Too Much Training on a Post Race Hilly Ride

Our destination:  Pink Lake Lookout.

Joy here...Last night was my first-ever bike race, and so I wasn't sure what today's cycling was going to feel like.  Along with the Spinning Instructor, The Professor, and The Man (who is kicking his under-the-weatherness, finally), I headed out to the Pink Lake hill so that we could do some hill repeats.

Last Wednesday, we were able to pull off four repeats up that hill (at around 4 minutes each uphill portion, followed by around 2-3 minutes of easy downhill between sets).  The Spinning Instructor was set to complete 5 repeats up the hill this week, but with a time trial effort in my legs (including pushing myself to average 33.6km/hr for 10kms with a maximum speed of 46km/hr on a flat road, powered by nothing other than my legs), I wasn't sure what I'd be up for.

We were treated to intermittent showers this morning as the sun tried to break through the breezy grey skies every so often, and as The Man and I rolled out to meet the other two, we talked about how lovely the day was:  the choppy pewter river to our right, the Canadian geese parents herding their baby goslings to and fro on either side of the bike path, the freshness of the spring air, and the refreshing shower that sprinkled just long enough to keep us cool and comfortable on our bikes.

The graph showing last week's hill repeats.  The yellow is power and the blue is speed.  Note:  the speed is highest when the power is at the lowest because that's when I was going down the hill.  The power (yellow) is high and flat, while the speed (blue) is low and flat, indicating that I kept a solid(ish) effort throughout the hill interval.

Those clouds above threatening the odd drizzle
and making the sky a blanket of white and grey
with light shining through.

Then we met up with the other two and rolled into the park, chatting and catching up with each other, and generally enjoying both the sense of accomplishment that comes with being out there doing some physical activity just as the rest of the world is settling down to their desk or their computer and the sheer pleasure of hangin' with friends.

As we approached the Pink Lake climb, I could already feel that my legs were heavy.  Last week for each repeat, I tried to keep my speed averaging around 16km/hr and my power averaging around 200w (well, actually, I aimed for 240w, but it fluctuates between 180w and 336w...so around 200w is where it should stay kind of steady).  Now the reason that I try to watch things like speed or wattage is because I'm trying to use these hill repeats to build/develop fitness.  So instead of just riding up the steep hill as hard as I can each time, I try to control and contain the effort so that I can get the benefits of the hill repeat.  Back when I was training for my first half marathon, I explained hill repeats on this blog for running, and the premise is pretty much the same for cycling.  Cycling hill repeats build leg strength and power (as hill repeats do for running), and additionally they can improve pedalling technique (whereas, I'm not sure if running up hills improves running technique or not).

Both running up a hill and cycling up a hill are HARD activities, and I wasn't sure if I would have anything HARD left in my legs to give after my first race effort.

So as I began my first hill interval, pushing a heavy gear and trying to build up some speed so that as the incline of the hill got steeper and steeper, I would feel like I already had momentum.

Hah!

This graph shows today's hill repeats.  You can see on the fourth one that the power (yellow) spikes at the start of the final interval, indicating that I had to push really hard just to get going (an indication that I was tired out).  The speed (blue) on that last one dips pretty low too, so you can see why I called it quits after repeat #4.

Not such a good idea.  Turning a heavy gear just tired out my already tired legs sooner than I would have expected, and each hill repeat just felt like a suffer-fest, not a specific workout.  So after the fourth repeat, when my speed was really low and I felt like my legs were burning up I decided to pull the proverbial chute and wait for the Spinning Instructor to finish a fifth repeat, while the rest of us enjoyed the view and ate our snacks (while waving our hands against the onslaught of spring bugs and mosquitoes that are coming out to play in the warmer weather we've been having).

I was feeling down on myself for having heavy and tired legs, but as we began our descent down that hill, with me tucked and chasing down The Man just ahead of me and topping speeds of 63km/hr, I remembered just how much fun this all is.

When I remember to put aside notions of training, numbers, targets, goals, and specific data, then I remember that it's just really fun to gather up a group of friends and head out for over 50kms of cycling.

So I won't be hung up on data or frustrated with what I should be able to do or want to be able to do, and I'll just smile as I feel the breeze in my hair (under my helmet of course), and I'll enjoy myself with each and every pedal stroke!

Over and out,
Joy