Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

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Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 05 Jan 2013 17:49

So I figured I'd finally start logging what training I actually do this year. I'm not a big fan of New Year's Resolutions but it can't hurt to keep track of my pitiful attempts at training, especially as I'm currently signed up for both Wasdale and Horseman. As many of you will know, I'm away a lot with work so stringing together consecutive training sessions is a smallie Spartacus (an epic).

Since leaving my last job and starting this new one my training has been chaotic at best and nonexistent for most of the time. As such my fitness is now severely lacking compared to previous levels. With that in mind I'm going to use this log as a kick up the arse to pull my finger out and do some phys. Be prepared for cobwebs to have formed on my keyboard between posts though :oops:
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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 05 Jan 2013 18:06

Managed to get my arse out on a ride and a run for the first times this year. Cracked a 48 mile ride yesterday morning with it being glorious and crisp, no rain just the way I like it. It was the first proper ride since getting my bib longs and they really did the job, the undercarriage didn't suffer for once :shock: I've posted it up on Strava for the mileage challenge. I managed to stay in the big ring for the whole route apart from one particularly cheeky climb. Not bad considering I climb like a brick.

Managed to get out on a run today as well. It was just shy of 6 miles at a nice steady state. I coaxed the WAT out to do the first lap so she cracked a couple of miles before I took Dex out for the rest of it. There was a lot of stop/start as I had to keep putting the lead on but I got a good sweat on so I'm happy with it.
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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 06 Jan 2013 09:49

Having a think about what I actually want to get out of this year I figured I'd actually nail down some objectives. Firstly, I'm still signed up for both Wasdale Half and Horseman as a full iron distance race. My original objective was to do Wasdale last year as preparation for the Horseman this year. That idea came unstuck when Wasdale was cancelled so I'm left wondering whether I skip Wasdale/Horseman and just concentrate on the other or go for the impossible and do both, especially as they're only two weeks apart.

With that in mind and looking at the profiles of the bike courses it's all about the bike :oops: So I'm going to concentrate as much of my time at home as I can on building some bike strength, especially improving my climbing ability.

My second objective is to improve my offroad running. Previously I've only ever done road running and I know it's harder running off road so it'll take a bit of getting used to. Santa brought me some Inov8s for Christmas so I'm loving the fact that I can finally make the most of the trails and farmers' fields on my doorstep. As I build up I'll be incorporating carrying the safety kit that I'll have to take on the run legs. Train as you race and all that :D

I'm not going to set any records when it comes swimming so I'm just looking at maintaining my current level at best and mitigating any losses at worst. While I'm away I'm looking at concentrating on circuits to try and maintain my CV fitness as most ships don't have bike or treadmill on them. With that in mind I'll be getting friendly with my TRX and skipping rope :?

I've got pretty much the whole of January off so hopefully I can use this month to start making some incremental gains. Time to build some momentum
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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 08 Jan 2013 10:41

My complete lack of stretching over the years has finally caught up with me. After managing to string together a good couple of sessions I've come a cropper by way of the hoover of all things :oops: I was being a good egg for once and helping out with the housework...All good so far and brownie points gained. It was only when I leaned down to put the trusty Dyson away that I felt a tweak in my back right at the base of my spine on the right side :evil: It feels fine most of the time but whenever I move a certain way it makes itself felt. I'm going to try and massage it out using the implement of pain that is my foam roller. Failing that a sports massage is in order methinx. Any other suggestions/opinions are welcome though.

06/01/13
Type: Ride
Course: Hill Loop (Short)
Distance: 41mi
Moving Time: 2h43m33
Average/Max HR: 153/182bpm
Average Power: 113W
Elevation: 2,011ft
Max Speed: 34.2mph
Average Speed: 15 mph

I'd intended to do a 50 miler on Sunday but missed the turn off for the loop at the bottom of the course so it became a shortened 41 miler. On the plus side though it's a great way to learn about where I live now. I'd be lost without my Garmin, literally. I passed a few chain gangs on my route so I may have to do a bit of research into what cycling clubs are in the area. I swear I spotted a Team GB jersey in amongst them as well.

There's a difference between the numbers I get off the Garmin site and Strava so for ease I'll be using the Strava numbers as I get an idea of how little power I produce using them.

I've also been dabbling in a bit of bike maintenance after getting Lezyne tool kit from the WAT for Christmas. Of course thaat meant the obligatory purchase of a bike stand, even more crucial after being incapacitated by a bloody Dyson :oops: I've not broken the bike yet thankfully and even removed and cleaned the cassette for the first time.

07/01/13
Run
Bridleway behind house
7.2mi
1h04m35
8:58min/mi
393ft

Went out for a head torch run last night. Pitch black on the route but completely deserted. I've been using the Zombies Run app to inject something extra into my runs and it's definitely been working. There's nothing guaranteed to drag a bit more speed out of you quite like the sound of zombies on your arse hellbent on taking a chunk out of you. And a mob always seems to appear when I'm at the bottom of a hill.

Because the route is on trails I've been able to break in my Xtalons. I can definitely see why the Massive rave about Inov8s. Cracked a couple of hill reps on the route as I need to start to getting used to uphill trail running, and just as technically the downhill aspect of it.

If I can shake off the tweak in my back then I'll be happy. If not then I'm going to need to look into physics etc. Apart from that the training's going well. I haven't got any specific training regime but we'll see how the cuff it and see approach works over the coming months.
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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 09 Jan 2013 22:21

Well I had to go and do it didn't I. I tempted fate by declaring my intentions and the Gods sh*t al over them. I planned on doing a long ride first thing and walking the dog to loosen off before treating myself to a sports massage. I was up in plenty of time but the dog had other ideas about me sodding off and leaving him for a few hours. Perks of the WAT being away for a couple of days I suppose.

With the long ride derailed I decided to take Dexter for his morning walk. With all the smack talk about the Endomondodo mileage challenge I thought I'd add that to my total as well. Can't have L&HC beating the Northern Monkeys if I have anything to do with it ;)

After that things started to go downhill rapidly. I thought I'd left plenty of time to get to my sports massage appointment but didn't factor two punctures into the equation. The first one was a rapid pop with the air gone out in seconds. I changed this one pretty rapidly but after attaching the pump I realised it was f*cking useless. That left me to freewheel back home to my track pump and TT back to my appointment rapido :oops:

The second puncture must've been a slow one because I only noticed it when I was almost at the appointment so I was left to hold my breath and make it the rest of the way practically riding on the rim. Not good :!:

On route back home after the massage I stopped off at the LBS to get a half decent pump to replace the dogsh*t one and I even invested in a CO2 cartridge to test out next time. I figure it's about time I became more savvy when it comes to bike related matters and it will save time if I puncture during Wasdale/Horseman.

On the plus side I didn't find out how rubbish my pump was thirty miles away from home so that's a small consolation.

I'd ordered Camelbak daysack for the run portion of my A race. It came today so I'll be wearing that on my runs from now on to get me used to it. Train as you fight etc. I'm going to try and do the long ride I had planned tomorrow instead. I'll just have to wear Dexter out before I go on the ride :mrgreen:
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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby kfjatek » 10 Jan 2013 01:10

Bad luck buddy, not many peeps carry TWO inner tubes on them do they. :|

BTW, they make those hybrid pumps now that also work with CO2 cartridges - could be a good investment (on my list too, I have cyclogod owes me a puncture as it's long overdue, so better get prepared).

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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Jack Hughes » 10 Jan 2013 07:30

kfjatek wrote:Bad luck buddy, not many peeps carry TWO inner tubes on them do they. :|


Depends on the length/duration of ride and likelihood of getting outside aid. I always have two on century rides/anything over 6 hours.

Short rides on MTB close to home I might not bother.

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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 10 Jan 2013 08:57

kfjatek wrote:Bad luck buddy, not many peeps carry TWO inner tubes on them do they. :|

BTW, they make those hybrid pumps now that also work with CO2 cartridges - could be a good investment (on my list too, I have cyclogod owes me a puncture as it's long overdue, so better get prepared).

:ugeek:


I've got two in my saddlebag but after changing the second one I realised how truly crap the pump was. Smaller does not equal better in this case :oops: They had a Bontrager one in my LBS which looked quite gucci but the pump wasn't quite as strong as the one I opted for. Plus the CO2 adaptor doesn't really take up much room so I thought it'd be safer to go with two masters rather than a jack of all trades.

With being a complete newbie on the CO2 front do you know what the score is with them? The LBS owner said one cartridge would be good for at least a couple of inflations but according to the instructions (I know, who reads those :lol: ) you're meant to drain the cartridge once you've used it. Plus there's the dilemma of how to store it if you can use it multiple times :roll:

Cheers Jack and kfjatek, always appreciate the input :D
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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby kfjatek » 10 Jan 2013 09:09

Here's an answer to your questions: http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2008/08/how- ... nners.html

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Re: Chaos has a Greater Sense of Order

Postby Lead Balloon » 10 Jan 2013 22:17

Cheers for that kfjatek, now I should at least use it properly instead of dispensing the contents into the atmosphere :) Although I couldn't see if you could reuse the cartridge. I'll ask about that next time I'm getting fleeced in my LBS.

10/01/13
Dog Walk/Jog
Bridleway
4.2mi
47m18
11:13min/mi
354ft

Decided to combine my morning dog walk with a nice easy run this morning, as well as testing out my new Camelbak daysack. It was a lot of stop/start with having Dexter in tow but it gave me a chance to regulate my effort as I'd forgotten my HR strap, numpty :oops:

If you haven't had the dubious pleasure of running with a doggy mine in your hand while holding the lead in the other then I can tell you that don't want to beast the pace just in case that doggy mine goes off :lol: With having the Camelbak I was able to give Dexter some water while we were out running. That didn't stop him from drinking from all the puddles though.

Today I only went with water in the camelbak but I'll be adding the safety stores gradually as I get them and the temperature rises and I stop wearing the warm kit. Next time I go out with it I'll have to remember to suck out the air from the reservoir because the sloshing gets annoying after a while.

Type: Ride
Route: Cheddington 60
Distance: 56.3mi
Moving Time: 3h49m46
Avg/Max HR: 153/177bpm
Average Power:112W
Elevation: 3,003ft
Max Speed: 34.9mph
Average Speed: 14.2mph

I'd intended to do a full 60 miles today but it was getting dark towards the end and din't really fancy chancing it even though I was wearing my hi-vis windproof and had lights on. Especially after what happened about halfway into my ride just before the top of White Hill. Some Audi driving wanker passed me far too close forcing forcing to bail out onto the verge at the steepest point. Up until then the climb was going really well. It had me resorting to the small chainring and my biggest sprocket to keep moving forward.

The maximum gradient I could see on the incline was 23.7% so I'll be coming back in the future to test myself on it. Although it's only short it'll be important to get practice on inclines like that if I'm going to conquer Hardknott and Wrynose Passes both ways at Wasdale.

Nutrition wise I misjudged what I needed to get me through this ride. I pretty much bonked towards the end and it was only some descents near the end of the route that allowed me to recover enough to finish without stopping in a newsagents for a restorative Mars Bar. This ride showed me that although I can complete HIM bike distance I need to massively improve my hill climbing to prepare me for Wasdale. As you can probably tell, I've pretty much decided to set my sights on Wasdale this year and postpone my Ironman debut until next year. Considering Horseman has 3500m of height gain I'm not sure I'd be ready for it considering I'm going to be away for at least half of the buildup. Not exactly ideal preparation. So that means it's pretty much a certainty for Wasdale. Now I just need to find some build up events, a couple of Olys would make sense and maybe even a century ride.

Feeling a bit achy today after yesterday's sports massage but that was to be expected really. Hopefully it'll pass soon enough.
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