Race Day and a Rest Week
For some reason the weather last week was spectacular. Very atypical for March. I opened my season with a race just south of Albany, NY. The temps were in the 60s and the sky was crystal clear. The beautiful weather no doubt caused many riders to dust off the carbon wheels a few weeks early.
My goal for this race was to “sit in” and get used to riding in a peloton again. I knew it would might be hard just to hang, but I was pleasantly surprised. The pace was fast but not insane. The accelerations out of the corners were the biggest challenge, especially due to the large field and the yo-yoing that happens at the back. I was glad that I added a lot of these short, hard accelerations into my training rides in February and March.
The race was a good confirmation that my training was on track at this point in the year. Racing can be a lot different then typical group rides, even if they are fast. Where you are positioned in the peloton can really affect how much effort is required. At this point, the best training for racing is…racing.
The weather this week is back to normal – rainy, windy, and cold. It is a good week to dial it back a little. The base period is over. Next week I will begin the build phase with a little trip down south. Hopefully the weather will be better.
CYCLEtrainer16 – The Perfect Hour
Last week of base calls for a bit of top end speed work. I have spent the last 12 weeks working on solid aerobic fitness and power at LT. Now it is time to shift gears. Literally. The workout:
WU: 10 minutes easy spinning, 5 minutes at LT, 5 minutes easy spinning.
MS: 5 x 1 minute all out, 1 minute easy spinning
10 minutes easy spinning
5 x 1 minute all out, 1 minute easy spinning
CD: 10 minutes easy spinning.
During each 1 minute interval I take the first 40 seconds almost as hard as I can go and then hammer for the last 20 seconds as hard as I possibly can. By the third interval in each set my heart rate is almost at max.
This is a good one. Have at it! mb
CYCLEtrainer 15 – The Monday Morning Tune Up
Some folks take Monday off after two hard days on the weekend. Rightly so. I make Sunday either a very light day or I take it off all together. Mondays I like to do the following workout before hitting it hard Tuesday and Wednesday.
Total Time: 90 minutes
45 minutes of endurance spinning
5 minutes at LT
10 minutes endurance spinning
1 minute all out
5 minutes endurance spinning
1 minute all out
5 minutes endurance spinning
1 minute all out
18 minutes endurance spinning.
The day following this workout I feel pretty primed for some hard work. Give it a try. mb.
Too Much Part II
Today’s team ride went well. I was tired, but I could still hammer with the boys. My legs are wrecked now, but I’m not irritable. Libido seems in-check too. Its a good thing ’cause the kids are elsewhere for the evening. I had a good recovery meal and took a little snooze which always helps. I will see how I feel tomorrow. This was definitely my biggest training week by far this season. I have left myself Sunday and Monday to recover, which should be plenty of time.
Next week is my last week of base training. I am capping it off with a race just south of Albany on Saturday. I have scheduled Tuesday and Wednesday as my hard days this week with a tune-up ride on Friday. I doubt I will do more duration next week, but it will be more intense. I will know whether I over did it last week if I’m not ready for Tuesday’s workout.
Too much, too soon?
I would never normally worry about over-training this time of year for myself or other athletes I work with in northern New England. Usually the long winters keep training hours under control until April. Late April is usually when I see athletes (including myself) start showing signs of doing too much too soon. This is most always caused by the obvious: the onset of the racing season and better weather.
This winter, as I have mentioned in previous posts, has offered many days for riding outdoors. I also have the luxury of a schedule where I have the mornings off every other day. Good days plus lots of time to ride equals lots and lots of miles. I have never done 10-14 hour weeks in February and March like I have this year. I also have never had the form I have right now.
For the most part, I have trained well up until this week. My power has increased at a steady rate as well as my endurance. I have scheduled good recovery time including a full week off the bike during the last week of February just to be sure.
March has been a bit of a different story. I am consistently doing 3 hr+ rides with intensity including many group rides with team members eager to push the pace. As I come to the end of this week having already ridden 10 hours through Friday, I have noticed my two primary “over-training” indicators knocking at my door: irritability and poor sleep.
I slept terribly during the last two nights, especially last night. I woke up feeling wicked cranky. I feel better after eating a big breakfast and a few cups of coffee. Our team ride is set for later this morning. I don’t suspect it will be the “smackdown” it was last week, but the pace will be faster than I would ride on my own today. In fact, I would tell any other athlete I work with, not to ride today if they were showing the signs that I am.
Poor sleep and irritability are just a few of the signs suggesting an athlete should stop or at least slow down. Other signs include lethargy, poor concentration, and decreased libido (who wants that?). These symptoms are considered behavioral. There are also physical symptoms like decreased performance, soreness, and infection. To be safe, don’t ride when showing some of these symptoms. In my case, my symptoms are primarily behavioral. My legs feel good and I am not sick.
Why then will I ride?
I will ride today because I am still trying to understand how much I can take. I want to know how my legs feel, what my power output is, and if I can crank out another 3hr+ ride when I am in this state. It is possible I will need multiple days to recover, but that was my plan anyway. I am set to race next weekend so I have only scheduled 1 hard and 1 medium hard workout for Tuesday and Wednesday next week. I will use the other days between now and then for recovery.
For me, I need to see if I can push through one more workout this week. It is early enough in the season that I can afford to make a mistake, especially if it provides me with valuable information. I would never do this later in the season. It is possible, riding today will provide the necessary stress I need at this point in my training. I won’t know until after the ride and the days that follow.
I will post a Part II to this post in the coming days. Until then, ride well. mb
Cold Feet Part 2.
I continue to battle cold feet syndrome as the temps are still in the 30s. A team member recommended adding some cayenne pepper to my socks. I tried this with some success. Another colleague of mine remarked he had heard that your core body temperature is to blame. In fact, a 1 degree drop in core body temperature will lead to cold feet and fingers no matter how thick the gloves or booties. I found this blog that concurs: http://twurl.nl/zpnyy4. Not sure who writes this, but the info jives with many articles I’ve read. Note to self: keep the core warm. The toes and fingers will follow.
Ride with Others
I remember when I started riding. It was about ten years ago. I had allowed myself to become an overweight, workaholic during my 20s and was in desperate need of exercise both to halt the weight gain and to reduce the stress. My lawyer at the time was a cyclist and he invited me to join his group for a ride one Saturday morning. Always one for a little competition, I accepted the invitation.
I showed up for the ride with my brand new Litespeed and shiny new Time bike shoes. The spandex was fairly tight with a significant amount of gut “overhang,” but I was ready nonetheless.
Out we went. The pace quickened. My breathing became heavy. Heavier. Holy #$^&! The gap between me and the rest of the group widened until I was way off the back. The group sat up and slowed the pace down for a little while allowing me to catch back on. This happened 3 or 4 times before I humbly gasped, “Boys, I ain’t ready for this.”
I rode by myself back to my car and collapsed. The sad thing was, I don’t think they were riding that hard at all compared to the average pace of rides these days. I will always remember that ride because it became my motivation to take training seriously. I never wanted that to happen again.
By the end of that summer I was fit and fast enough to put those guys into difficulty. I took great pleasure in being able to ride with that original group. I would use those rides to gauge fitness and continually motivate me to get faster.
Fast forward to today (10 years later). My team took a ride together yesterday, our first team ride of the year. Because I put the team together, I am highly motivated to do well. I have trained hard over the winter to ensure that I had good form going into the season. Not because I have a huge ego (okay I do) but because I know how motivating it can be to both drop, and be dropped by your peers.
We had a fantastic ride. 60+ miles with 3500 feet of up and down, no wind, and no clouds. Absolutely spectacular conditions for this time of year. I felt unbelievably good and I rode very well. My training was paying off. For me, the group ride was affirmation of this fact.
Every guy out there took something from that ride. Either it was motivation to beef up the training or affirmation that they were on schedule. You don’t get this kind of feedback riding by yourself all the time. As one rider put it, “When you ride by yourself you go hard when you want to. When you ride with others, you go hard when you don’t want to.”
As a coach, I know that it is important to not let group rides disrupt your training, especially if you are in the early base periods. However, fast group rides and races require a level of fitness that you will not get through solitary riding. The point is that you should use these rides or races to enhance your training, giving you the fitness and feedback you need to really get faster.
Seek out the most appropriate ride for you, one that will push you beyond what you thought you could do. If you get dropped, you get dropped. So what. At least you know. Then you can craft a solid training program that will ensure you don’t get dropped again.
Happy riding, mb
CYCLEtrainer 15
Base 3 means it is time to starting getting a little uncomfortable on the bike. Yesterday I did 3 x 10 minutes at upper zone 4 or just a hare below really suckin’ wind. The power numbers were solid for the efforts and time of year. Today I did 1 x 30 minutes at the lower end of zone 4, about 93% of FTP. I was satisfied with my average heart rate and power for the interval. I was a little tired from yesterday, but I was able to get it done. Here’s my workout from today.
WU: 15 minutes easy spinning followed by 5 minutes at 85% FTP.
MS: 1 x 30 minutes at 93% FTP, 10 minutes easy. Then 10 minutes at 50-60 rpms. Every minute stay seated and accelerate for 8 seconds as hard as you can without crashing off the rollers.
CD: 10 minutes easy spinning.
Have at it! mb
April 10th
April 10th is the date for the Tour of the Battenkill. This race is the official opener to my season, as well as many other bike racers throughout New England. Many will race prior to April 10th, but those races will pale in comparison to the duration and intensity of “Battenkill.”
What makes this race really difficult is that it occurs on April 10th. It is a rude awakening if your training has not gone well over the winter months. It can be demoralizing. Preparing for a 62 mile race that contains a large percentage of dirt roads and short steep climbs is no small task when you live in Northern New England. Especially if you are trying to have some form this early in the season.
I am now entering my 3rd phase of base training. Yesterday I hit it for 2 hours and did 3 intervals of 10 minutes each to gauge my power output at this point in the year. I did not go all out, but I did go hard. For the 3 intervals I averaged a little over 4 watts/kg. This is great for me at this point in the year. I have managed to get in a bunch of multi-hour rides over the last few weeks boosting my endurance significantly. This is the first winter I feel I may actually be ready for “Battenkill.”
Thankfully, after the Tour of the Battenkill, I will have until Memorial Day to prepare for my next big race. The Killington Stage Race has revived itself for this year and I am very much looking forward to it. It will comprise three days of racing. I should have really good form by then provided I continue to build at a sustainable rate. My goal is to get to 4.5 watts/kg on a 20 minute test by then. If I can hit this number, I feel very confident I can compete in the 3s and Masters 35+s.
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