Back in Ballarat after 4 weeks away has brought some interesting events and outcomes. First up I got to stand on our set of scales for the first time for 4 weeks and I have now lost about 3.5 kg, which is great and I am about a third of the way there with that. I had expected the weight loss to be difficult but (so far at least), it has been reasonably easy. That really ends the good things as then I went riding!!
After a short, slowish, roll on Friday, it was a very solid long SE trainer interval session on Saturday before the Sunday Mass group ride with The Reverend (my coach, Josh Collingwood)! Before the Sunday ride I was really feeling the interval session of the previous day and I knew it would be a very solid Sunday. Well, fair to say I was not disappointed!
The Sunday congregation was composed of three current or recent former pros, another Masters age former pro, and young, enthusiastic (aarrgghh, again!) triathlete and another 40's aged very strong recreational rider. After the first 80 km of up and down at a solid pace and then a rolling turns, full gas, return to Ballarat, Josh asked if I was coming out to Mt. Buninyong for an extra hour of kms! Well, I wasn't feeling all that great, I had worked pretty hard coming back in (including getting dropped once) and I was thirsty, which is never a good sign. So of course I said "yeah, sure", and took a deep breath and drank most of a bottle of water and filled them both up. Whatever doesn't kill you . . . ... etc.!
In the end, only four of us went; me and the three young current or former pros - great! On the other hand, if a bit of suffering is important, then today was an important session, as I really suffered, pretty much for the first time since I began this whole journey. I was dropped on the (easy route) Buninyong climb, and again up one of the Ballarat city rises. I could stay on on the flat and easy rises but my HR was really high and I had no top end at all after having gone pretty deep on half a dozen occasions over the first 80 km of the ride. When I was on the front, the speed was embarassingly slow!
I has been an important reality check and demonstrated that although I have been going well when comparing myself to riders down the beach I used to struggle to ride with, the level I am aspiring to clearly requires recalibration of my expectations of myself on a day in, day out basis. Interestingly, I felt I had already done this but clearly I need to have another look at the standards I am expecting of myself, particularly in the area of training intensity when the training is supposed to be intense. With this in mind, I am looking forward to the sessions to come and also to racing, which begins soon, as this will also provide a welcome break from the solo training, particularly on the trainer.
Sunday, 22 January 2012
Sunday, 15 January 2012
A second little test!
Today is about the last really significant ride of the summer holiday training block, as we go back to Ballarat and work this week. It was a ride with the Hendry's Cycles group, an occasional training group for Cadel Evans when he is at home, and one that varies quite a bit in standard. The standard Hendry's ride is out from Ocean Grove to Torquay riding at a steady tempo (30 - 31 km/h average) and then the group splits into fast and slow in Torquay with the ride home essentially a race but with some co-operation in rolling turns. 12 months ago I wasn't always able to stay on for the trip home but in recent rides with the group I have found it a little less taxing. I have not ridden with the group this summer, so it was going to be a good test. Also, the level of the group can vary a little and and I had hoped it would be a strong group today so I could really get feel for where I am in terms of condition.
Having yesterday ridden the 5 X 5' SE intervals on max resistance on the trainer and riding 53/14 before a 55 km group ride, I didn't feel exactly tapered for today! In any event, when I got there, the group was a strong one today and the outgoing pace was quite fast. Like the last test two weeks ago, I could feel the week's training in the burn in my legs when the road tilted up or the pace changed.
From the turnaround in Torquay, the pace was continuously very high, with about 10 or 11 rolling turns in the cross-wind at 38 to 44 km/h. During the course of the ride I was trying to do what my coach urges, which is to be the 'ticket collector', assessing the condition of everybody else, while also trying to bank a bit of energy each time I rolled to the front. On the rises of 13th Beach Rd, as some were finding it hard to roll over to do their turn, for the first time ever I found myself impatient for the pace to rise. My heart rate was down a little on similar rides from the past, and I felt much stronger than I have in this group previously.
Two or three of the riders were struggling in the final few kms and the group started to stretch and fracture a little. With about 1.5 km to the finish point, I sat at the back and called two riders through in front of me in order to change my position in the bunch and get behind the biggest rider. This also dropped my heart rate further prior to the 1 km final uphill drag before the sprint. At the top I was able to take advantage of a gap that opened up with relative ease and ride away from the group. Certainly it was a very small triumph but it did provide some positive reinforcement of the training program and some confidence that there is improvement occurring.
Some interesting measures from the ride are that both average cadence and average HR are down. The lower HR confirms how I felt when it was busy towards the end of the competitive part of the ride, so is not a surprise. The lower cadence is interesting though. Josh has expressed a view that I need to cadence lower generally and that lots of riders cannot ride like Armstrong, Evans, Basso etc and cadence very high. I have been endeavouring to stay between roughly 85 and 95 rpm. Previously on long rides, my average cadence would be 87-89 rpm and recently it has been in the 83 to 86 range, with today being 84 rpm average. I'm not really sure what to make of this but I suspect that time will tell.
So I will return to work boosted by my perceptions of improvements and changes made over the first 6 weeks of the program. Back at work, volume and time will drop but I will also get to measure improvement against known riders over known courses - and racing starts soon too!!
Having yesterday ridden the 5 X 5' SE intervals on max resistance on the trainer and riding 53/14 before a 55 km group ride, I didn't feel exactly tapered for today! In any event, when I got there, the group was a strong one today and the outgoing pace was quite fast. Like the last test two weeks ago, I could feel the week's training in the burn in my legs when the road tilted up or the pace changed.
From the turnaround in Torquay, the pace was continuously very high, with about 10 or 11 rolling turns in the cross-wind at 38 to 44 km/h. During the course of the ride I was trying to do what my coach urges, which is to be the 'ticket collector', assessing the condition of everybody else, while also trying to bank a bit of energy each time I rolled to the front. On the rises of 13th Beach Rd, as some were finding it hard to roll over to do their turn, for the first time ever I found myself impatient for the pace to rise. My heart rate was down a little on similar rides from the past, and I felt much stronger than I have in this group previously.
Two or three of the riders were struggling in the final few kms and the group started to stretch and fracture a little. With about 1.5 km to the finish point, I sat at the back and called two riders through in front of me in order to change my position in the bunch and get behind the biggest rider. This also dropped my heart rate further prior to the 1 km final uphill drag before the sprint. At the top I was able to take advantage of a gap that opened up with relative ease and ride away from the group. Certainly it was a very small triumph but it did provide some positive reinforcement of the training program and some confidence that there is improvement occurring.
Some interesting measures from the ride are that both average cadence and average HR are down. The lower HR confirms how I felt when it was busy towards the end of the competitive part of the ride, so is not a surprise. The lower cadence is interesting though. Josh has expressed a view that I need to cadence lower generally and that lots of riders cannot ride like Armstrong, Evans, Basso etc and cadence very high. I have been endeavouring to stay between roughly 85 and 95 rpm. Previously on long rides, my average cadence would be 87-89 rpm and recently it has been in the 83 to 86 range, with today being 84 rpm average. I'm not really sure what to make of this but I suspect that time will tell.
So I will return to work boosted by my perceptions of improvements and changes made over the first 6 weeks of the program. Back at work, volume and time will drop but I will also get to measure improvement against known riders over known courses - and racing starts soon too!!
Thursday, 12 January 2012
A light week and "What training is that?"
After yet another morning of rain, and yet another session on the trainer, I am reflecting on my growing fondness for the trainer! The thing I like about it is that it provides an objective measure of your output on a given day. So progress (if there is any) can be seen when doing the same session after a period of training. I think my attitude is also framed by a lighter volume week overall.
Thinking about that, an explanation of my training program might interest some. My coach Josh's view is that strength and power are the most significant things to train at this stage of preparation (now 8 months to the event) for someone my age. Although I am a bit over that phrase about age already, I suspect I might be hearing it a bit more yet! So each week for this 8 week strength phase of the training program, I do three different types of strength training on the bike.
Firstly, the least stressful are the short neuromuscular intervals (referred to as NM intervals elsewhere in this blog). These are 30" intervals with 2'30" recovery and I do 6 of them at this stage once each week prior to a long group ride. I start at walking pace on 53/14 and accelerate as fast as I can (staying seated) clicking up through the two remaining cogs as soon as I have more than about 40 rpm of cadence. I usually finish on about 50 km/h and with a bit of lactic acid developed. I try to do these on the road on the way to a group ride.
Second are the short strength/endurance intervals (referred to as short SE intervals). These have just gone from 6 X 1' duration with 5' recovery to 4 X 2' and 5' recovery this week. The cadence for these has gradually dropped from 60-65 rpm initially to 50-55 rpm now. The number of intervals will now gradually increase over the next 4 weeks. I do these once each week and then go out to either a solid 50 km solo ride or a group ride with some speed. Where possible these are done on the trainer as you need an uphill of consistent grade and down at the beach, where I am now, there aren't many that are suitable. On the trainer 5 weeks ago I was doing 1' reps of these on 53/15 on the hardest setting on the trainer. Yesterday I did the 2' reps on 53/13 - measurable progress, I think.
The third strength sessions are long strength/endurance intervals (long SE intervals). These too have just increased from 6 X 4' duration with 5' recovery to 5 X 5' and 5' recovery this week. The cadence for these is the same as the short SE intervals. The number of long SE intervals will also gradually increase over the next 4 weeks. These are done on the trainer and I began doing the 4' reps on 53/17 and today did the 5' reps on 53/15. Again, good progress.
I am also looking forward to getting back to Ballarat and riding with my usual groups over the usual hills. This will give a gauge of progress against known other athletes. However, in the interim, I will keep chipping away at the intervals, the long endurance ride each Saturday and race the Sunday, Hendry's group ride to Josh's instructions. It's very pleasant to not be so tired for a change but looking at the program for the next two weeks, I have a feeling it will not last!
Thinking about that, an explanation of my training program might interest some. My coach Josh's view is that strength and power are the most significant things to train at this stage of preparation (now 8 months to the event) for someone my age. Although I am a bit over that phrase about age already, I suspect I might be hearing it a bit more yet! So each week for this 8 week strength phase of the training program, I do three different types of strength training on the bike.
Firstly, the least stressful are the short neuromuscular intervals (referred to as NM intervals elsewhere in this blog). These are 30" intervals with 2'30" recovery and I do 6 of them at this stage once each week prior to a long group ride. I start at walking pace on 53/14 and accelerate as fast as I can (staying seated) clicking up through the two remaining cogs as soon as I have more than about 40 rpm of cadence. I usually finish on about 50 km/h and with a bit of lactic acid developed. I try to do these on the road on the way to a group ride.
Second are the short strength/endurance intervals (referred to as short SE intervals). These have just gone from 6 X 1' duration with 5' recovery to 4 X 2' and 5' recovery this week. The cadence for these has gradually dropped from 60-65 rpm initially to 50-55 rpm now. The number of intervals will now gradually increase over the next 4 weeks. I do these once each week and then go out to either a solid 50 km solo ride or a group ride with some speed. Where possible these are done on the trainer as you need an uphill of consistent grade and down at the beach, where I am now, there aren't many that are suitable. On the trainer 5 weeks ago I was doing 1' reps of these on 53/15 on the hardest setting on the trainer. Yesterday I did the 2' reps on 53/13 - measurable progress, I think.
The third strength sessions are long strength/endurance intervals (long SE intervals). These too have just increased from 6 X 4' duration with 5' recovery to 5 X 5' and 5' recovery this week. The cadence for these is the same as the short SE intervals. The number of long SE intervals will also gradually increase over the next 4 weeks. These are done on the trainer and I began doing the 4' reps on 53/17 and today did the 5' reps on 53/15. Again, good progress.
I am also looking forward to getting back to Ballarat and riding with my usual groups over the usual hills. This will give a gauge of progress against known other athletes. However, in the interim, I will keep chipping away at the intervals, the long endurance ride each Saturday and race the Sunday, Hendry's group ride to Josh's instructions. It's very pleasant to not be so tired for a change but looking at the program for the next two weeks, I have a feeling it will not last!
Sunday, 8 January 2012
Rainy Sunday and Australian Road Championships
Well, it has rained pretty much all night in Point Lonsdale, so the scheduled session is going to be adapted. There was to be NM power intervals followed by the Hendry's group ride. Instead it is onto the trainer - oh joy! Some good things come out of this, though. Early breakfast with the family, a bit less whacked than if I had done the 80 km session and off to the pool with the kids for a recovery swim. I might also be more inclined to watch the Australina Mens Road Race without falling asleep on the couch! It ought to be a cracking race and I'm not convinced that the Greenedge boys will be able to dominate as some seem to think they will.
Completing the intervals and the remainder of the trainer session sends me the message that I need to use the recovery sessions more intelligently. I have profoundly deep fatigue, and can't get my heart rate up at all on the trainer. I have to ride one level of resistance easier than usual of the trainer to keep any reasonable cadence and motivation is pretty low, really.
Tomorrow is a day off or 15 km roll around on the single speed and the next day is an easy recovery day of 15 to 25 km of E1. In the past I have taken recovery pretty loosely and done quite a lot on some days (up to 65 km and picking up a quick group while riding the single speed on one occasion) - not very smart, I think, based on how I feel today. I think I will stay off the bike but go for a swim both tomorrow and do the very easy recovery and have a swim the day after. It will be interesting to see how I feel in three days. This week has three killer sessions and also substantial volume, so I think I will need the recovery to get the most out of the week's training. I will post the results of both the recovery strategy and also the training week outcomes later this week.
Completing the intervals and the remainder of the trainer session sends me the message that I need to use the recovery sessions more intelligently. I have profoundly deep fatigue, and can't get my heart rate up at all on the trainer. I have to ride one level of resistance easier than usual of the trainer to keep any reasonable cadence and motivation is pretty low, really.
Tomorrow is a day off or 15 km roll around on the single speed and the next day is an easy recovery day of 15 to 25 km of E1. In the past I have taken recovery pretty loosely and done quite a lot on some days (up to 65 km and picking up a quick group while riding the single speed on one occasion) - not very smart, I think, based on how I feel today. I think I will stay off the bike but go for a swim both tomorrow and do the very easy recovery and have a swim the day after. It will be interesting to see how I feel in three days. This week has three killer sessions and also substantial volume, so I think I will need the recovery to get the most out of the week's training. I will post the results of both the recovery strategy and also the training week outcomes later this week.
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
My first little test (and a day off - awesome!)
So here I am on my first day off for a while. Continuing the theme of the last post, I have just completed another 'PB' of 500 km in a week. Now I know that for the pros and others, 500 is small beer but I can say for me it's an absolute yard glass! The day off is very welcome after the training load and also 41 degrees C yesterday (it was 35 when I finished riding at 10 am). I have also acquired a really painful saddle sore, so a day to get that under control will also be welcome! No more details are needed on THAT!
Yesterday was my first semi-competitive group ride since starting the program, so it was a good quasi-test of the effectiveness of the training. It is not a particularly strong group but in the past I rarely been able to do more than roll my turns in the last 10 km or so when it heats up and then be a part of the final sprint. When the group has lacked its stronger members I have been competitive for the win but mostly just making up the numbers when the better riders are there. From the beginning of the ride my legs were really feeling the cumulative effects of the last month's training and I was not hopeful of being able to be a player when the pace went up at the end. However, in last 10 km when it got busy I was comfortably able to be one of the three or four driving the bunch, particularly on the rises, and I won the final sprint by 10 or 15 m relatively easily. It was an interesting thing that although my legs felt pretty ordinary for the whole ride, and particularly when the pace went up, I was able to maintain power output without lactating up too much.
My coach is always on me about race craft and the need to be practising it in these sort of rides. Yesterday's group contained a guy who is a good sprinter and who always sits on for the whole return trip then tries to win the sprint - there's one in every bunch, isn't there? Anyway, with about 1500m to the line, I rolled off my turn and went back to fourth wheel, where he graciously left room for me in front of him (!!) and then I slowly let the gap open up to the rider in front, as if I couldn't maintain the speed. I heard him say"You OK?" and when the gap opened to just over a bike length, he came around me, as he clearly thought he was going to get gapped in the lead up to the sprint. He took another guy with him and then I closed the door on the others behind by pushing in to the single file. Mission accomplished as I now had the sit on him as a really good rider ramped up the pace in the lead out. With 300 m to go as the sprinter changed gears and looked to move out, I had already moved out sitting down and was accelerating slowly as he came out and I pick up his slipstream. As he accelerated and our speeds matched up I pushed hard to go past and then stood up and sprinted. It worked perfectly as I went past him going a lot quicker than he was and he had already pushed hard to increase speed. As the A Team's 'Hannibal' Smith would say - "I love it when a plan comes together"! The next test will be next Sunday, when the same sort of ride will be with the Hendry's Cycles group in Ocean Grove, the group that urban myths say Cadel used to ride with a bit when at home. The locals say it's true but I'm not sure anybody would put their hand up to say they were in the bunch that day!
After today's rest, it will be back to the capacity building. The next 6 or 8 weeks will be much the same but my volume will drop when we leave the beach an go back home to work. In the meantime though it is good endurance building without compromising the strength and power work. I am feeling more positive about the potential outcomes after yesterday, tiny test though it was.
Yesterday was my first semi-competitive group ride since starting the program, so it was a good quasi-test of the effectiveness of the training. It is not a particularly strong group but in the past I rarely been able to do more than roll my turns in the last 10 km or so when it heats up and then be a part of the final sprint. When the group has lacked its stronger members I have been competitive for the win but mostly just making up the numbers when the better riders are there. From the beginning of the ride my legs were really feeling the cumulative effects of the last month's training and I was not hopeful of being able to be a player when the pace went up at the end. However, in last 10 km when it got busy I was comfortably able to be one of the three or four driving the bunch, particularly on the rises, and I won the final sprint by 10 or 15 m relatively easily. It was an interesting thing that although my legs felt pretty ordinary for the whole ride, and particularly when the pace went up, I was able to maintain power output without lactating up too much.
My coach is always on me about race craft and the need to be practising it in these sort of rides. Yesterday's group contained a guy who is a good sprinter and who always sits on for the whole return trip then tries to win the sprint - there's one in every bunch, isn't there? Anyway, with about 1500m to the line, I rolled off my turn and went back to fourth wheel, where he graciously left room for me in front of him (!!) and then I slowly let the gap open up to the rider in front, as if I couldn't maintain the speed. I heard him say"You OK?" and when the gap opened to just over a bike length, he came around me, as he clearly thought he was going to get gapped in the lead up to the sprint. He took another guy with him and then I closed the door on the others behind by pushing in to the single file. Mission accomplished as I now had the sit on him as a really good rider ramped up the pace in the lead out. With 300 m to go as the sprinter changed gears and looked to move out, I had already moved out sitting down and was accelerating slowly as he came out and I pick up his slipstream. As he accelerated and our speeds matched up I pushed hard to go past and then stood up and sprinted. It worked perfectly as I went past him going a lot quicker than he was and he had already pushed hard to increase speed. As the A Team's 'Hannibal' Smith would say - "I love it when a plan comes together"! The next test will be next Sunday, when the same sort of ride will be with the Hendry's Cycles group in Ocean Grove, the group that urban myths say Cadel used to ride with a bit when at home. The locals say it's true but I'm not sure anybody would put their hand up to say they were in the bunch that day!
After today's rest, it will be back to the capacity building. The next 6 or 8 weeks will be much the same but my volume will drop when we leave the beach an go back home to work. In the meantime though it is good endurance building without compromising the strength and power work. I am feeling more positive about the potential outcomes after yesterday, tiny test though it was.
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