28th February 2009

Preparation - Week 5 - Block 2

12:15am - Wakeup

• 7 hours sleep
  
• Sleep quality - 7
  
• No
  
• No weight measured
• Mood - 7

Went to the Volks last night. Got in at 4am. Need to speak to G-flex about streamizm! Lots of Guinness lots of Red Stripe. Hangover...

Not bad though for only second big night out this year!

27th February 2009

Preparation - Week 5 - Block 2

06:30am - Wakeup

• 7 hours sleep
  
• Sleep quality - 8
  
• Heart Rate 47 / 65
  
• No weight measured
• Mood - 8

Woke once in the night with my quads feeling tight. Slept very heavily otherwise. Felt good this morning, looking forward to the ride into work. Great weather, no wind.

07:00am - 1Hr 40Min RR / 24 Miles

Rode into work with Chris, Craig and Jo. Legs feel good, no pains or aches. New saddle is feeling good. Rode in with the Rovals, might take these to Spain.

26th February 2009

Preparation - Week 5 - Block 2

08:15am - Wakeup

• 8.5 hours sleep
  
• Sleep quality - 8
  
• Heart Rate 48 / 76
• No weight measured
• Mood - 8

Legs still feel a little tight this morning, probably shouldn't have spent the evening blasting around Brighton flat out on the single speed...

07:40pm - 1Hr 40Min EM with x8 15Sec S

First Stomp session. Fitted new Selle Italia Gel Flow Flite to the trek before the workout and double checked all measurements as per cyclefit. Looks a bit weird but worked great, only had to adjust position on the saddle twice during the whole workout. Could this be the one.....?

Enjoyed the stomps, really hammered it on the last one hitting 917W. Last 40 minutes felt the most comfortable, but then I was bobbling around 140-145 bpm. Session worked well spending a couple of minutes to recover after stomp then back up to 95-100rpm.

Time	Int	Power	Stomp	RPM	HR	Max	KM/H
10Min	Warmup inc x5 30Sec FP
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 1	279	719	102	143	152	39.6
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 2	270	688	100	145	160	39.0
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 3	253	663	99	147	163	38.2
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 4	246	830	97	150	173	37.5
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 5	241	826	93	146	163	37.2
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 6	250	797	96	147	164	37.7
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 7	237	781	94	145	163	37.1
10Min	EM & 15Sec S 8	219	917	92	144	166	36
10Min	Warmdown
		249	778	97	146	163	38

Felt tired at work today but in a good mood, looking forward to the workout during the day. Is that weird? Contemplating doing an easy ride into work in the morning with Jo, Chris and Craig. Will see how the legs feel.

25th February 2009

Preparation - Week 5 - Block 2

08:15am - Wakeup

• 8.5 hours sleep
• Sleep Quality - 8
  
• Heart Rate 55 / 80
• No weight measured
• Mood - 8
  

Slept well, legs feel tight from last nights turbo workout.

Planned Workout - Core Strength

Missed out Core Strength today. Solid day at work, worked through lunch though ate well. Popped round Mick's to get my fitness test results.

24th February 2009

Preparation - Week 5 - Block 2

08:30am - Wakeup

• 8.5 hours sleep
  
• Heart Rate 48 / 77
• Weight 76.3kg

Needed the extra hour in bed this morning. Legs still feeling it, definately need to get into the pool today! Dehyrdated.

07:40pm - 1Hr 40Min EM with x3 15Min SS

Really tough workout tonight. Stupidly hadn't checked my saddle after adjusting it for racing at the weekend so rode the first hour with it slightly angled upwards. Pressure caused me to stop the workout to investigate. Managed to complete the workout but in a lot more discomfort than usual (repositioning can be seen by the spikes on the results). After sorting the saddle was able to concentrate and breath. Wasn't able to sustain high efforts due to the discomfort from the saddle.

Time	Int	Power	RPM	HR	KM/H
10Min	Warmup inc x1 1Min FP & x2 30Sec FP
12Min	EM	288	99	148	40.2
15Min	SS	280	99	152	39.8
12Min	EM	244	94	146	37.6
15Min	SS	249	97	150	37.8
12Min	EM	254	94	145	38.3
15Min	SS	250	94	151	38.1
10Min	Warmdown
		265	97	149	39

23rd February 2009

Preparation - Week 5 - Block 2

07:00am - Wakeup

• 8 hours sleep
  
• No weight or heart rate recorded

Not feeling too bad considering the efforts of the weekend. No aches or pains but looking forward to a swim today to give the muscles a good stretch. Into Block 2 now which includes 3 races and a week training in southern Spain!

08:00pm - Workout - 40Mins Core Strength

Forgot my bloody swimming clobber so couldn't swim at lunch. Had 40 mins on the turbo easy spinning whilst performing core strength exercises as prescribed by Dawn last week.

Block 1 Summary

Preparation - Weeks 1 to 4 - Block 1 - Summary

Week

Rest

Stand

KM

Hours

RR

FM

EM

SS

FP

T

RACE

TEST

1

00:04:27

04:27

2

52

74

207

00:09:46

08:10

01:36

3

50

81

00:05:00

03:00

01:30

00:30

4

45

62

00:06:09

01:30

01:00

01:30

00:40

00:20

00:53

00:16

49

72

207

01:01:22

01:30

12:10

09:03

01:10

00:20

00:00

00:53

00:16

Block 1 Goals

• Week 3 - Complete 90% of workouts - Not met, missed the weekend due to the rugby and one workout due to fatigue
• Week 4 - Average 330W in Fitness Test part 1 - Completed, averaged 345W
  
• Week 4 - Keep in top 10-15 at Chertsey for 8 laps - Completed
  
• Week 4 - Complete 90% of all workouts - Completed 100%

Block 2 Goals

• Complete 90% of all Workouts (Week 5-8)
  
• Average 400W on Stomps (Week 5)
• Average 19mph on commutes (Week 7, 8)
• Average 330W on FT2 part 2 (Week 8)
• Average 300W on SS (Week 7)
• Get a good tan (Week 6)
• Don't get dropped at Darley Moor (Week 6)
  
• Place top 20 Thruxton (Week 7)
  

Week 4 Summary

Preparation - Week 4 - Block 1 - Summary

Week	Rest	Stand	Hours	RR	FM	EM	SS	FP	T	RACE	TEST
4	45	62	00:06:09	01:30	01:00	01:30	00:40	00:20		00:53	00:16

Week 4 Goals

• Average 330W in Fitness Test part 1 - Completed, averaged 345W
  
• Keep in top 10-15 at Chertsey for 8 laps - Completed
  
• Complete 90% of all workouts - Completed 100%
  

Week 5 Goals

• Complete 90% of all workouts
• Average 400W on Stomps Workouts

Notes
Great week of training. All the recent changes are really coming together now. Smashed the fitness test and felt strong at Chertsey.

22nd February 2009 - MOD Chertsey 4th Cat

Preparation - Week 4 - Block 1

07:00am - Wakeup

• 7 hours sleep
  
• Heart Rate 62 / 80
• Weight 75.8kg

Really heavy sleep, was fast off when alarm went off. Dreamt again, same as before Hell of the Ashdown. Heart rate a lot higher, still feeling the effects of the fitness test yesterday. Legs feel tight.

10:00am - MOD Chertsey 4th Cat Race - 10 Laps / 20 Miles

Aims

• Focus on keeping a good position i.e top 10 - stay out of trouble
• Concentrate on breathing to recover
  

Result

• Bunch sprint after approx 53 mins racing
  
• Finished approx 40th out of 85 or so - Results.

Positives

• Kept in the front 10 for 7 of 10 laps
• Descended and cornered fast without any problems
• Felt very strong on the hills, using the steepest ascent to reposition into the top 5-10 on 7 laps
  
• Awareness improved
  

Negatives

• Having to brake sometimes, but only a few times when problems up front
• Stayed on the front too long on one lap and wasted energy
• Wasted energy on penultimate lap finishing straight by trying to stay in touch with top 10, when at the end of the straight the bunch all came together anyway
• After losing energy couldn't reposition as easily on the climbs, hit the last climb in 30th position and lost another approx 10 places in the sprint
• Didn't make myself uncomfortable at any point, didn't get out of the saddle once.

Summary

• Work on short efforts into the red zone and breathing to recover
• Don't waste energy riding too close/on the front
• Within reason don't waste energy trying to keep position on the home straight - save efforts for the climbs/descents to gain position
• Neck a gel with a few laps to go to keep the tank full
  
• Need to be in front 15 coming into the shicane on the last lap
• The race is much more enjoyable and safer in the front 10!
  
• More efforts out of the saddle!

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21st February 2009 - Block 1 Fitness Test

Preparation - Week 4 - Block 1

09:30am - Wake Up

• 10 Hours Sleep
• Heart Rate 51 / 72
• Weight 77.6kg

Slept well but feeling dehydrated this morning. Legs feel ok. Good breakfast and cleaned the bikes in the glorious sunshine. Feeling confident about the fitness test today. Breakfast was - x3 peanut butter on toast, x1 large carton of yoghurt, x1 orange juice, x2 glasses of water, x1 coffee. Ate 3 hours before the test.

01:00pm - Block 1 Fitness Test

	Test 1					Test 2
Block	Speed	RPM	Power	HR	Recovery	Speed	RPM	Power	HR	Recovery	Max
0	40.6	92	305	168	139	39.9	90	290	175	134	185
1	42.6	98	346	172	132	41.1	99	312	172	127	182

Turned up to Mick's just before 1pm to get set up ready for the test. Feeling good and no traces of dehydration now. Drank 1 bottle of energy drink an hour before the ride. Had a full warmup this time and used a few FP's to get up to a 150 starting heart rate.

Started out in a lower gear this time and spinning at 350W+ at 110rpm. Asked to keep cadence lower to match last test for a better comparison. Dropped to 53x14 (?) for the remainder of the test. Pedalled smooth at 97-99 rpm keeping up 350-360W for the first 5-6 minutes. Concentrated on breathing to keep heart rate lower whilst still putting down the power. Last 3 minutes were horrendous, legs burning and power dropping to 320-330W. Rode the full 8 minutes without letting off the gas right to the last second and much smoother than fitness test 1.

HR recovery between tests improved also. Second test started out in same gearing but couldn't maintain the same level of power, struggling around 290-300W. First test had really knocked the shit out of me. Fairly erratic for the first 2-3 minutes but got into a smooth 99 rpm grove and kept power over 310W. Could have pushed it more towards the end but was weary of blowing up completely.

Felt great afterwards, had aimed to average 320-330 on test 1 and completely blew it apart. Great to see the results of a month on the training plan, good diet, lots of sleep, minmal booze.

Have really set the bar now for the next test in a month...

04:00pm - 1 Hr RR

Recovery ride with Dan and Mick. Up to Devils Dyke, Poynings, Bramber, St Botolphs, Shoreham. Warm enough for 1 layer and leg warmers - summer is here! Was cold when the sun went down - it's February still! Felt good on the ride, constantly had the urge to tear it up... must save that for tomorrow...

20th February 2009

Preparation - Week 4 - Block 1

06:45am - Wake up

• 7 Hours sleep
• Heart Rate 50 / 65
• No weight measured
  

No aches or pains today. Feeling fit and ready for the test tomorrow and race Sunday. Need to concentrate on putting everything I've learnt over the last 4 weeks together.

07:00 Workout - 30Min RR

30 min easy spin concentrating on keeping a low (75) cadence and heart rate below 121. Used the workout to conduct core exercises at the same time. Bike is now off the turbo ready to be set up for racing on Sunday. No aches or pains. Feeling relaxed and confident.