TKP resurfaces! How are things? You riding much?

Took the day off, and I am happy to report that I am not feeling like an emaciated shell of a human being with depleted blood nutrients. I should be in good shape to do something about that over the weekend.

resting next week!

Howdy! All good here. I have a full time job and time is crazy limited, which is why I've been absent. Still riding lots (never as much as I'd like). Still, most hours since 2017.

All good on your end? How's the sport treating you? How's regular life?

We had quite a different track workout on Tuesday at VSC. The goal was to find and ride at VT1 in the pursuit position. We did a bunch of laps and motor drills.

Today, was motor pacing at San Diego Velodrome. Again, we set up the motor for more VT1 style work.

All good. thanks for asking. Have been on a bit of a tear since the 2019 pre-season, and a bit tired TBH. Planning a two-season peak in 2022 with a mid season break, and working with a coaching service who I helped bring on for the 2023 season to the San Diego Bicycle Club. I'm now the SDBC men's 1/2/3 teams director. Still, I'm excited about next year, and racing strong by VoS in February! Now, do I reg for cat 2, or old guys...

Things good off the bike as well. Big layoff event recently at work, it's hard out there in biotech, COVID pipeline dropped faster than expected. My wife was one of the affected, on the commercial ops side (I'm a scientist). Still, we have our home we bought this year and some savings leftover, so we're good.

-David G.

2 hour endurance Christmas ride along the coast.

I was pretty much over the respiratory virus I had, so nose was reacquainted with grindstone. Monday was a rest day, Tuesday was gym, Wednesday and Thursday were ~ two-hour endurance pace rides which were probably the strongest ones this year, surprising me. My mind flashed to this scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSfpoSrCGsQI

I'm starting back with intervals this week, short, hard ones Tuesday and longer ones (1x30' sweet spot or shorter ones totaling 30') plus more Z2. If I can keep from getting sick, progress should be steady.

That is probably true. In FTP-type efforts (20-25 minute climbs or TTs), I tend to hide that data because I know I'll either back off or get depressed about how little energy it says I have left compared to how much distance I have left. For the most part, I use it to confirm how I'm feeling, but, I suppose, if that's how I mainly use it, then I'm not sure how good it is. That was kind of why I was asking if it was normal to be able to go into the negatives with it like I had been doing. Sounds like it's not unusual.

I hit the gym Sunday and today. My body didn't like it due to the virus-induced layoff. Sunday was just...ugh. Today was better, my body started to remember how it goes and the exercises felt like they should, reps were better too.

On the bike, today I did 3x5' threshold+ intervals to reintroduce my legs to pushing hard. They went well, I could've gone longer or done at least another one. Coach and I are exploring what I can handle and it looks like I can do more than either of us expected. I'm not complaining. :) She wants to concentrate on building strength in the short-to-mid term, so I'll be seeing more of this stuff.

Life is good!

One question I ask myself is what can I do to make a gain in cycling. The challenge is that I am pretty maxed out. Blood is hard to legally manipulate. Lung capacity is set although, it is possible to have reduced lung function do to aging I.e. less supple rib cage. Mobility is an area to improve and that could lead to better aerodynamics and less pain on longer rides and time trials. I could ride a lot and yeah I would get better at riding a lot but would I be faster? Ride the trainer more???? Strength training is where I think there is a lot of action for me.

I could be stronger and lift a greater % of my body weight per exercise. My experience with this approach is that it works as long as I do not injure myself and put up with poor performance on the bike during the strength phase. I would have to turn the increased strength into power and time it with an event. That is the current work in progress.

We have 4 ski trips planned in the coming months so I will get a lot of leg strength and cross training work skiing. After ski season, I begin the real training for a trip to Aguascalientes for an attempt at a personal best 500 meter or WR. WR is really a stretch for me. I need a couple of seconds and to do that I need to hold my skeleton together for the training to get my opening lap down.

Just some musings.

Yesterday, I did a z2 2x20km TTT with my wife on Fiesta on TT bikes. Pretty fun but pretty slow.

Thursday and Friday were endurance workouts at San Diego velodrome. Both days we did 30 lap warmup and worked on finding / hitting that z2 sweet spot on the pursuit bike. Friday I did 100 laps. Both days we had the velodrome to ourselves.

Even though, the weather was spotty for outdoor cycling, we managed to stay off the trainer.

At the gym, I have been using the tank more. https://www.torquefitness.com/collec...SAAEgJmd_D_BwE

I can push it for 35 seconds along the length of the gym and then back. One of the racers in my track training group uses the tank as well. He goes for 3 minutes non stop. It is hard to push the tank and there are some explosive moves that can be done as well as just pushing. Very hard on the legs.

Any day staying off the trainer is a good day! :)

Just had some good days. Friday was supposed to be a 30-minute sweet spot interval. I was a bit concerned about it because it's literally been years since I've pushed that hard for that much time. It ended up being a lower-end threshold interval (95%) instead, and I had a bit of juice left. I was supposed to go to the gym that night but family stuff interfered. Sleep was lousy that night. I did the missed gym workout at 5:45 Saturday morning, then did a 1:30 endurance-pace ride. I felt bad enough at the start of the ride that I considered backing off to recovery pace and/or cutting the ride short but pushed through and it ended up being a decent ride. Then I worked at the bike shop all day, had to do one of those 5-Hour Energy drinks to keep my eyes open. I was asleep around 9 in spite of all the fireworks going off in the neighborhood. I went out this morning not knowing how the ride would go, and the 2:30 Z2 ride turned into a Z3 ride without me trying to do it. It makes no sense, but I'll take it. ;)

Recovery ride tomorrow, then a rest day Tuesday due to a front coming through with heavy thunderstorms.

New block, 1.75 hour opener ride today on Zwift, which includes a ~24 minute effort (SST), ~9.5 minute effort (z4/5) and 2 minute effort (z5/6), all in Watopia. I didn't feel super motivated but still hit good numbers, which felt nice I guess. Zwift has this cool feature, where anytime you are free-riding outside of an event on a timed segment, it has a little hologram of your previous 30 day PR riding that you can chase down. So I was able to race myself from last month, and win.

FTP test tomorrow.

Had a consultation session with a local coach, making a training plan from VoS (~5 weeks away) and Tour de Murrieta. This month, instead of switching to intervals, I will continue doing big volume, with all endurance pace outside of some z4 time on the TT bike. Next month, i'll do a focused Vo2 max block, where the volume will be decreased, and I will aim to have little time spent between z2 and z5. Naturally, this means that I will need to cut back on group riding. After TdM, a mini break, then I will assess my motivation levels and training plans for the late season. But, at least a few weeks of decreased volume, and fun/informal riding like group rides, zwift races and of course track racing.

Looking forward to a good season! It's gonna be pretty focused for the next quarter, then I'll start to have some fun, unwind a bit and see if I'm feeling another training block for a late summer peak.

Despite some good feelings yesterday, I felt like garbage today during my FTP test and bailed a bit over half-way in when I was struggling to hold the power from last time. HR was OK too, I just didn't have the legs. Not sure if I was under-fueled or what. Not really worried about it either, as it doesn't affect my training plans so much for this next block. I could tell by my HR that I wasn't overworking the system, and it just wasn't a good day for the legs.

Here's to better luck next time!

It does not surprise me that your legs are not used to constant power at higher output. I have to practice something before I can execute. When I lived in NorCal, we had our benchmark climb OLH that was average 7.2% and 3.1 miles long. If I had not climbed it for some time, even if I had good fitness, I sucked. The next week was much better.

Or conversely, you go easier at the start, complete the test, score low and do not train hard enough.

I did 2x20' at threshold today, with the first one at lower-than-normal cadence (74 rpm). It was one of those "I'm not sure if I can do this" workouts that ended up being eminently doable. Things are going well on the bike, TSB is -22...which isn't hard to hit when your CTL is 41. CTL should be over 50 in a couple of weeks.

Gym is getting better too, got a PR for pushups (41) on my first circuit today. It's been a couple of decades since I've done that.

The CA weather is lousy this week so we are in OC training at the indoor velodrome. Tuesday was a track session that was about riding at z2 and we were videoed while we rode by coach as he rode with us on a motorcycle. He is going to mark up the videos with suggestions. And we have a new app that he will use to send the edited videos to a file on our computer.

Wednesday, was gym day with a pedestrian workout trying to save myself and recover for tonights track session.

2:15 Z2 ride today. About halfway through my legs successfully lobbied for backing off a bit because they were feeling yesterday's intervals. :rolleyes: I still ended up with an IF of .72. I've scheduled nap repeats for this afternoon.

It is indeed, and I suspect that my TT workout might be done inside tomorrow :(. I have 4.5 hrs scheduled for Saturday, and I might just do it on the trainer even if it is dry, to say I did a whole training week inside.

Yesterday was a track workout. Well, we all got to ride 60 minutes non stop in the pursuit position. I have not ridden for 60 minutes, fixed gear in the aerobars. It was pretty awful. My left hip flexor cramped and is still sore this AM.

I've come to watch/cheer on riders for a couple local hour-record attempts at SDVA. The riders basically need to get peeled off their bikes afterwards. The Master's 35+ one at SDVA is ripe for the taking, just not sure I want to subject myself to that haha. I'd want to put up a good time that was competitive with the overall hour record at San Diego.

This morning, I tried to do a 2x20' workout on the trainer, in the aero bars (TT bike). It did not go well. Not sure if I'm cut out for going hard on the TT bike inside. It's just been tough to get out lately with all the rain.

TMonk The hour record is just awful and riding fixed gear for an hour at ANY reasonable constant power is dreadful. Like most things, it is all about practice and adaptation.

Mid block FTP Test
 

How would you approach Monday's FTP test?

> week 8 of a 24 week training schedule
> If I do the scheduled training 4hr z2 ride on Sunday, I will not be giving my best FTP test. I'll do better if I take a rest day or short loose ride.
> If I rest and rock the FTP, will I be setting the program training too hard...

Sunday edit: my hurting legs answered the question. Rest day.

TMonk TT bike is harder than road bike. Road bike on the trainer is harder than the road bike outside. TT bike on the trainer is dreadful. I suggest throwing out any concept of % of FTP for indoor TT bike. Just ride by feel and go for duration. Over time, you will adapt…to an extent.

FTP tests are supposed to be done on fresh legs, otherwise, your ranges will be set too low. If your legs are hurting today, I'd do a recovery-pace ride tomorrow and the test on Tuesday (assuming your work/life schedule permits it). If you're working off a "canned" training schedule and it requires a test on "x" date, ignore that part of the schedule and do it when you can hit it with fresh legs. Getting the ranges wrong can have negative effects downstream.

Thank you. Simple and clear!
The plan is canned, but I can move sessions about and it's dynamic based on FTP. The plan has been amazing in it's accuracy except recovery time. The algorithm is based on FTP and max heart rate, but neglected to ask if I'm a weak old fart. 😜

As a fellow weak old fart, we need more recovery than younger folks. IMO, if you've got a hard workout scheduled and you're too tired to complete it correctly, take an easy or rest day and then hit it.

Good. I wondered if half-assing a workout was better than skipping. This is better for recovery and avoiding over-training.

I looked at my plan on the laptop instead of the phone and next week is a recovery week. Really well tuned.

Gap in the line of storms, so was able to get out and do an actual workout. Been so long, I forgot what it was like.