Now, lets see...

Hmmzis

... what this body of mine can do.

The hope is that this log will help me to stick to a structured approach to training. Have got 'The Cyclists Training Bible' to help with figuring out what to do and when and how much, have a heart rate monitor for pacing myself and have done that VO2max test to figure out my zones and other numbers and graphs.

The goals are:

1. Join a club and start going out on group spins to learn how to ride in a group, also doubles up as base training (in progress already).
2. Get into A4 racing in the 2013 season and get to a level where I don't get dropped.
3. Do the WW200, time and missus permitting also Sean Kelly tour.
4. Loose some body fat. Currently it's at 15% with a total weight of 79kg. Ideally I'd like to be less than 10%.
5. Get comfortably into the top 100 in this lovely segment - http://app.strava.com/segments/631102 (I'm currently about a dozen places short of top 100)
6. Get into top 20 on this one - http://app.strava.com/segments/693617
7. Learn to listen to my body when to back off from a tough session/week (this is something I'm really bad at, I have a tendency to overtrain and skip on the recovery bits). Have been commuting for the past 18 months with the odd longer spin with a couple of fun races thrown in (very unstructured).

For reference, the current figures from the test are:

Aerobic Threshold (AE) - 147bpm
Anaerobic Threshold (AT) - 182bpm
Max HR - 193bpm

Power at AE - 165W
Power at AT - 315W
Power at Max HR - 345W

VO2max - 60.9ml/min/kg (total of 4858ml/min)

The testers noted that my starting HR was a bit high indicating that I don't warm up properly (trying to correct this one already) and that my recovery time from max effort is a bit prolonged indicating improper cooldown methods (I had none, so they're spot on with that one, also in progress of being fixed).


The test was done at the beginning of September and the plan is to repeat it next year after a season of racing and sportives to see what has changed and what hasn't.

According to the book, at this time of year I should be doing zone 2 base building stuff. That means staying between 147bpm and 160bpm. Mr Friel also notes that if time is limited the intensity can be increased for some sessions to compensate but proper recovery has to be done before attempting another such session. That's what I've been doing for the last two months. For the past two weeks I've logged about 470k and hopefully I can keep the distance like that (200 - 250k per week). Most of the kms will be gotten from before work morning 'commutes' over Cruagh and weather and time permitting - Sally Gap + Sunday morning club spins.


Wish me luck

Hmmzis

Week started off nicely, did my standard z2 ride in the morning over Cruagh. Felt good after last week's 250k+. Rest of the week didn't go that well, got food poisoning on Monday night and almost no sleep. No training on Tuesday, somehow dragged myself into work in z1. Felt a lot better on Wednesday, did a short z1 ride before work. Resumed normal z2 stuff on Thrusday, halfway through the 'bridge to bridge' segment was feeling like dropping a few gears and just going for it, resisted it .
Since I was feeling great on Thursday and Friday morning and I've missed Tuesday and sort of also Wednesday I decided to do some higher intensity stuff on the morning session. Did a single 5min interval during the climb at 179bpm (98% LTHR), felt awesome during it, resisted to do some more. After that did a nice long z1 recovery and spun into work in z2.

Have to revise goal 5 on my list. During the Friday interval got a PB on that segment and now I'm in the top 70 there, which is reasonably comfortable in the top 100. I'm sure it will change closer to racing season but I'm also hopeful that my times will keep improving there, so the revised goal is to get on page 1 (top 25).

Weekly distance: 169.7km

Hmmzis

Second week of log.

Monday and Tuesday started normally, zone 2 spins before work up Cruagh and zone 1 high cadence drills when going home. On Tuesday morning there was quite a bit of wind up on Military road, going up it was in my face and going down it was in the back or in the side. Having it in the back was a blast, no so much when it was trying to blow me across the road at 50+ kmh. With the wind in my back most of the descent I got some very good times on Strava for some segments. Was my first time registering a KOM, 2nd and 3rd overall and an 8th and 10th overall all in one ride, happy with that .

Wasn't feeling right somehow on Wednesday, so instead of zone 2 I did the whole morning climb in zone 1. Was feeling really sleepy, couldn't get anything going (Thursday might be an explanation for this).

Thursday didn't start so well, woke up with a dull head and a very sore throat, couldn't speak for half the day and the rest of the day I sounded like an old smoker. Didn't do any training on Thursday, just zone 1 straight into work and back in the evening, not even a cadence drill.

Was feeling better on Friday but voice was still scratchy so did zone 1 and no breathing through the mouth.

Sunday was club spin day, 102k+ mostly flat along the coast down to Rathdrum and then back via Laragh and Roundwood. Felt a bit sluggish at the start but after Rathdrum took a gel with caffeine and that woke me up a bit. I'm struggling a bit with the pace setting when I'm in the front, on the flats I'd get the odd 'Steady up' and on a drag I was told go a bit faster, though in both cases my HR was at around 150-152bpm and perceived exertion seemed the same.

Weekly distance: 270km
Training time: 8h 40min (excluding commutes home, that would add another 2 - 2.5h to the total)

Hmmzis

Monday was easy day. Just spun into work and back, there was some tiredness from last Sunday's spin in them, so stayed in Z1.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday all had Z2 training rides before work. Legs felt very good throughout the week after the easy Monday.

Friday was a bit interesting. I had a friend visiting over the week and therefore the sleep pattern was a bit disturbed (instead of hitting the sack at 10:30pm it was more like 11:30pm or later) and I think that was felt on the Friday morning training ride. I wasn't sure I would be able to get to the club spin on Sunday, Friday was calling for some higher intensity. Was attempting to do a set of 4 min high Z4 intervals with recovery in Z1. First interval started out sort of fine just the speed was a bit lower than normal, but HR was climbing as expected so I hammered on. The surprise came after about 2min in, the legs just started to give up and my lungs were on fire and the most surprising thing was my HR had dropped from 177 to 170 .
Thought to myself that something's not right here, and cut the interval short. Had a nice big sip from the bottle and kept a close eye on the HR figure. It was dropping like a rock, I've never had it drop like that after an interval or anything high intensity. I was in Z1 in less than a minute, normally that would take about 3-4min.
Wasn't quite sure what to think of it and tried for a second interval, similar scenario again. After about 2min in lungs started to go up in flames and the legs just didn't comply at all. Usually I can push through that sort of stuff but this time I actually blew up - legs were empty. Though the recovery time was again spectacularly fast, less than 40sec to get to Z1.

Not quite sure what to think of that all, started reading up on nutrition in the book and there might be two deficiencies in my diet. One is vitamin E and the other is protein. The other stuff seems to be about right. Got some vitamin E capsules and will try to stuff a bit more meat in me. Will see how that goes.

Distance: 178km
Time for training: 5h 30min (structured)

Hmmzis

Week started with a slight stomach bug. Slept in on Monday morning and just spun easily into work.

Tuesday was easy going gain, had to go on perceived exertion levels since it was so dark that I couldn't see the HR indication.

Wednesday was a bit quicker, increased the intensity a bit to compensate for the missed Sunday spin a bit (low z3 for 20min, rest was z1/z2 mix). Legs left very good throughout the climb.

Thursday and Friday were both Z2 days (discovered that my HR monitor has a backlight, happy days ).

Sunday was club spin. Was intended to be a 95km lumpy ride turned out as a 123k spin from hell. For the last 50 or so kilometers I was freezing in the lashing rain, tried to keep a steady pace to keep the group together but somewhere between Graystones and Bray I found myself alone. Was spinning and mashing and trying to go faster in order to freeze a bit less. Arrived home with hypothermia, next time I should bring along some overshoes and a spare rain jacket and gloves are to go inside sleeves (the Seal Skinz are waterproof but all the water that got into them entered through the sleeve from the soaked jacket).

Distance: 308km
Time for training: 11h (structured) :eek:

Next week is going to be easy, the freezing ride took out a lot from me, need to recover and just need to keep going.

Hmmzis

As planned, this was an easy week. Did nothing at all above zone 2 and I think my legs are now that bit happier.

Monday and Wednesday was z1 work home only, no training.
Tuesday, Thursday and Friday was a mix of z1 and z2. Threw in a couple of high cadence drills and the odd power start from the lights.

Weekly distance: 145.4km
Time for training: 4h (structured)

Hmmzis

This week didn't go 100% to plan but was good enough I think.

Almost as usual I started Monday just spinning into work and then back in the evening.

Tuesday was regular training day, z1/z2 spin up the Cruagh climb and then back down again. The commute home wasn't z1 due to an unexpected creche run (girlfriend had late meetings and I had to rush to get the kid), so ended up being z3/z4 for 20min. Same thing on Wednesday.

Thursday returned to normal and was able to go back to z1/z2 riding. Have to say the legs were not happy about the 2 evening hammerings so decided to take Friday off from training and just spun into work in z1.

Sunday was club spin. A nice 100k spin with no big climbs and a very breezy wind in the back on the way home. Weather was fantastic, was my second ever club spin where I didn't get drenched. The Sun was out and it was nice and warm. It was also the first club spin where nobody got a puncture and nobody got lost. We had one droppee but he took a short cut and we caught him again on the way back before Blessington.

Weekly distance: 253.3km
Time for training: 7.5h (structured)

From next week I'm on holidays for the Christmas period. Will try to get some bigger cycles in the legs. Maybe even a 200k attempt, lets just see how it goes.

Hmmzis

Have to say that being on holidays doesn't help a lot in terms of getting out on the bike. Just had two spins this week, luckily they both were quite long, so the hours don't look that bad.

Monday was off the bike as planned.
On Tuesday I managed to get in a flat(ish) 111.7k spin in the morning. Went over Sally Gap then towards Laragh and Rathdrum, from there took the coast road back into Bray and Dublin. The first 2.5 hours were quite fine even with minimal breakfast (two bananas and a hastily grabbed handful of some cereal that was in the kitchen). Had two powerbars and two gels along for the ride and I had to use them all. Around Rathdrum my legs started to show some signs of fatigue so ate one of the bars (note for next time, open the bars before putting into pockets, just impossible to open with gloves on). Then after the nice long stretch to the turnoff to the coast road started to feel really hungry, tried a gel, was ok for a moment then it the hunger became worse, ate the other bar. Then after Graystones had the last gel but by Bray was feeling like I could eat a horse. Legs were not very happy either but my heart rate seemed to stay well within z1 and z2 with the occasional drift into z3 on some climbs.
When I arrived home, had a protein shake and lots of pasta with olive oil and some parmezan cheese.
Strava: http://app.strava.com/activities/32932597

Wednesday was off the bike, think that was good, legs felt a tad weak.

Thursday was a shorter spin around lunch time. Waited in the morning to see if the rain would stop and it did, just in time to get a spin down to Laragh and back. Went via Enniskerry then Old Long hill towards Laragh and the same way back. Was a mild headwind coming back. Tried to keep my HR in high z2 all the time, even on the downhill sections. Felt good overall, on the way back after Enniskerry legs started to feel a bit tired again but was able to keep on regardless without seeing a big drop in speeds or big changes in HR.

Was planning on doing something short on Friday and Sunday but that didn't happen due to other obligations. All in all this was an easy week I'd say, at least it feels that way.

Weekly distance: 193.1km
Time for training: 7h 20m (structured)

Next week doesn't look like it's going to be any better, have scheduled an hour in the local gym on the 27th to check how bad my cardiac drift is, maybe will get someting in on the 25th. Also, got around to plan my race calendar for the season and to a bit of a surprise by Friel's standards I should be starting Build 1 next week! :eek: Don't think it's going to happen though, will have to resort to a shorter build period.

colm_gti

Hmmzis wrote: »

....by Friel's standards I should be starting Build 1 next week! ...

What do you have planned as your first race?

Hmmzis

colm_gti wrote: »

What do you have planned as your first race?

My first race of the season is the Ned Flanagan Memorial but that is going to be a 'C' race. I'm planning the first 'A' race to be the Noel and Kieran Hammond memorial (17th March in the CI calendar draft) and then extend the race period for another weekend for the Des Hanlon.

Hmmzis

This week was a bit better in terms of getting out on the bike than last one. Got a whopping total of 3 spins in the legs and this was also my first week of Build 1 (yeah, sure, right).

Tuesday. First spin was a tempo zone 3 2h+ spin around my favorite route (Cruagh, Sally gap, Lugala, Ballinastoe, Enniskerry and back). Had a few PBs on Strava. Legs were feeling quite good all the way, was nice to get some speed going again. Went out of zone 3 on the Poggio segment, was surprised how my well lungs were coping with high zone 4 stress. Legs were burning up but somehow I was just able to continue on, very strange feeling that I've never had before (it was almost pleasant... ).

Strava here: http://app.strava.com/activities/33897469

Thursday. Went to the local gym for the first time to try and see how my cardiac drift behaves. Warmed up for 10min, then dialed in 300W on the trainer and made mental notes of how the HR went up and down for 40min. Then used Friel's equation to check how that decoupling value looks for me. At least for 40min at 300W the decoupling ratio looks OK - 2.2%, a good bit below the 5% marker. I just don't see myself doing 2h+ at AeT on a gym bike to establish a more accurate figure.

Sunday. Club spin day . Was my first time out on the north side of Dublin. Very enjoyable route and I really liked the flat terrain. The canal roads are very broken up but also superbly quiet. Before Naas there was a fantastic flat straight that looked like it was made for TTing. We had a decent sized group so the wind didn't seem that bad on the way out. Legs felt very good all the way. On the homeward leg 3 of us split off to go back to Rathfarnham and oh goody the tailwind was nice on the N81, 50kmh felt like 25-30kmh on any regular day.

Strava here: http://app.strava.com/activities/34726087

Weekly distance: 166.1km
Time for training: 7h (structured)

Next week I'll be back in work and I might be able to get an easy short spin on the 1st Jan. Hoping to get some short intervals going and some tempo work. This first week of build wasn't much of a build, hopefully the other weeks will be a lot better.

Hmmzis

This week was supposed to be build 1, week 2. Since the last week was not really a build week, I will regard this one as my first build week. I'll still keep all 4 weeks for build 1 and reduce the build 2 weeks to 3.

Monday was off the bike, just getting ready for the New Year's dinner.

Tuesday was New Year's day and my son was up at 8 as usual. So after a breakfast of some porridge and banana headed out for the first interval session of the year. Warmed up, did 2min z4 to get the legs going and then did 12min, 8min, 4min with increasing intensity building up to zone 5a in the 12min and 8min ones and 5b for the 4min. Legs were in complete agony but lungs held up just fine. Was a bit strange - wasn't able to walk down stairs properly afterwards (quads hurting) but the overall feeling was that I hadn't done much at all.

Wednesday was return to work and commuting. Was running a bit late so had to cut the planned tempo session short, was still a good workout I think.

Thursday I tried sprint intervals for the first time ever. Yikes! Those things hurt a lot! Did 3 sets of 5x25sec with 40sec rest and 5min between sets. By the end of the third one I had the feeling that I might have to taste my breakfast again. Legs were burning up and also the lungs had their fair share of suffering.

Friday was tempo work in zone 3. Even with the sprints the previous morning I was feeling just fine, maybe the legs were on the tired side a bit but nothing to write home about.

Saturday was off bike as always.

Sunday was club spin day. Was running late for the start and had to chase the guys down from Dundrum. Caught them just before Stepaside, right in time for the left turn that I can never remember right when on a solo spin. Was a nice day out, no rain, no massive wind and a rather big group. Speed was very good, the fastest I've been out with that particular group. Before Rathdrum we were already averaging 28km/h and after Laragh it just kept increasing, the final was 29.3km/h. Was also able to improve some times on Strava. Two of us broke off to tackle the Poggio segment, I lost but still knocked off 3sec of my PB there. Very happy with the spin, though now my legs are quite shattered.
http://app.strava.com/activities/36219549

Weekly distance: 230.5km
Time for training: 8h (structured)

Next week should be looking very similar to this one. Maybe the intervals should be shorter, like 4-5min and start out with 5 or 6 of them and then work up to a bit more. Have to look up some more exercises for the build period.

Hmmzis

I like being back in a rhythm of exercise. Felt great throughout the week right down to Sunday evening, here is a short breakdown of last week:

Monday, the usual z1 spin to work and back. Nice for recovery from the Sunday's club spin.

Tuesday was intervals, 4x4min (didn't manage the 5th one) with recovery into z1. Was feeling a bit slow on the first one, maybe I have to extend the warmup a little to get the legs spinning.

Wednesday was a tempo session cut short by icy conditions up on Military road. Luckily I got my turbo trainer on Monday and was able to do a short 30min session that night, just some cadence drills and single legged efforts with a sprint or two thrown in.

Thursday was sprint day. Did 3 sets of 5x20sec sprints with 40sec rest and 5min between sets. The start jump is getting a bit better, hope that trend will continue. Will try a smaller cog at the back next time, was spinning out the end of the first efforts of each set.

Friday did a good tempo session, was really fun going up hill; legs, lungs and spirit was on a high. Still had lots of energy left in the tank in the evening and since the roads were quite quiet on may way home I opened the taps a little (good tempo feeling, didn't look at HR, just enjoyed the speed). Reeled in a fellow club member after Harold's Cross and we did a few up and overs between lights to make the journey a bit more interesting.

Saturday was off bike as usual. I like my rest days .

Sunday was club spin day. Was on time this time, we set off from the park a few minutes after 9am and headed towards Maynooth. Was a bit icy in places and despite taking it easy on the turns and corners two guys went down on some black ice on a sharp right turn, luckily no damage done and we continued on. Was a very flat route, there was only one draggy bit after Naas just before Blessington. We had been taking it very easy up until the outskirts of Blessington but then the fun started - constant rolling up and overs . Now that was the most fun on a bike I've had in a very long time, felt like a 10 year old kid in a candy shop . Then some snow rolled over us, still we continued pushing on. Stayed at the front for a while, then the fun started again. Looking forward to more of those just have to get the first couple pulls under control in order not to create a gap. Later that night my legs felt the efforts quite well, walking down stairs was bit of a funny exercise but it's getting better.

Weekly distance: 263.3km
Time for training: 8h 53min (structured)

Next week the plan is the same. I will try to get the intervals to 5x4min and maybe add an additional set for the sprints. Might introduce some foam roller pain in some nights, have noticed some tight spots here and there.

Hmmzis

Third week of build 1 period over and I'm feeling pretty cooked. Was a tough week overall.

Monday was z1 into work but a creche run made the return into z3/4. Woke up in the morning feeling a bit tired already, so not a good rest day to start with.

Tuesday. Missing out on recovery on Monday was showing very harshly in the morning. Plan was calling for intervals and decided to stick with the plan. Did 5x4min with recovery into z1. Last one was on the weak side, couldn't get the HR to respond as required.

Wednesday was planning a z3 ride in the morning but the intervals the previous day were still making my legs heavy and anything above z2 felt very harsh and painful on the legs. So stuck with z1/z2 for the morning and z1 for the evening. Did some foam roller exercises before going to sleep (ouch, had some nasty knots in my quads).

Thursday. Sprints - 4 sets of 5x20sec with 40sec rest and 5min between sets. Was glad I didn't go for z3 the previous day, was able to do the sprints properly right down to the last one, though after that wasn't quite keen on doing anything above z1.

Friday woke up comparatively 'fresh', at least I didn't feel like falling down back on the bed again. Was planning to do a z3 ride in the morning but that one got cut short by the snow storm in the hills. While I could have climbed the hill I would have had to descend it back down and with the lights only showing me a cloud of snow flakes whizzing in front of me I wasn't sure I'd would be able to get the corners right (and it was very cold and very wet).

Saturday was off bike as normal.

Sunday's club spin turned out to be a bit longer than planned. By trying to avoid any elevation where there might be some ice or snow we managed to get 120k over some backroads around the Naas area. The way back on the N81 felt hard on the legs, wasn't able to get out of z2, and even that felt strangely harsh. Will try and take more gels with me next time.
Some Strava here:

http://app.strava.com/activities/38104859

Weekly distance: 280.9km
Time for training: 9h (structured)

Next week is supposed to be an easy one except for one day (Thursday or Friday most likely) that is reserved for a test. Weather permitting I'll try to do a 20min TT on my regular morning climb and see how the times on the segments will stack up with the existing ones.

colm_gti

Be careful you don't overtrain!

A club mate and I were following a similar plan to yours, 3 weeks on 1 week off. For comparison, I'm 23 and relatively fit (~10 years of rugby behind me), and I'm feeling tired after 2 weeks on, and have decided to switch to a 2 week on 1 week off plan. My club mate is slightly older, but plenty of years of rugby behind him too, and he's experiencing disrupted sleep patterns and mouth ulcers, classic signs of overtraining.

What I'm trying to say is that I think if you're working to the right intensities, 3 weeks on 1 week off is pretty hard on your body, so just be careful.

Hmmzis

colm_gti wrote: »

Be careful you don't overtrain!

A club mate and I were following a similar plan to yours, 3 weeks on 1 week off. For comparison, I'm 23 and relatively fit (~10 years of rugby behind me), and I'm feeling tired after 2 weeks on, and have decided to switch to a 2 week on 1 week off plan. My club mate is slightly older, but plenty of years of rugby behind him too, and he's experiencing disrupted sleep patterns and mouth ulcers, classic signs of overtraining.

What I'm trying to say is that I think if you're working to the right intensities, 3 weeks on 1 week off is pretty hard on your body, so just be careful.

Thanks, overtraining is one my concerns and also one of the reasons for this log. My next build period is actually planned as 2+1 weeks before going into peak and then race. Will see how I feel after this week and how the next build will pan out. I'm also trying to look after my food intake, getting enough fruit and veg and getting enough food in me in general. One strange thing I've noticed during this build period was that my cravings for veg have gone sky high and any thoughts of fast food or crap food in general are causing negative feelings in my head. Body telling me what it needs and what not? In any case it is a very interesting process, loving every second of it.

Hmmzis

Last week of build 1, recovery week. I think I did well on the recovery front, it was the least amount of distance I've done in a long time over a week.

Monday and Tuesday were simple commutes in zone 1. Took out the MTB for the snow and ice for the first time this winter. Was a bit different, was tempted to go up to 3rock but resisted.

Wednesday extended the commute a little bit to include some form sprints. Was still on the MTB, the first two sprints felt a bit awkward but the handling of the wide bars settled in fairly quickly.

Thursday was marked down for a test. Had pencilled in a 20min segment in the local hills that I wanted to improve on and the weather forecast looked the best from all other days this week. Unfortunately have to mark it as a failed test since the last couple kilometres were not cleared from the snow and had to turn back after about 18min (went almost splat on the ground on the snow and ice). Did improve my time a bit on an intermediate segment but not by much (was 11m:33s now it stands at 11m:22s). Was a bit frustrated and with an unused 2 or so minutes of fuel in the tank so decided to take my frustration out in this segment here - http://app.strava.com/segments/868080
Took out 15 seconds from my PB there and got a top 10 spot which I'm fairly happy about (and I can't imagine the rage I'd have to be in to get the 30kmh+ average to contest the KOM there).

Friday was again just a regular zone 1 commute.

Saturday was off bike as normal.

Sunday was not club spin day for me, instead I went for the turbo. Did 90min z2/3 high cadence steady effort (same gear, same resistance, same cadence and just watching the HR climb).

Over the week I did some additional foam roller exercises and some core exercises with a bit more stretching than usual.

While during the Thursday test I couldn't complete the planned segment the intermediate time and the Mt Venus segment did indicate that my muscular endurance is still not where it should be while my top end at shorter bursts is coming along nicely. It could also be that my pacing for the longer efforts is off. Will have to think now how to keep improving the short burst like power and how to get also some cruise intervals in the second build period.

Weekly distance: 118.7km
Time for training: 3h 41m (structured)

Hmmzis

Week 1 of build 2 over. Have to say it was a bit tough at first but towards the end of the week the legs started to open up a bit.

Monday did just the z1 commute, very easy on the pedals, max HR was in the low 140ies and average was 112.

Tuesday, did 5 intervals 4+6+6+4+4 minutes with the same amount of time for rest in between. Was feeling a bit sluggish on the first two ones, the last three were fine. Think I might try 4-6-8-6-4 next week and see how I feel with something a bit longer in the middle.

Wednesday was just a tempo session, was very windy up on Military road. Descending proved to be more difficult than going up, the crosswinds in places were blasting me into the opposite lane, not fun at all.

Thursday was doing my 20sec sprints. Did five sets and was feeling pretty good after them. I'm using 40sec rests between the work intervals, maybe that should be reduced to 30sec to make it a bit tougher.

Friday did another tempo session, didn't do the full length due to black ice on Military road.

Rested up on Saturday, off bike.

Sunday went on the club spin. We started out from the Phoenix park and headed for Lucan, Clonee, Summerhill, Trim (some castle that one is they have there), headed back via Batterstown, Clonee, Clonsilla and back in to the park. Got a KOM (only shared though) on segment near Lucan, short steep bump in the road, wasn't sure if I wanted to go for it until almost halfway through it, then opened it up. Was just hoping for a PB, was very surprised to match the leader's time. It can be easily done a lot faster, 30kmh+ should be a doddle for any decent KOM hunter out there.

Strava here: http://app.strava.com/activities/39605533

Now I'm feeling tired but full of enthusiasm to go out and hammer those cranks next week.
One thing I noticed during the week is that my HR is lower for the same speeds and efforts being put in, also the recovery times are between intervals and any hard efforts are coming down nicely. On the club spin I was mostly in z1 when not in the front (even on the draggy bits), when in front it was mid z2 for the pace we were doing (usually I would be in low z3 when in front).

Weekly distance: 284.4km
Time for training: 9h (structured)

Hmmzis

This week didn't quite go to plan, would not quite count it as a build week.

Monday started as usual, just a z1 commute. Was still a bit tired from Sunday's club spin.

Tuesday the mess with the plan started. There was frozen snow on my usual training route and just couldn't get through without risking falling off.

Wednesday was better. Did the Tuesday intervals, tried to extend the middle ones a bit 4-6-8-6-4. Would say that I felt better on the longer ones, must be getting better at pacing myself, the 4min ones are still a b*** n' a half. Recovery times are also good, takes less than 2min on average to get me down back in z1.

Thursday was off work taking my son to the doc for his vaccination and the gf was also home with some virus, so training time was at a premium. Still, managed to get a 50min z2/3 turbo session in while everyone was sleeping.

Friday did my sprint sets, this time with reduced rest between the sprints. That making it 5x20sec with 30sec rest in between and 5min between sets, 5 sets altogether. Have to say the 10sec off the rest time between the efforts makes it much tougher, was quite cooked at the end of every set. Recovery times between sets were good though, less than 2min and was feeling like going again (still kept it 5min). For the last set I ran out of hill and went over and turned back, so it was up hill and into a rather stiff headwind - nothing like that to test your willpower and determination.

Saturday was on plan, off bike.

Sunday was a disaster training wise, didn't do a thing on the bike. Had a very bad night's sleep and just woke up still tired, then looked outside at the weather and couldn't get my bottom out and into the saddle. Hopefully the extra rest day will do me some good. (note to myself, mash with beef and mushroom sauce after 8pm is a bad, bad idea if a good night's sleep is desired).

So in total I've missed my long club spin and a tempo ride this week plus the one tempo ride I had was a tad short.

Weekly distance: 165.7km
Time for training: 6h 13min (structured)

Next week on Sunday I'll be trying out some racing in the Ned Flanagan Memorial race. It'll be a priority 'C' race that will replace the weekend club spin. The goal for this race is to sit tight watch and learn and stay out of trouble (crashes). It'll still be a build week, so no added planned rest. I might try to add a couple of 2min intervals for Tuesday to make it 2-4-6-8-6-4-2. Will keep the sprints as is. After the race I might have some more ideas on how to adjust the workouts to be more race specific.

Slo_Rida

Hmmzis wrote: »

Next week on Sunday I'll be trying out some racing in the Ned Flanagan Memorial race. It'll be a priority 'C' race that will replace the weekend club spin. The goal for this race is to sit tight watch and learn and stay out of trouble (crashes). It'll still be a build week, so no added planned rest. I might try to add a couple of 2min intervals for Tuesday to make it 2-4-6-8-6-4-2. Will keep the sprints as is. After the race I might have some more ideas on how to adjust the workouts to be more race specific.

Well done on following your plan so well, very disciplined especially when you've a child and an adult to take care of!
This is just my 2c on your approach Sundays race. I've been reading a bit of Friel as well and understand what you're saying re priority races BUT...I think you are hopping fit and if you go into your first race with the attitude above to "sit tight" you might do yourself a disservice. I'm only suggesting that you go in more open minded and stay near the front, maybe watch breaks, maybe jump across to one or start one or chase one down but in any case throw your hat in the ring to compete. I've no experience and this is just based on what I've read and seen but I think you might be able for more than sitting tight and might learn ore about yourself and racing if you really go for it. Perhaps a more experienced cyclist will tell you that you are correct in your approach and if so, fine, but I say go in to win, every time.
Best of luck anyway and give us a good report of Sunday.
Slo
PS We might overlap at Des Hanlon if I make it up for it...

Hmmzis

Slo_Rida wrote: »

Well done on following your plan so well, very disciplined especially when you've a child and an adult to take care of!
This is just my 2c on your approach Sundays race. I've been reading a bit of Friel as well and understand what you're saying re priority races BUT...I think you are hopping fit and if you go into your first race with the attitude above to "sit tight" you might do yourself a disservice. I'm only suggesting that you go in more open minded and stay near the front, maybe watch breaks, maybe jump across to one or start one or chase one down but in any case throw your hat in the ring to compete. I've no experience and this is just based on what I've read and seen but I think you might be able for more than sitting tight and might learn ore about yourself and racing if you really go for it. Perhaps a more experienced cyclist will tell you that you are correct in your approach and if so, fine, but I say go in to win, every time.
Best of luck anyway and give us a good report of Sunday.
Slo
PS We might overlap at Des Hanlon if I make it up for it...

Thanks for the encouragement Slo. I would love to be competitive but it's my first proper road race. Some club mates have told me that my power looks decent but my positioning and cornering is still lacking. That's only to be gained by time and experience. Though I would be extatic if I ended up in a break, let alone initiating one myself .

Slo_Rida

Hmmzis wrote: »

but my positioning and cornering is still lacking.

All the more reason to be in a break ;-)

Hmmzis

Build 2 week 3 over, and what a week it was .

Monday as normal, just z1 commute in and out. Feeling not too bad, but also not daisy fresh.

Tuesday did the 2-4-6-8-6-4-2 intervals. The worst part is the 2-4 bit, the 2min effort is very high and just about when I've started recovering from it the 4min effort starts and that is also very high on the intensity scale. The other way it was almost easy. The longer efforts are become more manageable, pacing might be getting better. On the Cruagh descent noticed that my cornering is getting a little better, was breaking less and was picking better lines overall.

Wednesday did a tempo session. Started out in z2 then ramped up to high z3 and stayed there for the rest of the session. Legs felt on the heavy side but not too bad.

Thursday was my sprint day. I have kind of grown to like this workout. Did 5 sets of 5x20sec with 30sec recovery and 5min recovery between sets. Felt that my bike control at those high efforts is getting better and the pedalling effort is more focused and that I can push through the full 20sec without much fading, the last 5sec or so are quite unpleasant though.

Friday did another tempo session. Without the gale force wind up in the hills it was very pleasant. Started in z2 and ramped up to high z3 and a bit in low z4 for the steeper bits. Was feeling surprisingly good, guess the lack of wind frees the mind a bit and the legs are just following along .

Saturday was off bike as usual.

Sunday - race day, Ned Flanagan Memorial. First open race for me and I loved every moment of it. The only bad moment was the crash with 5k or so to go, was right beside it but got lucky. There is a recap of my experiences posted here:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=83265470&postcount=111

Strava linky here:

http://app.strava.com/activities/41231325

Weekly distance: 268km
Time for training: 7h 26min (structured)

Next week is the last week of my build period and I'm so happy it's a rest week. I might do a test on Thursday or Friday but given that I've planned a race on Sunday (Traders Cup in Dundalk) I might skip it if not feeling like it. Will do a form sprint session over the week and maybe something z1/z2ish.
Have to say it was a tough build period, the race more than compensated for the not so tough second week .

Lusk Doyle

Hmmzis wrote: »

Next week is the last week of my build period and I'm so happy it's a rest week. I might do a test on Thursday or Friday but given that I've planned a race on Sunday (Traders Cup in Dundalk) I might skip it if not feeling like it. Will do a form sprint session over the week and maybe something z1/z2ish.
Have to say it was a tough build period, the race more than compensated for the not so tough second week .

One less person to chase down so!

Hmmzis

Lusk Doyle wrote: »

One less person to chase down so!

Well, I might skip the test, not the race

Hmmzis

This was my last week of the build cycle and it was a rest week with a race on Sunday, also managed to throw in a test on Thursday.

Monday and Tuesday was only z1 commutes into work and back home. Monday was especially easy with a max HR of 136 (it's usually in the mid 140ies on z1 days).

Wednesday did a slightly longer commute in the morning with some form sprints and a mix of z1 and z2 high cadence work. Was still feeling the race a bit in my legs.

Thursday decided to do a test after all. The book asks for a 20min TT but going over my goals for this year I noticed that I haven't had a go yet at goal No 6. That was the plan then, do this segment - http://app.strava.com/segments/693617 and see how fast I can do it. Started it off a bit easy trying to pace it like a negative split and gradually building up the RPE. Think it went very good, got to within 2 sec of the top 20 there. As it stands now I felt I threw everything I had at it. By the end of it I was going full bore and my HR went up to 191 (highest I've seen in quite some time). I would need to get rid of the winter gear, have less water in the bottle and leave the backpack at home to edge out those 2 seconds with my current fitness level (I'm hoping to improve that first).

Friday was a very easy z1 commute.

Saturday off bike as usual.

Sunday raced in the Dundalk Traders Cup. Some of my experiences there are posted in here:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=83380696&postcount=16

The rest week did me good I think for the race. I did fade a bit toward the end but had enough in me left to launch a few attacks and bridge over to some breaks. The feeling was that I'm tired and the body is already telling me to stop, to ease back but when going for it was still complying. I would say there is still lots and lots of improvement fitness wise that I can do and there is also a whole world of knowledge and experience to be gained to become more efficient in a race (positioning, getting breaks going, going to the front inside the pack not around it etc.).

Weekly distance: 194.8km
Time for training: 4h (structured)


Next week is going to be the first week of the Peak period. From the book it seems I need to do more and more race specific workouts. From the two races I've done so far that would mean doing stuff at threshold (front of bunch) and lots and lots of sprinting (when A3/2/1 lads catch up).

Slo_Rida

Hmmzis wrote: »

I would say there is still lots and lots of improvement fitness wise that I can do and there is also a whole world of knowledge and experience to be gained to become more efficient in a race (positioning, getting breaks going, going to the front inside the pack not around it etc.).

It's great that you feel you there's lots of improvement possible fitness wise. It bodes well for a good season racing and getting some placings/results. Well done on the racing so far...I hope my racing improves on last weekend...I think hills are still my problem so I need to do more of them.
G'luck!

Hmmzis

First week of the peak period done now, feeling rather fresh. Quite a change from the build period, didn't even know how tiring it actually was until this week.

Monday and Tuesday were simple z1 commutes, it looks like I need about 2 days in recovery mode after a race to get back on terms with my legs.

Wednesday went out for a steady z1/z2 ride before work. Nothing major, just up to Featherbeds and back down.

Thursday did intervals with a slight twist. Before each interval did a short sprint to simulate a break attempt or bridge over attempt and then dialling in the intensity to something more sustainable (as in interval pace). Was more difficult than I imagined. Did 2+4+6+6+4+2, reducing the volume from the usual by skipping the 8min.

Friday did a very lazy z1/2 spin up to almost Featherbeds, reducing the volume a bit. Felt rather good after the intervals the previous day.

Saturday spent all day with family doing family stuff, no bike as usual.

Sunday went out in anger to do a race intensity workout. The goal was to go up to the gate at the Kippure mast road. Really wanted to get up to 20km/h average on the 'Ballybode roundabout to Kippure gate' segment (http://app.strava.com/segments/1598627). That I did, got a nice 22km/h average on it and just 5sec short of a top 10 position. The weather was also perfect for doing something like this, no wind, dry roads and not too cold, brilliant. And having no backpack on the back just feels so much better .

Weekly distance: 193.6km
Time for training: 5h 18m (structured)

I think I'm starting to get what this whole peak/taper thing is all about. During the week I felt less and less fatigue and the intensity just seems to maintain the built up strength. It also shows in the segment times, last week I did a test on the Cruagh climb segment and almost got into the top 20, this week during the Sunday workout I knocked off another 5sec off it and just about scraped it into the top 20 (won't be there for long I think, have to get faster). Was quite surprised about the 5th overall on the way back from Sally Gap (http://app.strava.com/segments/666364), just felt quite good there and flipped it in the big ring and went for it, didn't expect the result though. Another surprise was during the Thursday intervals. I improved my PB on the Cruagh Bridge to Bridge segment, not yet even close to page 1 but the 5min barrier is getting closer (5m15sec now).

Hmmzis

Second week of the peak period didn't quite go to plan. It started off fine but mid week I went down with a chest infection that's still refusing to leave my lungs.

Monday. Just the regular z1 commute.

Tuesday felt good and did some form sprints with a dig on the Mt Venus segment, another few seconds off my PB there. Without wind it's good segment to check pacing for a 1min effort.

Wednesday woke up a bit tired. At first just thought the sleep was not 100% and went to do some intervals. The target was 4+6+6+4 removing the 2min efforts from both ends. Well, got as far as the first 6min and then that was it for me. The 4min went great though, pacing was spot on, it was one of the very few times I managed to clear the pub entrance (Merry Ploughboys) within the 4min. Was happy with the effort but noticed that my recovery was kind of prolonged.
At first I thought that I overdid it a bit on the 4min and just went a bit slower to leave more recovery time for the 6min. Didn't help, halfway through the first 6min I felt empty, legs were not complying any more and my lungs felt like on fire and HR was down to low z4. Cut the effort a bit short and rolled into work while thinking what have I done wrong the previous days. In the afternoon in became apparent what was wrong, I had a caught a chest bug. :mad:

Thursday and Friday were just very slow z1 commutes, breathing exclusively through the nose. In hindsight I should have stayed at home on Friday at least.

Saturday and Sunday was off bike trying to clear the chest with cough syrup, various herbal brews and warming packs on the chest.

Weekly distance: 110.9km
Time for training: 1h 39m (structured)


Due to the chest bug I couldn't get much structured training time in this week (40.4k in 1h39m). Missed the race intensity workout, half of the intervals and at least one z1/2 workout. Ideally it should have been around the 4h mark with distance around 150-160k. I just hope this hasn't ruined the peak/taper completely.

Next week is marked down as Race, this means five days before the race I have to do 5x90sec race intensity efforts and then each day one effort less. Not sure how that will go with the state I'm currently in, but I have hopes that this bug will be gone by Tuesday and I'll be back on the road.

Slo_Rida

Stupid chest bugs, they're slowing everybody down. Hopefully this cold snap will kill them all off. Definitely sit tight if your even slightly ill. You've done
the power of training up to now so a break (though not planned) will do you good. I'm looking forward to your race report. Best of luck with the next race.
Slo

Hmmzis

Not a great week, chest bug was still slowing me down.

Monday, Tuesday stayed at home trying to get rid of the chest bug.

Wednesday felt a lot better and went for a short pre work workout. Did 4x90sec efforts at race pace. Felt tired, speed was crap HR was not a good indicator (too short an effort).

Thursday did the same as on Wednesday but 3 reps.

Friday did again the same but only 2 reps. Felt a lot better than the previous days. Was eager to get into racing mode again. Did an effort on the Mt Venus segment for the feel, did a 1:06 which was 6sec slower than my PB or about 90% of last week's top form (before chest bug).

Saturday off bike as normal.

Sunday was race day but it got cancelled due to the snow and poor visibility. Disappointed with that, was looking forward to it. Went home and spent the day with family (everybody now seems to have caught the same bug as me).

Weekly distance: 92.9km
Time for training: 2h 18m (structured)


Next week is again race week (Des Hanlon Memorial). Should be doing the same 90sec efforts at race intensity an removing one every day. With the chest bug having taken some of my power and having missed a race and quite a bit of workouts I'm not sure how my body will respond to racing again. Will just see how it goes and will try to hang in there for as long as I can.