training 6-30-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-29.9, S-28.3.

training 6-29-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-29.6, S-31.1. First time over 30 in the slow configuration with a 30.35mph total average. Looks like I've resurrected myself from the dead again. Given my history, I worry, "will this be the hole I can't dig myself out of?" With no more maximum efforts until Battle Mountain it should be smooth sailing from here. I trained on a caloric deficit but with a higher percentage of carbohydrates so so far, so good with that.

training 6-27-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 257w, 2) 256w. My quads were pretty worn. Actually, all of my cycling muscles could use some rest as I never allow myself to fully recover until a race but my quads were especially easy-burning this morning. I thought I'd have to resort to a sub-200 watt recovery ride but once I got on the trail my glutes and hamstrings kicked in and I was able to put in a decent effort. I juggled my diet around a bit and managed to improve my feeling of well-being substantially. I cut back on milk consumption to a little over a half gallon and I stopped taking it straight altogether. I use it only in oatmeal (I cook the oatmeal in milk instead of water- two parts milk to one part oatmeal). The reason I switched from low-fat to whole milk is because I was hoping the extra fat would slow down the absorption of lactose. Well, between the obvious and unpleasant change in my body composition and the funky feeling that came with drinking so much milk that plan wasn't working so well. The milk and oatmeal mix works better for blood-sugar stabilization especially since I quit adding sugar to it (duh). Anyway, I feel pretty good all-around. Well, except for my extra (estrogen-induced?) jiggly-ness. I'm going to try non-fat milk in oatmeal to see if I can solve that problem. I'll make up the calorie deficit with more eggs. This might seem like an overly vain concern but I don't really care how good I look. What does concern me is limiting myself on how bad I look (aka the FOG factor).

training 6-26-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-30.1, S-28.1. One more session over 29mph average. I wish I knew what that actually equalled in race mode for no other reason than the psychological benefit. Even though I rationally know I should be seeing lower speeds there's still part of my brain that says "fail" or at least is wondering if some of that slowdown is due to my performance. Oh well, I'll have to wait until July 20th to find out for sure.

training 6-25-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-29.9, S-26.9. Still raining. What's up with that? Ever since I switched to whole milk I've noticed I'm puffier (aka fatter) despite being lighter in bodyweight than when I made the switch. Estrogen much? I'll have to conduct an experiment when my current milk supply runs out.

training 6-24-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). My Powertap didn't work so no data. I hope it's just a dead battery and not that I was riding in the rain. Anyway, I consider it a blessing in disguise. I woke up with some pretty worked feeling glutes and was considering taking the day off but the soreness eventually worked itself out. The lack of Powertap policing allowed me to take it a little easy. I'm starting to think that the combination of slow tires and the lessened aerodynamic-flywheel effect from not using the hood and foothole covers is affecting my pedal stroke to the point of adding a new kind of stress. Pedaling is more of a slog now in the velomobile. It might be a good thing but maybe it's too much of the wrong kind of stress (like riding in a storm). Anyway, I'm feeling a bit testy. Of course, checking on my velomobile this morning to see how the new tube is holding up and finding it flat didn't improve my feelings of brotherly love. I need to get that front wheel situation straightened out once and for all. I've been slacking because I've just been so tired this year and it's hard to get motivated. With the stock Kojaks and properly-fitting Schaeder-valved tubes I've had zero flats. With the Duranos and now the old Continental Top Touring 2000 I'm getting too many. Between protruding spoke nipples and overly long tubes...

training 6-23-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). 1) 28+, flatted, 2) 24.1. I'd like to shoot whoever decided to make the 20 x 1 3/8 tubes I got from Danscomp so long.

my diet coach

He watches every bite. Of course, he insists on taste-testing everything to insure the fat content is high enough. I normally don't eat meat but he allows it during family get-togethers.

training 6-22-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-28.2, S-30.8.

training 6-20-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 257w, 2) 257w. My calorie-deficient diet still has me feeling a bit light in the loafers. 257 watts ain't bad but it felt like more work than it should. For a given PRE there is an extra misery factory that I can't put my finger on. I have a suspicion it might be because of a lack of carbohydrates. Even though I added more calories I still maintained the 20% carb level. I don't think 200+ watt training, and especially 250+, likes sub-maintenance levels of calories, especially when those calories are low in carbohydrates. Another place I'm feeling it is with volume. I have no desire to do more than the one round-trip I've been doing. That's okay for now and I'm kind of interested in what kind of effect that will have on my future fitness. I'm planning on doing a test run on July 20th in the velomobile with the hood, foothole covers and fast tires to see how I compare against my best training round-trip run (33.3mph). This would be done at a training effort without extra rest days or prolonged carb load.

training 6-19-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-28.5, S-29.7. That's more like it -- a 29.1mph round-trip average. I should be going pretty good once I break 30 in the current, slow configuration. I feel so much better eating more. The initial drop in calories felt great for a while but at some point that high wears off and the gradual decline begins. It happens so gradually that I don't even notice my ever-dimming worldview until I hit the wall. Eating is so wonderful then. That's pretty much been the cycle of my adult life. I can't really knock it. It's allowed me to get away with eating massive amounts of food and not weighing the 300lbs I should. It's been the same way for overeating as well, though. I never feel better than when I'm eating enough to gain weight but eventually the same thing happens -- I hit a wall and suddenly overeating (or standing in front of a mirror naked) doesn't feel so great anymore. Maybe that's just the way it's supposed to be for me -- back and forth. After all, all things in nature are cyclical. I've never had any success trying to maintain a happy medium. It's feast or famine. All or nothing. Come to think of it, I'm that way with everything.

training 6-18-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-29.2, S-24.5. Yesterday afternoon I hit the diet wall and had to eat. My energy plummeted. Despite eating 2-3000 extra calories I'm still weak and slow on the bike. I expected as much as it takes me 48 hours to recover from a full glycogen depletion. I'm going to try adding 840 calories to my daily diet (3160 calories total) and see what happens. Oh well, there's another one for the bad idea list (again). At least I undid the damage I did leading up to the last race.

training 6-17-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 213w, 2) 212w. I needed to back off a little today so I went at below my normal PRE pace. [In case anyone is reading this and thinking, "what is that fool doing?"] I am wary of the effect that my diet is having and will have on my training. While I accept that my power output will decrease with the carb-depletion that comes from a calorically deficient diet I realize that I can only get so depleted so power loss beyond that initial drop has to be due to becoming aerobically weaker. Permanent power loss is unacceptable, especially if that includes a lower power-to-weight ratio. 200 watts in training will be my minimum cut-off point. I refuse to sink below that level. Before that leads to me cease my diet, though, I will try going back to training 3-4 days per week to improve recovery. If I am able to continue my diet until a month and a half before Battle Mountain I will do a three-day carb load and see what effect that has on a normal training session. If I can perform at an acceptable level for that session I will continue the diet. If not, I will start adding calories and consider the whole weight-loss, reduced-power episode a mid-season break that I needed anyway.

training 6-16-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-29.6, S-27.4.

training 6-15-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 226w, 2) 232w. As of yesterday I'm down ten pounds to 192.

training 6-13-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-28.8, S-27.5. Last of eight days in a row.

training 6-12-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 253w, 2) 254w. I'm really happy with these numbers. My goal is to maintain my power as I drop my weight to 170lbs or less. That would give me an aerobic power-to-weight ratio of over 4:1.

training 6-11-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-28.2, S-27.9. One week of successful dieting. I'm over the hump and in the zone. Speed is coming up, too!

training 6-10-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5 cranks). 1) 233w, 2) 251w. I'm in full perpetual bonk mode now. I woke up starving and weak but trained on nothing but black coffee.

training 6-9-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-28.3, S-24.0.

training 6-8-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 222w, 2) 220w. My Birkenstein muscles are weak from the two months I've been away from it. No matter how much I sat back on the DF I couldn't reduce the quad-dominance to my liking. Birkenstein complements the velomobile better. Anyway, even 220 watts made my glutes hurt. My weight is down 5lbs to 197. I think I have a livable diet now. I switched out lowfat milk for whole fat. The higher fat and lower carb content seems to stabilize my blood sugar better and I haven't been getting cravings. Also, my blood-pressure drop episodes have reduced significantly. My macrobiotic breakdown is 20% protein, 30% carbohydrate and 50% fat. Maybe there is hope yet for me being ripped and Euro-sexy in time for Battle Mountain. Another change I'm making is eliminating weight training to almost nothing again. I've been getting carried away doing more and more and I've been starting to feel the negative effects. Maybe once a week I'll wave 20lb dumbbells around.

training 6-7-13

Folsom Canal, 22.5 miles. QuestXS (open cockpit). N-26.0, S-28.3. I removed the hood and foothole covers. I also removed the Durano and Stelvio up front and replaced them with an old pair of Continental Top Touring Pro 2000. They're heavy but I run them at low pressure and they sure are smooth (and slow). I was going to go with some Primo Comets but I figured they wouldn't last too long. In the back I replaced the 1.1" Durano with the stock Schwalbe Marathon Racer. I hadn't planned on riding today but I felt like it. Perhaps with the shorter rides I can go back to six days per week. I'll give it a try. That fits into what I'm trying to do at the moment. After all, my philosophy is anything that is healthy can be done everyday. More than that, fitness bulding maybe-- optimally healthy, no. My lack of calories (I'm planning on 2300 per day) should help keep the intensity in the healthy zone.

training 6-6-13

Folsom Canal, 21.5 miles. Birkenstein (172.5mm cranks). 1) 242w, 2) 242w. I'm going to take a low-volume break for awhile in preparation for the run-up to Battle Mountain. I also need to lose some blubber. I was 202lbs the morning of the TT. While I don't fear the reaper, what I've been seeing in the mirror lately terrifies me.

Folsom Blues

I screwed up. I started well. I felt very fast on my way to the TT. I was hitting speeds far higher than I usually do on my way to the trail without even trying. I made it to the start in good shape. I was the fifth starter and I passed all four of the riders ahead of me in short order. I maintained a speed of at least 36mph into a healthy headwind on the way out and the turnaround, jumping out of the velomobile, lifting it up, turning it around and jumping back in went smoothly. As I was getting in, though, I noticed the velomobile listing heavily to the left. I thought, "Oh shit, a flat!". Not wanting to lose time I just went and hoped for the best. I got up to 28mph and felt so much resistance that I was certain I had a flat. I stopped, got out and checked the front left tire. It was fine. I got back in and thought with the wind at my back maybe I could still salvage a decent time since I should easily be able to cruise over 40mph. I must have psyched myself out because it still felt harder than usual. I stopped again and checked the other tires and they were fine too. WTF! What a loser. It's a good thing, with Battle Mountain being my prime (only, really) focus this year, I don't really care about my results today. Still, it'll give me more incentive to redeem myself after B.M. on the Putah Creek course.