cccorlew

I'm aiming at a double century (with dreams of several this year)
I'm doing a sorta-kinda Time Crunched Training Program as it fits my schedule, which is a daily bike commute, intervals of pain tues and Thurs mornings and then weekend rides.

This semester for the first time in forever I don't have early classes on Tues and Thurs. So far I've been able to drag myself out of bed and do intervals that start in the dark on those days.

They hurt. It's harder to crank in the dark, and on the cold mornings than it is later in that day. I have two routes, one flat and the other sightly uphill. I don't know why, but on the flat one it is harder for me to produce watts or keep my heart rate up.

I just hope I can stay focused and not bail out.

Dudelsack 

3X9OU, bright and early.

Some day this better be worth it.

IBOHUNT

It will be.

I come here looking for the updates and to see your progress. Keep up the good work.

Dudelsack 

Thanks! The steam is out of my stride today, I'm afraid.

It just dawned on me that I am halfway through week 5 of an 11 week program, so I am halfway through this.

For folks who have considered this: if I can do a regimented program, anyone can. I hardly feel like I've pushed myself way too hard. My wattage is a fraction of what folks on the 33 produce. Heck, they're modest compared to what I find on Strava for those 50+ers who post training rides with wattage and stuff.

So I think it will be worth it, although my faith waivers at 6AM.

cccorlew

That was me this morning too. 24 miles with the 3x9 ou, followed by my standard bike commute.
I hope there is a payoff, though in my case it may just be that I regress more slowly.
Good luck to you!

jppe

One of my knees hurts on longer rides. Knee warmer issues????

Dudelsack 

Waking up at 5AM to do barfomatics (2X(4X2)SEPI). It just don't get no better than that.

Booyah and all that.

Phil_gretz

Hope it's not a mathematics program. That milestone will occur halfway into week 6.

cccorlew

It's raining at last in California, so instead of taking my pretty road bike out I used my commuter bike and did my fake-ass poor-man intervals on the way to work, giving everything I had between places I had to slow for safety. The heart rate monitor, when it started working, says I worked pretty hard, so I'm hoping the great cycling coach in the sky will give me workout credits.

I didn't want to do it, but I can feel the Solvang double creeping up on me.

Dudelsack 

So I was working with this younger lovely woman today and she announces she's training for the Ironman.

Aw, that's nuthin', I sez, because I'm doing a 200km randonee on the 1st of March. So I signed up for it right then and there.

Dang, dude, you can do some dumb stuff sometimes.

If the weather is decent and my wife is available to rescue me, I might just give it a go.

Or I might not.

Dudelsack 

Featured link:


90 minute clip of someone riding the Minuteman. No soundtrack. Nothing fancy. Helped pass the time.

Today was 6X3FP. FP=fast pedal, ca. 120 rpm. I thought it was hard, right up there with barfomatics.

Dudelsack 

Today I climbed Mt. Ventoux:


This guy is awesome. He motors up Mt. Ventoux without taking a break. You don't see the mountains for the first hour, and then he disappears into a cloudbank and emerges right at the top. Never goes over 8 MPH. I felt a kindred spirit with him, except that I couldn't do that climb.

It was a very vagal ride. The only time my heart rate got over 120 was when I was calebrating the unit. I sweated like crazy and got sick at 1:15:00 and had to take a break.

I intend to go out and stock up on some G2 for these occasions.

Anyway, this is the end of week 5 of 11, which I think means I'm 23/32nds finished with the program.

Dudelsack 

First time, but I slept in today. Still tired after the weekend. I'll get back on track tomorrow.

Dudelsack 

3X10SS. Didn't feel bad. I think I benefitted from the rest day yesterday. Not sure if I'm going to try a make-up day tomorrow.

osteoclast

The older you are the longer your recovery periods should be.

Check this out if you haven't already.

https://www.amazon.com/Cycling-Past-5.../dp/0880117370

Zinger

I'll corroborate that.

Dudelsack 

Preshadit.

Common sense prevailed (for once). I woke up at 4:45 ready to go, but I take the family out to see the Chinese acrobats this evening, then tomorrow evening I get dragged to romantic Valentine bullticky, so I really need to keep something in the tank. Plus, Saturday calls for barfomatics anyway.

So I slept in.

Dudelsack 

Barfomatics sined, seeled, and delivered.



My last barfomatic was held at over 210W. Although not much for a conditioned rider, I could not have possibly done this six weeks ago.

I think I'm stoked, I guess.

cccorlew

Well done. As someone who trains incessantly to produce 196 for that time frame, I salute you.

Dudelsack 

To be sure, this was 210W only over a two minute interval. I know I could not hold your wheel on a group ride.

Dudelsack 

Just didn't have it today. I had planned on 25 miles, only went 18. Gut issues, not sure whether I'm catching my daughter's crud or what.

Thats the nice thing about the trainer. When I'd had enough, I just hopped off. Not an option in Da Boonies.

Dudelsack 

Up at 5AM to do my OU 12X3. Good times....

Carbonfiberboy 

We're doing a 200k ACP brevet on March 15 on our tandem. If the weather isn't too horrific. We don't have to register until the week before. We have a century scheduled on March 1 for which we just have to show up. We can handle a little rain, but please, 45° or over. 84 miles this coming Saturday. We don't have a fixed training plan. We just hurt ourselves often and deeply, in a periodized manner which I've learned by experience. It's all dosage dependent. I hit a 157 HR on Sunday and Stoker hit 161. I think we're about on schedule.

Dudelsack 

The thing about this brevet is that it has 7500' climbing. That's way more than I've ever done. And the past two years it's been done in freezing temps.

I'm confident I can do the century with 4500' climbing. I'd really like to get a brevet under my belt, though.

Carbonfiberboy 

Freezing is not good. I've ridden in 33° sleet on a 200, which was not fun, but I was way under-dressed. If you're going off ride reports, 7500' is what it is, but if it's off a RidewithGPS map, multiply by ~.8. Ours is only 6600', meaning more like 5500'. Of course, I'm an optimist. I did a 200 a few years ago with 7000' which wasn't too bad because most of the climbs were relatively shallow. 8 hours ET. It's those steep suckers that rob my cadence that kill me.

I figure you can do in a day what you can do in a week. So if you're conservative and figure 9.5 saddle hours for the 200, and you're doing 9.5 hours for say 3 weeks before and then an easy week the week of, you should be able to do it fine. If you haven't been, you might try to catch a later one. Or you might be fine. It seems you've been very consistent. We've had a few 13 hour weeks, so I'm not too concerned about March 15, though my wife is.