February was a cold, snowy, and really windy month. That forced me inside a lot. Of the sixteen training rides in February, eleven were on the trainer. Fortunately I am not completed burned out on the trainer because January was a surprisingly good weather month.
Still, I am pleased with where I am. In every measurement I am at least two weeks and often four weeks ahead of my 2011 pace. Power is above the 2011 levels. The only thing I can not be sure of is how much climbing I have done versus 2011. I have not done nearly as much climbing as I wanted averaging only about 6k' per week versus a plan of nearly 10k'/week. But I did not record climbs in 2010.
Endurance is off plan but at 2011 pace. If March is good weather--and it is the snowest month in Coloraod--I will remain on plan.
The plan was to arrive at the first of March tired and I executed that plan well. Going skiing for three days. Taking a day off. And then restarting by getting another FTP test.
February Summary: Total training hours= 48:23 (7 skiing, 11 core/strength, and 30 cycling) 408 miles, TSS=2059 and 19281 KCal.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Cold, Snowy February
Cold Lefthand Canyon
January was nice, for January. February has been cold and snowy. That has forced me on the trainer a lot. That hasn't been all bad. I have pushed my FTP up 13 watts and my power is greater than it was last year at this time. And my CTL is 14 points higher. But I need to be climbing and getting some miles. This week I fell short of both mileage and climbing goals riding 120 miles vs. 140 and climbing 6,700' vs. 8,000'. That is one ride short which is what I missed because of weather and a sick granddaughter. I did get a couple of longish rides in Saturday and Sunday but it was cold--in the 30's.
Still I am fine with where I am. Overall this was a high volume training week. Total training hours was 15:45 of which 3 was skiing, 4:30 was core and strength, and 8:15 was cycling. Other statistics for the week are TSS=595 and Kcal of 5970. Both further indicate it was a good training week for February.
This week (week of 2-20) doesn't look promising for weather either. I plan is to ride 160 miles and climb 10k'. That may prove impossible with the storms coming in. The winds are supposed to be high (gusts to 40) all week and it is very hard to get 4,000 feet of climbs in without going up into the mountains. And the mountain roads are icy, cold, and covered with sand.
Plan:
Monday Easy: Core + Yoga + Lift + RM 1.o
Tuesday Hard: TP>1.5 + TH 3x15x8, 2-4k' (trainer 1.5, outside longer)
Wednesday Rest
Thursday Easy: Core + Yoga + Lift + TP 1.5 hrs
Friday Hard: TP>1.5 + TH 3x15x8, 2-4k' (trainer 1.5, outside longer) or Ski
Saturday Long: 4.0 hr+ 5k' or EM 2.0 + TP 1x60 + TH 3x20x5
Sunday Easy: EM 1.0
I have no choice but to take what the weather gives me and make the best of it.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Warm, Dry, Windy January
January was warm, dry and windy. Some days the wind was just too much to handle with gusts over 40 mph and on some days the sustained winds were that high. But overall the month was very favorable for cycling and I was able to take advantage.
January Summary: 50 hours training (includes pilates, yoga and lifting), 460 miles cycling, and TSS=2179. It was the most TSS since May and tells me that I am increasing my intensity as planned.
Beginning last week I moved to my build training plan. The first two weeks are below.
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Mon
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x8x4, 1-3k' or PI 2*3x3x3 6 min RBS Tue
Rest Wed
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x8x4, 1-3k' or PI 2*3x3x3 6 min RBS Thu
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Fri
Long: 3.0 hr+ 2-4k' or TP 2x30x5 Sat
Easy: EM Hygene or EM 1.0 Sun
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Mon
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x10x5, 1-3k' or PI 6x3x3 Tue
Rest Wed
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x10x5, 2-4k' or PI 6x3x3 Thu
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Fri
Long: 3.0 hr+ 3-4k' or TH 3x10x5 Sat
Easy: EM Hygene or EM 1.0 Sun
Probably everyone understands it but a quick reminder on some of the notation. Hygene just happens to be a loop I ride. EM=endurance miles, level 2, TP=tempo, level 3, TH=threshold, level 4, PI=power intervals=anaerobic, level 6. The "or" is where I have an option to ride outside or inside on a trainer.
The first week plan is to ride 120 miles and do 6k' climbs. Week two is 140 miles and 6k'. By June the weekly mileage is more than 300 miles and the weekly climb total is over 25k'. My long ride in February is 5 hours by June it is 12 hours. I will need good weather in March and April to hit this aggressive training plan.
Only 24 weeks until the Double Triple Bypass and only 32 weeks until the Eastern Mountain ride.
January Summary: 50 hours training (includes pilates, yoga and lifting), 460 miles cycling, and TSS=2179. It was the most TSS since May and tells me that I am increasing my intensity as planned.
Beginning last week I moved to my build training plan. The first two weeks are below.
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Mon
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x8x4, 1-3k' or PI 2*3x3x3 6 min RBS Tue
Rest Wed
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x8x4, 1-3k' or PI 2*3x3x3 6 min RBS Thu
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Fri
Long: 3.0 hr+ 2-4k' or TP 2x30x5 Sat
Easy: EM Hygene or EM 1.0 Sun
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Mon
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x10x5, 1-3k' or PI 6x3x3 Tue
Rest Wed
Hard: TP 1.5 + TH 3x10x5, 2-4k' or PI 6x3x3 Thu
Easy: Core + Yoga, Lift, EM Hygene (25 miles) 0-2k' Fri
Long: 3.0 hr+ 3-4k' or TH 3x10x5 Sat
Easy: EM Hygene or EM 1.0 Sun
Probably everyone understands it but a quick reminder on some of the notation. Hygene just happens to be a loop I ride. EM=endurance miles, level 2, TP=tempo, level 3, TH=threshold, level 4, PI=power intervals=anaerobic, level 6. The "or" is where I have an option to ride outside or inside on a trainer.
The first week plan is to ride 120 miles and do 6k' climbs. Week two is 140 miles and 6k'. By June the weekly mileage is more than 300 miles and the weekly climb total is over 25k'. My long ride in February is 5 hours by June it is 12 hours. I will need good weather in March and April to hit this aggressive training plan.
Only 24 weeks until the Double Triple Bypass and only 32 weeks until the Eastern Mountain ride.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Summer Rides
Amazingly it is only early January and my major event schedule for the summer is set.
The first event will be the MS Ride in Orlando in April. This is just a fun ride with a century first day and 75-mile ride second. I will be riding with friends so the pace will be easy. The elevation gained will be very minimal.
The second event is the Buena Vista Bike Fest on May 19th. I will ride one of the many passes in the area on the 18th (e.g. Monarch—11,312 or Cottonwood—12, 126), ride the century on the 19th, and then ride up Fremont Pass (11,318) on Sunday. The century climbs up to 10,600’ twice but overall I don’t think it has more than 7,000’ of total climbs. Great May workout.
The first peak of the season is planned for the Double Triple Bypass July 14-15. This is a two-day, two hundred forty-mile, twenty-thousand-feet climb monster over three passes (Juniper Pass—10,600, Loveland Pass—11,992, and Vail Pass—10,660) one way on Saturday and then back on Sunday.
After the Double Triple Bypass I plan to back off and then aim for a second peak in September. Along the way I will ride the Deer Creek Century on August 19 which has an elevation gain of 12,700’.
Then comes the big ride. The Eastern Mountain ride with PAC Tours is September 9-26 and then I hope to ride a few days more to reach Canada. Total distance about is about 2,000 miles in 20 days with about 130,000’ of climbs.
Changing topics. This last week was unusually warm so I shifted to more long rides. Total training time: 15:04 hours, total miles 130.5, TSS = 619 and Kcal=5516.
Pulled an adductor playing with my granddaughter this week. Babying it hoping it doesn’t affect my training much.
The first event will be the MS Ride in Orlando in April. This is just a fun ride with a century first day and 75-mile ride second. I will be riding with friends so the pace will be easy. The elevation gained will be very minimal.
The second event is the Buena Vista Bike Fest on May 19th. I will ride one of the many passes in the area on the 18th (e.g. Monarch—11,312 or Cottonwood—12, 126), ride the century on the 19th, and then ride up Fremont Pass (11,318) on Sunday. The century climbs up to 10,600’ twice but overall I don’t think it has more than 7,000’ of total climbs. Great May workout.
The first peak of the season is planned for the Double Triple Bypass July 14-15. This is a two-day, two hundred forty-mile, twenty-thousand-feet climb monster over three passes (Juniper Pass—10,600, Loveland Pass—11,992, and Vail Pass—10,660) one way on Saturday and then back on Sunday.
After the Double Triple Bypass I plan to back off and then aim for a second peak in September. Along the way I will ride the Deer Creek Century on August 19 which has an elevation gain of 12,700’.
Then comes the big ride. The Eastern Mountain ride with PAC Tours is September 9-26 and then I hope to ride a few days more to reach Canada. Total distance about is about 2,000 miles in 20 days with about 130,000’ of climbs.
Changing topics. This last week was unusually warm so I shifted to more long rides. Total training time: 15:04 hours, total miles 130.5, TSS = 619 and Kcal=5516.
Pulled an adductor playing with my granddaughter this week. Babying it hoping it doesn’t affect my training much.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
2011 Summary
Overall 2011 wasn't the best cycling year because of the truck/bike accident. BTW, nothing has happened on the legal/insurance issues since the driver plead guilty. I tried to talk to my lawyer just before Christmas but got the runaround from his assistant. I am concerned that this is going to turn out badly.
At the peak of training I had an FTP of 230 and a CTL of 90 with five weeks to go before the ride along the Rockies. Now I have an FTP of 190 and a CTL of 60. While my FTP is about what it was last year at this time, nothing else is the same. The maximal power chart shows that almost all power levels were higher at this time in 2010 than now.
Next week the Triple Bypass registration opens. I am signing up for the Double Triple Bypass (240 miles, 20,000 feet of climbs on July 14 and 15). But it is a lottery and the odds are long (only taking 1,000 riders--this is Colorado after all). If I am not selected for the Double, at least I hope to get to ride one way or the other. It is still a lottery and only 5,000 riders are selected.
All that means is that I have to keep focused and working hard to regain my climbing strength. The question is how fast will my soon-to-be 64 year old body absorb the training. My intention is to peak for the Double Triple Bypass, recovery, and then peak again for the Eastern Mountain ride in September.
Data for 2011: Total hours training 456. But only 189 hours since August as my endurance was shot. I was aiming for a 550-600 hr year not counting the Rockies ride. For comparison, in 2010 my total training was 463.
Total miles 5537. About a 1,000 miles short of planned training miles. Since August 2216. For comparison 2010 I rode 5460 and in 2009, 4799.
Total TSS 23,769. Since August, 10,054 which shows that I have been working hard. For comparison, total TSS in 2010 was 20,850 and from August thru December 8,500.
My summary. I have to keep pushing, getting rest, eat better and trust that the training will have the desired impact.
At the peak of training I had an FTP of 230 and a CTL of 90 with five weeks to go before the ride along the Rockies. Now I have an FTP of 190 and a CTL of 60. While my FTP is about what it was last year at this time, nothing else is the same. The maximal power chart shows that almost all power levels were higher at this time in 2010 than now.
Next week the Triple Bypass registration opens. I am signing up for the Double Triple Bypass (240 miles, 20,000 feet of climbs on July 14 and 15). But it is a lottery and the odds are long (only taking 1,000 riders--this is Colorado after all). If I am not selected for the Double, at least I hope to get to ride one way or the other. It is still a lottery and only 5,000 riders are selected.
All that means is that I have to keep focused and working hard to regain my climbing strength. The question is how fast will my soon-to-be 64 year old body absorb the training. My intention is to peak for the Double Triple Bypass, recovery, and then peak again for the Eastern Mountain ride in September.
Data for 2011: Total hours training 456. But only 189 hours since August as my endurance was shot. I was aiming for a 550-600 hr year not counting the Rockies ride. For comparison, in 2010 my total training was 463.
Total miles 5537. About a 1,000 miles short of planned training miles. Since August 2216. For comparison 2010 I rode 5460 and in 2009, 4799.
Total TSS 23,769. Since August, 10,054 which shows that I have been working hard. For comparison, total TSS in 2010 was 20,850 and from August thru December 8,500.
My summary. I have to keep pushing, getting rest, eat better and trust that the training will have the desired impact.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Good-News/Bad-News
I just finished my second base phase and it is a good-news/bad-news story.
Every year my FTP declines from a high in the summer and bottom outs in December. This seems reasonable to me. But since I am rebuilding from the truck/bike accident I thought I needed to keep building strength this year.
It didn’t happen.
Even thought I worked pretty hard and added some level 4 and 5 work (TH and VM) and held steady at about 10 hours of training a week for the six weeks of base 2 my FTP fell from October’s test. It fell from 209 (CP-20 * .95) to 193 during base 2.
In doing the FTP test this week my goal was to increase from the 209 (remember I am trying to rebuild to the 230 I had last May). But I absolutely could not do it. I tried on three separate days and the best I could do was 193. Horrible. How could I have an 8% decline in FTP after all that work.
Frankly, I don’t know.
So that is the bad news.
Then I began to take a much closer look at my performance over three years and in especially 2010. 2010 is most important because, besides being just last year, it was the first year I planned a reverse periodization doing high intensity work during the winter and build climbing endurance as soon as I could in the spring. Also, it was a rebuilding year after a tough 2009. Finally, it was cut short just as I was going into the last build phase and I was feeling strong.
I figure if I can keep or exceed my 2010 progress I will be in great shape by the end of the summer for the Eastern Mountain ride.
So what was my FTP in December 2010? It was 192 which I would then build to 230 by May 2011 and then the accident. In December 2009 my FTP was 188 after reaching a high of 240 in September.
So the good news is I am exactly where I was last year at this time and in 2009. I had hoped to reach this position at least a month earlier and I had expected to match last year by improving and not by declining less during base 2. But I am happy to be where I am.
Training Summary Week Ending Dec 18: Training time 11:27, Mileage 143, TSS 599, Kcal 5015.
Next week I will lay out my plan for the next 6 to 8 weeks.
Every year my FTP declines from a high in the summer and bottom outs in December. This seems reasonable to me. But since I am rebuilding from the truck/bike accident I thought I needed to keep building strength this year.
It didn’t happen.
Even thought I worked pretty hard and added some level 4 and 5 work (TH and VM) and held steady at about 10 hours of training a week for the six weeks of base 2 my FTP fell from October’s test. It fell from 209 (CP-20 * .95) to 193 during base 2.
In doing the FTP test this week my goal was to increase from the 209 (remember I am trying to rebuild to the 230 I had last May). But I absolutely could not do it. I tried on three separate days and the best I could do was 193. Horrible. How could I have an 8% decline in FTP after all that work.
Frankly, I don’t know.
So that is the bad news.
Then I began to take a much closer look at my performance over three years and in especially 2010. 2010 is most important because, besides being just last year, it was the first year I planned a reverse periodization doing high intensity work during the winter and build climbing endurance as soon as I could in the spring. Also, it was a rebuilding year after a tough 2009. Finally, it was cut short just as I was going into the last build phase and I was feeling strong.
I figure if I can keep or exceed my 2010 progress I will be in great shape by the end of the summer for the Eastern Mountain ride.
So what was my FTP in December 2010? It was 192 which I would then build to 230 by May 2011 and then the accident. In December 2009 my FTP was 188 after reaching a high of 240 in September.
So the good news is I am exactly where I was last year at this time and in 2009. I had hoped to reach this position at least a month earlier and I had expected to match last year by improving and not by declining less during base 2. But I am happy to be where I am.
Training Summary Week Ending Dec 18: Training time 11:27, Mileage 143, TSS 599, Kcal 5015.
Next week I will lay out my plan for the next 6 to 8 weeks.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
November Summary
Well I am deep into my Base 2 training plan and am fighting discouragement. My improvements always come in step functions a week or more after I think I should have improved. I am now four weeks into Base 2 and I don't see any improvement in power and I think I should have.
Base 2 is a mixture of long rides, at least one a week of 3 or more hours or a 60 minute tempo ride on a trainer; a set of VO2Max intervals of short duration with an even shorter recovery; and a set of threshold intervals.
Some time during the week of Dec 12th I will do another functional power test and it had better have moved up a few watts. The week of Dec 17th begins Base 3 and for me that means six hard weeks of power building intervals. At least six weeks because I won't build much power in the build phase and it will still be winter.
Summary: Training time 35:30, miles 366, TSS 1585 KCal 14700.
Base 2 is a mixture of long rides, at least one a week of 3 or more hours or a 60 minute tempo ride on a trainer; a set of VO2Max intervals of short duration with an even shorter recovery; and a set of threshold intervals.
Some time during the week of Dec 12th I will do another functional power test and it had better have moved up a few watts. The week of Dec 17th begins Base 3 and for me that means six hard weeks of power building intervals. At least six weeks because I won't build much power in the build phase and it will still be winter.
Summary: Training time 35:30, miles 366, TSS 1585 KCal 14700.
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