the very thing which I am working on. I'm trying to see if going 100 watts over up the hill can still allow me to be 20 watts under on the way down. The average will still be far better than current(120 over/up and 60 under/down). Hope you can creak your nut and let me know!
ReplyDelete