Week in review + Plyometrics

Monday- 2:30- 50min Tempo interval going up Lemmon
Tuesday-OFF, had to finish essay
Wednesday- 3:00- Rode to work with Dad and then to Erin's
Thursday- Thanksgiving, OFF
Friday- 2:10- McCain Loop
Saturday- 1:00 on trainer, 4x7min tempo intervals in TT position to get used to it again

Total- 8:40

Again, much lower than planned, about half, due to traveling. Unfortunately the next two weeks will be low too, due to studying for finals. Luckily a recovery week is coming up. That said, I might keep training through it, and pre-load before the Christmas vacation.

This week I introduced plyometrics to my weekly workouts. I am doing three-a-week workouts, adding more difficult exercises each time. I am feeling really good about this type of workouts. I feel that too many people just ride their bikes hard all the time. Last year I reached cat 3 and got some good results, and I only rode 2-3 times a week, and not seriously at that. I feel that if I have a good base season, train smart, and introduce good supplemental training, I can really do well this season.

My focus this season will definitely be on sprinting. I feel that I can really excel in this area. Last season I had no problem getting to the final corner in top-3 position, but then I would get passed on the sprint by two or three people. That's probably because I did absolutely no sprint training. I started weight training early this season, and now I'm starting explosive plyometrics. Later, I'll add on-bike sprinting drills to fine-tune the movement. Right now I think I could be doing more speed skill drills, like spin-ups. I'll try to incorporate them in my E2 rides.

Also, the reason I've been slacking on my riding hours is because I'm reluctant to go out and do a 3-4hr E2 ride. I feel like it's a waste of time. Luckily, harder work is up ahead, and I think my motivation will also increase when racing starts up.

Week in review

Finally, a solid week of training. Due to sickness and training apathy lately, I havent been putting in the required hours. But this week I felt great and was able to keep the hours up. Hopefully this will be a continuous trend.

Monday- 1:42- Ajo to Gate's
Tuesday- 2:10- Tuesday morning ride. Did a TT through McCain.
- 0:30- Run around Reid Park with tricats. Felt good.
Wednesday- OFF bike, strength workout in gym
Thursday- 3:10- Up to Tangerine with Erin.
Friday- OFF bike, went to gym instead because i wanted to be fresh for El Tour
Saturday- 3:30- El Tour, did about 70 miles of the course for fun and then went home. Went pretty hard entire time.
Sunday- 1:50- Gate's pass ride with Erin.

Total- 13 hours. 2 Strength workouts. 1 Run workout.

Week in review

This week was strange. I was supposed to be put in 18 hours but that didnt happen. I was sick last week and I think my body was still fatigued from that,even though I felt alright. However I did feel very lethargic throughout the week and on my rides.

Monday: 2:30- Rancho Vistoso, only averaged 140 watts and felt really weak.
Tuesday: Woke up way too tired and just took day off.
Wednesday- 2:45- Picture rocks with cycling team, felt strong that day.
Thursday- Off, it was too windy and I had a test
Friday- Off
Saturday- 2:45 Lemmon with tricats, tempo pace
Sunday- 2:30 Rancho Vistoso on TT bike, hated it at first but I'm slowly getting used to the position

Totals- 12:30. That's six hours off of my goal, but I'm glad I took the hours off instead of killing myself after being sick. This week I have very little homework or tests so I'm planning on really loading up the hours. Also my goal for this week is to get serious about stretching. I'm also going to the Tuesday tricat run workout to see how that is.

Week in review

This week was kind of interesting. I created a new training plan based on a 700-hour season. This is more than I think I can handle but I want to push myself to see if I can.

Mon- Off
Tues- Off
Wed- 3:15 TTM course
Thurs- 1:40 Gates pass with Mike
Fri- 3:40 Exploratory ride up to the Ritz
Saturday- Off, Sick
Sunday- 0:50 Easy recovery ride with Erin

On Friday night I started feeling very weak. At midnight I had a fever of 103. On Saturday I felt weak the whole day. On Sunday I felt better, and now on Sunday night I feel almost perfect. Now I can't figure out if this was a result of over-training (I felt weak on Friday's ride) or getting sick from Erin. I'm starting to think it was just catching a germ, because 9 hours in 3 days isnt really that bad at all. I'm going to repeat the same volume this week to see what effects it has on my body. Luckily I am young and my body can handle this kind of self-imposed testing!

Wheel choice

Today I sold my rear Zipp 404 to a triathlete. The first reason is because I wanted to use my powertap in races. I love data more than any racer I know, and I know how to analyze it. I figure having race data is going to be more valuable than the weight/aero advantage of a rear 404. Secondly, I was afraid I was going to crash and break it in a crit. I see this happen all the time and I don't have $1k lying around to replace it. Using my powertap (32h laced to a DT rim) will make me more confident in races since I won't have to be so paranoid about wrecking my wheel.

I sold the rear wheel for $750, including the tire and cassette. I bought the wheelset for $1,000 when I was working at AOA so I didn't lose any money on it. I decided to keep the front wheel, though. The reason for this is that the front wheel has a greater aerodynamic effect on the bike than the rear. I haven't found any hard numbers to back this up, but I definitely makes sense as the wheel is the first surface to touch the wind, and the rear wheel is shielded behind the frame.

I will be buying a Wheelbuilder wheel cover to use in time trials. This way, I will basically have a Powertap disc with a 404 front- a perfect TT setup.

Overall I'm pretty happy with my sale. I never felt like I deserved race wheels anyway, so I told myself that my next bike purchase will have to be funded by prize money only. For a geek like me thats pretty good motivation!