I just returned from vacation eating nothing but burgers and comfort food while away. I went back to my weekly Griffith Park hill climb and it was definitely painful! I made myself climb twice in row just to get back to my climbing routine! I put in 20 miles of climbing and fast descending. It's crazy what happens to your body if you stop riding for a short while. I guess anaerobic cycling helps keep your arteries clear in order to get the blood moving. Watching my heart rate monitor, I was probably a good 10 bpm higher than usual on the climb. On my 2nd attempt going up, I reduced my cadence to increase my stamina and saved my out-of-saddle climbing for the last segment in order to sprint. I've also been tweaking my stem a bit more, going shorter while lowering my spacer height. I don't want to go too short on my stem though because I like the stability of being over the wheel that a long stem offers. Though I've been feeling some back pain when doing heavy deadlifts and I think it might be due to that low aero position on my road bike. It's definitely a fine balance of comfort and performance!