"Enthusiasm is the yeast"

couerdelion · 30-10-2014 1:13pm

So the first few days of training have started well enough...

Tue 28th October

Straight home from work and into the light weights - Took me around 30 mins to get through everything - delts really tired afterwards.

Turbo - TrainerRoad - Black. Session of aerobic endurance with effort at 50-80% of FTP. Found it ok - after being off the bike for a good while it's going to take time till I'm finding these workouts easy again. It'll be interesting to see how/if my avg HR lowers over the next few months during excercise.

http://www.strava.com/activities/212869970

Wed 29th October

Up earlier than usual and straight downstairs to get the light weights excercises done. Felt good to get a little bit done before work but after only doing the last session <12 hours earlier it felt tougher than baby weights should!
Straight to the gym from work - forgot runners so home and straight back out. I'm doing the 5x5 Stronglifts up until Xmas to gain strength and this is still an early enough session so not particularly heavy weights. Knee means no squatting (which is kinda the whole purpose to the 5x5 but that will hopefully be added in when the knee is back to full working order.
So,
Leg press 5x5 (40kg)
Overhead Press 5x5 (20kg)
Deadlift 1x5 (40kg)
Chinups 3x5 (BW+50kg)

Also Physio asked me to do Leg extensions to build quad strength. A year ago I was hitting 95kg extensions but yesterday I struggled with 30kg. Right leg is especially bad - much more than left - something to focus on and I'll be isolating each leg from now on.

After the weights was cardio - 30 mins elliptical. Knees were niggling for first couple of mins but settled soon enough and were fine for the rest of the session. I find the elliptical pretty boring but it's better than doing nothing and makes a change from the bike.

When I got home I got the bike set up for an early Thursday morning turbo, but when the alarm went of this morning I had a bit of a think about doing too much too soon and went back to sleep. It was meant to be a 90 minute session but I'll try instead to throw a quick 30 min HIIT session in before swimming. Weight has started to go down on the scales too - early days but a bit of additional motivation.

couerdelion · 05-11-2014 10:52pm

Thu 30th October

Coached swim session - 2200m done

Fri 31st October

Day Off. Met a mate early on (4:30pm) for a few(4) pre - dinner pints then went to One Pico with the wife some really nice food. Started with the Fois Gras so not the lowest calorie meal. At some point during the meal I volunteered on FB to lead the next days 60km group cycle. I think that may have been after the bottle of wine. We then met some more friends in Kehoes for another few (4) pints.

As days off go - it was a good one!

Sat 1st November

Didn't want to get out of bed and felt slightly rough but got down to the shop for the cycle and in the end we had about 10 who could have led. Nice 70+km at a very easy pace.

Quick nap when I got home and then out to the NAC. Gym session then 1500m swim. I believe the rules only mention preceding a cycle with a swim and following it with a run. So a swim after a cycle should be grand.

If I wouldn't have gone cycling I would have stayed in bed, then probably had a fry, then some chocolate as I'd have broken my diet anyway - and then probably the same on Sunday as I'd have been starting again on Monday... so this was a good day too

Saw a FB post from Wirelessdude in the evening seeing if anyone fancied an easy cycle Sunday. Why not I thought!

Sun 2nd November

Got down to the shop to meet wirelessdude and noticed a lot of the faster club cyclists (A1/A2's) were there. Had a quick chat - told them not to worry I was going out for an easy cycle. But no... we ended up as one big group. Enjoyed it except for the hills when I was out the back. Not really a surprise considering I was more than twice the weight of at least one person there. I was fine on the flat and short inclines except coming into Kilcock when I was last out of a junction and as they sped off I was left hanging 20m off the back just not able to get back on. Lucky enough 2 lads were a bit further back and they caught me and gave me a tow back on.

Mon 3rd November

Gym session then into a Coached swim - 2200m. Bit of cramp and breathing not feeling great.

Tue 4th November

Nowt. I've a chest infection. Bollox! I've had a little bit of a cold/nasal drip for the last couple of weeks and its dropped. Just back at it and having to take a break already. Learnt last year that pushing on through a chest infection just means more time off in the end.

Wed 5th November

Another day of nothing. Chest infection now accompanied by a cough.

Thoughts

Knee still not good but is starting to feel a bit better, no pain when walking but still sore going up stairs. Putting off getting an MRI done at the moment as I don't want any bad news.

Weight is going in the right direction. My goal of 90kg is a long term aim, so if last week (Tue 28th Oct) was day 0 then 28th September is week 48 - just before IM Mallorca. I've 27kg to lose - 0.57kg (1.25lbs) per week.

So Week 1 - 115kg (-2 kg). Happy with that considering the blowout on Friday.

I fully expect to have weeks where everything isn't heading in the right direction and I also expect weight loss to be easier at the beginning than as I get towards target so a quick start isn't unexpected. Had hoped for a few weeks of rapid loss at the start but being ill and not being able to burn calories through exercise makes things a little harder. Being really careful with the diet this week in respect to extras (ie. no biscuits at meetings or with my brew on an evening). Other than that my diet isn't usually too bad anyway. Having a work canteen helps as there's usually a chicken option with plenty of veggies (no chips!).

wirelessdude01 · 05-11-2014 11:42pm

couerdelion wrote: »

Thu 30th October

Coached swim session - 2200m done

Fri 31st October

Day Off. Met a mate early on (4:30pm) for a few(4) pre - dinner pints then went to One Pico with the wife some really nice food. Started with the Fois Gras so not the lowest calorie meal. At some point during the meal I volunteered on FB to lead the next days 60km group cycle. I think that may have been after the bottle of wine. We then met some more friends in Kehoes for another few (4) pints.

As days off go - it was a good one!

Sat 1st November

Didn't want to get out of bed and felt slightly rough but got down to the shop for the cycle and in the end we had about 10 who could have led. Nice 70+km at a very easy pace.

Quick nap when I got home and then out to the NAC. Gym session then 1500m swim. I believe the rules only mention preceding a cycle with a swim and following it with a run. So a swim after a cycle should be grand.

If I wouldn't have gone cycling I would have stayed in bed, then probably had a fry, then some chocolate as I'd have broken my diet anyway - and then probably the same on Sunday as I'd have been starting again on Monday... so this was a good day too

Saw a FB post from Wirelessdude in the evening seeing if anyone fancied an easy cycle Sunday. Why not I thought!

Sun 2nd November

Got down to the shop to meet wirelessdude and noticed a lot of the faster club cyclists (A1/A2's) were there. Had a quick chat - told them not to worry I was going out for an easy cycle. But no... we ended up as one big group. Enjoyed it except for the hills when I was out the back. Not really a surprise considering I was more than twice the weight of at least one person there. I was fine on the flat and short inclines except coming into Kilcock when I was last out of a junction and as they sped off I was left hanging 20m off the back just not able to get back on. Lucky enough 2 lads were a bit further back and they caught me and gave me a tow back on.

Mon 3rd November

Gym session then into a Coached swim - 2200m. Bit of cramp and breathing not feeling great.

Tue 4th November

Nowt. I've a chest infection. Bollox! I've had a little bit of a cold/nasal drip for the last couple of weeks and its dropped. Just back at it and having to take a break already. Learnt last year that pushing on through a chest infection just means more time off in the end.

Wed 5th November

Another day of nothing. Chest infection now accompanied by a cough.

Thoughts

Knee still not good but is starting to feel a bit better, no pain when walking but still sore going up stairs. Putting off getting an MRI done at the moment as I don't want any bad news.

Weight is going in the right direction. My goal of 90kg is a long term aim, so if last week (Tue 28th Oct) was day 0 then 28th September is week 48 - just before IM Mallorca. I've 27kg to lose - 0.57kg (1.25lbs) per week.

So Week 1 - 115kg (-2 kg). Happy with that considering the blowout on Friday.

I fully expect to have weeks where everything isn't heading in the right direction and I also expect weight loss to be easier at the beginning than as I get towards target so a quick start isn't unexpected. Had hoped for a few weeks of rapid loss at the start but being ill and not being able to burn calories through exercise makes things a little harder. Being really careful with the diet this week in respect to extras (ie. no biscuits at meetings or with my brew on an evening). Other than that my diet isn't usually too bad anyway. Having a work canteen helps as there's usually a chicken option with plenty of veggies (no chips!).

You weren't the only one to go out the back on the 'hills'!!! Was a nice spin though. What doesn't kill you and all that jazz. Saturday and Sunday spins from here on in where possible

couerdelion · 11-11-2014 1:21pm

Thursday 6th - Sunday 9th November

Not a lot I could do except rest and hope that the chest infection would hurry up and go. Wasn't bad enough to keep me off work (although the coughing fits during meetings probably didn't go down well) but still bad enough to stop me training.

Wife turned up at my nieces in her cycling gear on Saturday morning on her way down to the club spin. My 2 year old niece announcedthat I wasn't there because I was lazy. Half right

Saturday night I did Whisky tasting with a few friends. Just 5 Scotch whisky's and only me who liked the ones on the smokey/peaty end of the scale - which means I don't have to share those! Lagavulin 16yo is lovely :-9

Monday 10th November

Gym strength session - still on stronglifts and finding it slow to get up to a challenging weight. Jumped a few sessions this week but still felt way too easy (i.e did 1 x 25 bench press and bent over row - rather than 5x5)
followed by club swim - covered about 2300m. Was a good session with main set 4 x (100m drill, 2 x 200m FC) cramped a bit at the end as I sprinted past a club mate.

Thoughts

Chest infection nearly completely gone, still a residual cough but that's always the case. Knee is getting much stronger - hardly any pain except for stairs and even that is much better than last week. Even managed to run across the road to avoid getting run over this week with out being in pain. Hoping to start running again in the next couple of weeks - will be baby steps though with small distances to start with and aiming for a 5km race on New Years Day. Will probably run that easy though rather than aiming for any PB's!

Entered IronMan Mallorca in September 2015. 46 weeks to go until then so plenty of time to get the necessary training in (I hope).

Weight is down again - shows the benefit of watching what I'm eating when not training.My weigh in day is Tuesday so any weekend excesses or large training load should even itself out.

Week 2 - 113.0 kg (-4.0 kg). Really happy with the way the weight is going - aim is 110 kg by the end of the year and I'm well ahead of target for that. Long may it continue!

couerdelion · 18-11-2014 3:10pm

Tuesday 11th November

Back on the turbo and TrainerRoad “Black” again. Not sure if I found this easy or tough. A bit of both I think – lack of focus and still not feeling the best contributed to the hard bits – 50-80% FTP was the easy bit.

Wednesday 12th November

Gym – 5x5’s. Enjoying being back in the gym and lifting. Still doing leg press rather than squat though as not sure how the leg might respond.

Thursday 13th November

Club swim. Technique based session.2000m swam in total. Quiet enough that I had the lane to myself for most of the night.

Friday 14th November

Wife away for the weekend so I went mad and went to the gym…
Home from work early enough but procrastination is the theif of time and it was nearly 9pm by the time I got there. 5x5’s as usual with dips thrown in and some single leg raises to build the quads back up. Right leg much weaker than right.

Saturday 15th November
Cycle with the club. Had swapped with the 60km leader so helped out with the easiest group. Nothing too difficult and it got me home for 1pm.
Evening time I went to the gym again and did an extra session. I’m still working my way up the weights so am still lifting light enough that the extra session didn’t kill me.
Followed by a quick swim – 1350m. Good job it was quick as I didn’t realise the pool shut at 8pm and I didn’t get in the water till 7:20pm

Sunday 16th November

Day off. Still not quite back to 100% and decided to take a day off rather than forcing myself to cycle and getting ill again.

Monday 17th November

Gym session. Back squatting! Just an empty bar to start with and the weight will get added each session. Had an instructor over to check form and I was collapsing slightly at the bottom of each squat. Made sure I was looking up and everything was then ok. Everything else still light enough that the sets of 5 aren’t needing anything like a full recovery.

Club swim. 400m TT as part of it Maybe bench presses and dips beforehand weren’t the best idea!
Just four in my lane and all pretty even pace wise. I ended up leading the lane out and was a little worried of getting caught and losing time as I got passed, but decided to go with it. Started off with a quick 25m staying on the shoulder of the fastest swimmer in the group (in the fast lane) but as soon as he tumbled he was gone. My turning is very slow and I lose couple of seconds a length here – I’m probably slower in a 25m because of this than a 50m. The lads who started in 3rd and 4th place got a tow for 350m then overtook 2nd on the last length. Time was 6:52 for 3 of us I think – still waiting for the times emailing through.

Thoughts

Chest infection nearly completely gone – I still have a small cough and a bit of a cold but nothing chesty. Not hitting as many sessions as I’d like – still finding it hard to fit a cycle in on Thursdays and missing the light weight sessions regularly. Will try and address this over the next week.

Week 3 - 111.0 kg (-6.0 kg). I weighed myself 3 times this morning as I was getting worried that every single weekly weigh in so far has been dead on .0. It was consistent though and changed when I held a dumbbell. So 3 weeks in and I think 6kg down is pretty good – I did see 110.x on the scales on Saturday but a cheat meal on Sunday evening from the chipper put me up a little for the rest of the week. Hoping now to hit my <110.0kg end of year target by next week and then I’ll reassess and set another short term target. Realise that December and all the partying around then is going to make it difficult to lose weight and the best I might be able to hope for is just maintaining.

Still unsure of what my end weight target should be so I used Matt Fitzgeralds racing weight calculator to try and give me a rough idea. http://racingweight.com/rwe and it reckons somewhere between 82.5kg and 90.0kg. The top end of that is what I was thinking so we’ll see how I look and feel if I manage to get anywhere close to that.

pprendeville · 20-11-2014 12:18pm

Mods please delete - forgot I was still on this page.

Apologies.

couerdelion · 25-11-2014 12:47pm

Tuesday 18th November

Turbo session - plan was to do 90 minutes on TrainerRoad "State" 3x12-minute intervals in the Threshold power level at 95-99% FTP with 6-minute recoveries between intervals.

I managed 45 mins and gave up. Just not feeling it.

http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/rides/1255785-State-

Wednesday 19th November

Went down to the local community centre in Tyrrelstown to pay for the first session of our weekly turbo classes. Great venue and we got a great rate for the hour.

Anyone interested? We only charge €6 per session.

Then off to the gym. More 5x5's - Only second session back squatting and I am enjoying it - feeling like I'm getting stronger every session. It is very easy though as I'm starting back from scratch so only on 22.5kg after starting with bar only on Monday.Overhead Press, Deadlift and Chin-ups completed the session. I think I'm about at my limit for the overhead press. I struggled through the set but my rotator cuff isn't quite right and that causing an issue with lifting. It is improving though as the days go by.

Thursday 20th November

Swimming and another TT.

W/U:
400m FC Easy

Main:
50m FC Easy
400m TT
100m Swim Easy
6 x 10s upright kick, 25m FC 10s RI
6 x 50m FC Fingertip Drill
6 x 75m FC Low stroke count

CD:
50m Swim Easy

Total: 1900m

TT time was 6:57 - Happy thats twice I've got under the 7:00 mins but 7 seconds slower than the Monday which was confirmed as 6:50. Probably went out a little too slow on this one and lost a bit of time then when it came to overtaking. As on Monday I had the pressure of leading the lane out but this time there was no one on my feet pushing me for the first part.

Friday 21st November

I was going to take a rest day but with no cycle on Thursday and then getting off work early I decided to go to the gym. Knocked the squats up a bit more to 27.5kg (yes I know still light!) and benchpress, upright rows and dips completed the session.Sinus weren't feeling the best so spent a while in the steam room trying to clear them.

Saturday 22nd November

Had to go and get Bananas for the race I was organising and it turned into a bit of a farce. Couldn't get into the industrial estate and when I did they didn't know anything about my order. Sorted it but was then too late to go out with the club cycling.

Friend rang me about meeting up and as I had an hour to kill I added in an extra gym workout as I was feeling fresh. Squats up to 37.5kg and overhead press and deadlift still going up so happy days.

Sunday 23rd November

Long day helping out organising a race. Was up at 6:00am and home for 5:00pm. On my feet all day and as I was coming home and I stopped for a coffee I cramped up getting out of the car!

Home and decided to go for a short swim to help loosen out. There was a gala on in the NAC so only 3 lanes available for the public. Lucky enough to get one for myself for most of the set and when someone did jump in she was quick enough and the only time I caught her she let me straight past - Kudos to swimming girl on her etiquette!

W/U:
100m FC
100m kick w/board
4 x 25m FC, 25m FC Build** 15s RI

Main:
100m FC w/pull 20s RI
2 x 100m FC T-Pace +2s 15s RI
100m FC w/pull 20s RI
2 x 100m FC T-Pace +2s 15s RI
100m FC w/pull 20s RI
2 x 100m FC T-Pace +2s 15s RI

C/D:
200m Any Stroke

Total 1500m

Got out and sinuses are still at me. The chest infection I got a few weeks ago feels like it is on the verge of coming back (hasn't completely gone away I reckon) and the snot has gone from clear to luminous green (TMI?) Another session in the steam room to help loosen things up and then home for dinner

Monday 24th November

Didn't get into Ironman Dublin 70.3 that opened today. Not too fussed. No ROI option and no time to spend pressing F5 till it appeared.Will find another alternative but as I'm already booked in for Mallorca full and half it's not the end of the world.

Gym session and as always 5x5 strength routine. Squats 40kg, Benchpress 60kg and Bent Over Row 50kg. Added in Dips at Bodyweight + 25kg assist. Still nobody who lifts weights is going to be getting worried about those numbers! and still a fairly easy session for me. I like the way the stronglifts starts you light and then you build from there. There's no place for ego's and the first few weeks at least you keep adding weight and build confidence from that progression.

Finished up and changed and into the pool for the Tri club swim:

W/U:
6 x (50m FC, 50m Not FC)

Main:
5 x 100m FC 5s RI with Pull and Paddles
5 x 100m FC 10s RI with Pull and Paddles
100m FC Easy
6 x 50m FC All out off 2 mins - Nice rest here and came in on 42, 42, 41, 41, 40.
8 x (12.5m kick, 12.5m FC)

CD:
50m Bs Easy
Total: 2250m

Thoughts

Well it's not much of a cycle training log at the moment more of a swimming one. I can't really run at the moment as my knee still isn't fully recovered and if anything gets on my chest then being on the bike just sets me back further.

Swimming is progressing well. I'm hitting 50m between 40-42s. Fair enough that's an all out sprint but if I could hold slightly slower (say 45s) for 400m then I'd be down to 6 mins for my TT's. Something to think about anyway.

I had thought that the chest infection had completely gone but despite no cough there's still a bit of a wheeze. I haven't been doing my light weights or stretching - need to address that as feeling ill shouldn't stop me doing them. I now just need to get well and then I'll be back training properly.

Week 4 - 109.8 kg (-7.2 kg). Was worried as coming into the weekend I was heavier than last week but then the diet has been a little off this week. Birthday cake and birthday coffee slices don't help the diet and I've ended up eating white bread which I rarely eat anyway and since trying to avoid altogether I now find makes me feel really bloated.

I'm also slightly surprised as I've done little cardio work this week save for the swimming and half a turbo session.

So I hit my end of year target 5 weeks early (after just 4 weeks) and am under 110kg which was my average racing weight last year - and probably the reason I struggle so much with hills when racing!

The lightest I got down to last season(and probably the lightest I've been in 15 years) was 105kg. So that's my next target. I hope to reach it in 10 weeks which is an average of 0.5kg a week. Considering how well I've done in the four weeks so far it might look a bit of a soft target but with Christmas and several nights out planned I think there might be a few weeks where I put weight on or stay the same.

One of the ways I notice putting weight on is when my work shirts - well just the slim fit ones - become a little tight and the buttons over my belly come under a bit of strain. Being back in the gym has been great and has helped me to lose weight but - as my chest and back are getting bigger the buttons are straining in a different place as the others begin to relax! It's a good problem though I reckon :-)

couerdelion · 02-12-2014 11:10am

Tuesday 25th November
After 2-3 weeks of fighting it I finally took time off to try and get rid of my Upper Respirtory Tract Infection and have been signed out for the rest of the week and told to take it easy. So I did nothing but watch TV. Downloaded "The Blacklist" boxset and caught up on Reddington and the gang.

Wednesday 26th November
Just weights. Usual 5x5's and then into the steamroom to help the illness.

Thursday 27th November
Was feeling good so decided to go to the club Swim session - hoped to be back in work Friday, found it hard to breathe but was swimming well. Feel for the water is coming back.

Friday 28th November
Told to stay away for work if I'm signed off so more Weights - 5x5's and more steamroom time.
Had chipper chips and a couple of battered sausage as a treat.

Saturday 29th November
Nothing - was tempted to go for a cycle but decided to give it another weekend. Better to miss the one session than to miss another month. M&S Meal as another treat meal.

Sunday 30th November
Swim - just a 1400m session by myself in the pool. Actually felt like I'd gone backwards and was struggling with the water.

Monday 1st December
Gym - training with a friend which meant I upped all my weights. Squats now at 60kg, O'head Press 40kg and Deadlift 80kg. Still not comfortable squatting. I move forward way too much and need to practice the 'sitting' position. Probably start putting a bench under me.

Club Swim - 2400m felt really well balanced at times - and at other times felt like I was swimming in treacle. After the o'head press my arms felt tired. Cramped towards the end as well.

Thoughts

Still not a cyling log but that will be changing this week. Should be back on the turbo tonight and then at least once more during the week plus weekends. Seem to have finally shaken off the sinus / chest infection and am feeling a lot stronger.

Week 5 - 108.0 kg (-9.0 kg) - Back to round figures - It's a digital scale so no chance of me just reading it wrong. Even though I wasn't in work and had access to a biscuit barrel full of biscuits I managed to control the diet. Found that after eliminating almost all sugary foods from my diet over the last month I've no craving for them anymore. On the Saturday I got one of the M&S meal deals and it had a millionaire shortcake as desert. I struggled to eat it. Tasted way too sweet.

Next thing to work on elimating is coffee. I love coffee but I'm drinking 3 a day in work and caffeine doesn't give me a kick. May as well drink water - except I love coffee...

joey100 · 02-12-2014 6:31pm

Don't think I could see you giving up the coffee, think nearly every time I see you you have one in your hand!

Fair play on the weight loss, can't be easy when you can't really train either. Hopefully it carries on and gets easier as you start to cycle and run more.

How's the break off the bike been? Itching to get back on and going again or not miss it? With the weight loss I'd say you will see a good increase in your watts/kg, help you out on some of the hillier races!

couerdelion · 03-12-2014 1:43am

joey100 wrote: »

Don't think I could see you giving up the coffee, think nearly every time I see you you have one in your hand!

Fair play on the weight loss, can't be easy when you can't really train either. Hopefully it carries on and gets easier as you start to cycle and run more.

How's the break off the bike been? Itching to get back on and going again or not miss it? With the weight loss I'd say you will see a good increase in your watts/kg, help you out on some of the hillier races!

Coffee is a tough one- it is a genuine love but I honestly get no buzz from the stuff and can have a couple before bed and sleep straight away - I decided to cut down today. Bought one on the way to work and that was going to be it. Mid-morning someone went out and bought me one. That's ok still only 2 rather than the usual 3 until I found myself in the coffee shop after lunch with another take away cup...
Day 1. No change

I dunno - it's almost easier when you aren't training to lose weight because you don't get those post workout food cravings. I'm hoping to control them though now I'm back on the bike (first TrainerRoad session back tonight! - just the 45 mins) and I'm starting to realise a lot of places I was going wrong in the past - things I was eating and not really counting as calories.

I have hated being off the bike. Same happened in Feb last year so at least this time it shouldn't make a difference to racing. I enjoy the spins as much for the chat as the actual exercise so looking forward to getting to the group spins again at the weekend.

If I hit my end target weight whilst I'm racing this year it will make a big difference. 15% less of me to drag up hills should mean I'm able to stay in the front group for anything but the steepest and if my power is only the same as last year then I should be around 4w per kg rather than 3.15 I was last year and still able to put out the big watts on the flat to get away. Hopefully I can get it a bit higher though.

At the moment though I'd say you're the favourite for the Winter TT League - nearly a month out has put me a bit behind

couerdelion · 09-12-2014 10:51am

Tuesday 2nd December

Finally back on the bike and an easy enough 45 minute session to get back into it - TrainerRoad "Birch"
http://www.strava.com/activities/225671369

Wednesday 3rd December
Weights. Usual 5x5's and weights still coming up

Thursday 4th December

Club Swim session - I'm liking the Thursday sessions, usually just me and the French girl in my lane and I try and leave her behind as she tries to catch me...

W/U: 300m FC, 200m kick w/fins
Main:
50m FC fists
50m FC right arm
50m FC left arm
50m FC Catch-up
50m FC fists
50m FC right arm
50m FC left arm
50m FC Catch-up
4 x 25m front scull, 75m FC
6 x 100m FC 5s RI
CD: 4 x (25m BS kick, 25m BrS)
Total: 2100m

Then home, changed and into the cycling gear for a quick tabata session - TrainerRoad "Star"
http://www.strava.com/activities/227260585

Friday 5th December
Day off. Usually Friday cheat meal - chipper chips and a couple of battered sausage as a treat for sticking pretty well to good foods.

Saturday 6th December
Back out cycling with the club. Joined the A4 race group and it was an easy enough ride with a couple of high gear, low cadence hill intervals and then a couple of Up and Overs intervals. Total was just over the 100km mark by the time I got back to the van.

http://www.strava.com/activities/227134142

Was running late but managed to get to the gym for my usual 5x5's before I went out to meet a mate over from England on my way into town to the tri club christmas party. I didn't make town and ended up pretty drunk.

Sunday 30th November

Didn't get up till 2pm and felt pretty rough. I'd driven the previous night so had to go get my van. After weighing up paying €40 again in a taxi or spending 2 hours on public transport I cycled in the dark from Blanch to Malahide and enjoyed it. Only 22km but it got me out and burnt a few calories (probably a pint's worth!) and then had a take away curry to negate any good work.

http://www.strava.com/activities/227257597

Monday 1st December
Gym - met up with my mate again. I dropped back on squats as they weren't helping the injured knee but I want to keep doing them as I'm finding them good and the weight are helping a lot with body confidence. Bench went up but I was running late and had to cut the session short to get to the club swim.

Club Swim - 2500m felt really well balanced at times - Cramped during the 200's and then spent most of the time just kicking one leg.

W/U:
400m FC or choice
200m w/kickboard
Main:
100m Catchup
15 RI
100m FC Catchup
100m FC Fists
15 RI
100m FC Catchup
100m FC Fists
100m FC 1 Arm
6 x 200m FC 5 RI (75% effort)
CD:
50m FC Easy
50m Bs Easy
Total: 2500m

Thoughts

A bit more cycling this week! Great to be back on the bike and getting out with the race group made me realise that I haven't lost much fitness. Still not climbing great, not that I ever have, but when I'm pushing well up the hills I know that I'm hitting a bit of fitness.

Cardio wise I could probably do a little more. Going to miss tonights turbo as I'm out seeing Ross Noble but will fit it in tomorrow and then do the tabata again on Thursday - missed my weekend swim and could have done a bit of cardio on Friday, may an elliptical.

Week 6 - 107.2 kg (-0.8kg week / -9.8 kg total) - Good to see it still coming down even after a rough weekend. I probably need to be a little more aware that I'm likely to slip the day after drinking and plan my cheat meal to coincide with that rather than before. Hopefully I'll get to -10kg by next week.

Have 2 weeks off over Christmas so hopefully I'll get a bit of cycling done. Might even have a look into the doing the Strava Rapha 500 again but maybe over a couple of days.

bwalsh1983 · 12-12-2014 12:45pm

These are great reads but I dont really understand the cheat meals..surely these are putting paid to any good work you are doing previous???

couerdelion · 14-12-2014 7:20pm

bwalsh1983 wrote: »

These are great reads but I dont really understand the cheat meals..surely these are putting paid to any good work you are doing previous???

Its a psychological thing for me. Knowing I'm going to have something like that once a week makes it easier mentally to stick to what I should be doing. I never have meals I don't like at anytime though so not having the "cheat meal" wouldn't be a hardship

They probably are putting paid slightly to any hard work but they aren't stupidly high calories and they're not sugary either (normally) so aren't feeding my sugar addiction.

The scientific community seems to be out still as to whether they work or not and whether they prevent your body from adapting to a new eating regime. For me the fact I'm still losing weight means they aren't doing me too much harm - maybe if that slows down or stops then I'll look to give them a miss.

couerdelion · 16-12-2014 3:15pm

Tuesday 9th December

No training - went to see Ross Noble in the Olympia - some pretty random humour.

Wednesday 10th December

Work lunch and afternoon/night out. Started off in Super Miss Sue for lunch with Prosecco and gin cocktails and then went downhill fast, lots of alcohol and plenty of food.

Thursday 11th December

Another day of nothing. Hungover.

Friday 12th December

Day off as usual - despite just having 3 of them.

Saturday 13th December

Cycle cancelled due to icy roads so turbo session - 90 minutes. At the moment that's all I'm capable of inside. Just too mind numbing and uncomfortable.

http://www.strava.com/activities/229938066

Then to the gym - squats done handily enough but I was finding on overhead press it felt like something was catching in my shoulder - rotator cuff again. Cut it short and did a handy enough 1500m swim

Then another Christmas meet-up and more beers

Sunday 14th December

Didn't get up till late and felt pretty rough.Lots of good intentions but the day just slipped away from me and it was another waste.

Monday 15th December

Club swim and the end of year TT. Previous time was confirmed as 6:50 on email so I was hoping to get that down close to 6:40.

Set out fast and had another lad catching me for 200-250m and pushing me on but he faded after that and I pushed on. Still waiting for confirmation but I think I'm down to 6:26 so a nice improvement. No idea of what I should be targetting though.

W/U:
5 x
50m not FC
50m FC
Main:
400m TT
100m not FC
4 x
25m Front Skull
75m FC Distance per stroke
10 x
25m FC as 15 strokes, kick the rest of the way
CD:
50m Bs Easy
Total: 1700m

Thoughts:

Bad week. Lots missed and diet not great - that's partly due to the time of year but also just took my foot of the gas a bit.

On the plus side swimming is improving.

No weigh in for next few weeks. Don't want to upset myself and end up in a downward spiral of "well I've put weight on anyway so what's another drink/mince pie/sausage roll going to matter"

Off home this weekend, so no bike, no run, and I'm not even sure about a pool.

__________________

couerdelion · 13-01-2015 1:01pm

So – Christmas... Well I landed home and was more or less straight in holiday mode. Greggs Pasties, then beer and more beer and fish and chips and more beer…

At one point I went for a walk on the beach rather than go out with my brother because I couldn’t face another drink, it was only for a few days then I met a friend in town before I got the plane back to Dublin – had a small 2 hour window so I only managed the 8 pints – bar called Tapped in Leeds. I think we had 8 different IPA’s – details are still a little hazy…

3 weeks of bad diet and little training – plenty of mornings looking out and it was too wet / cold / windy to train. I could have got on the turbo of course but it was Christmas and where would be the fun in that?

Drinking finished on the 3rd January and back to training on the 5th…

Monday 5th January

Up early and into the gym for 6am and back to the 5x5 gym programme. Cut back on a lot of the weights – new year, new start and I didn’t need DOMS after not training for a couple of weeks.

Squats 60kg
Bench 50kg
Row 30kg

After work – Club swim session:

W/U:
500m FC
Main:
8 x 10s Upright kick, 25m FC 10s RI
4 x 50m Alternating Single Arm FC 15s RI
300m FC
4 x 50m Fist
300m FC (Focus on wide arms - no crossing!)
100m FC Catchup
100m FC (Focus on early engagement of pull - high elbow)
100m FC Catch Up
100m FC
CD:
100m FC Easy

Enjoying swimming again. Still need to work on my breathing as it isnt feeling natural and I know I've a habit of holding my breath.

New bike programme had called for a FTP test that day so tried after swimming but called it off after 30 mins
https://www.strava.com/activities/237637243
In retrospect it was a stupid idea trying to do that much on the first day back - I'm going to keep training where I am (FTP 298w) but I'll review it in case I've slipped from there (and I think I have).

Tuesday 6th January

Turbo session – TrainerRoad, Birch

https://www.strava.com/activities/237638998

Finished off with my light weights routine.

Wednesday 7th January

Easy day – just the gym for more 5x5

Squats 62.5kg
Overhead Press 30kg
Romanian Deadlift – 75kg

Found the overhead press tough. I’ve a rotator cuff injury that is starting to flare up a little and depending on how/where I grip the bar it impinges. Romanian Deadlifts also aren’t ideal. Will be switching to conventional deadlifts as they’re a better all over body exercise.

Thursday 8th January

Evening swim session with the club

W/U:
400m FC
Main:
2 x
3 x (25m Left Arm, 25m Right Arm, 5s RI)15s RI
3 x (50m Fist, 5s RI)15s RI
3 x (100m FC, 5s RI)15s RI (Count avg strokes per length)
4 x (25m FC, 25m BS) No RI
8 x 25m FC (Avg stroke count - 5 kick rest of way)
CD:
300m FC Easy
Total: 2300m

Was also meant to do a 60 minute turbo but didn’t fit it in. Don’t have the time before swimming and no time after… will need to do first thing in a morning in future.

Friday 9th January

Gym 5x5’s – late session, got there around 8:30pm so it was nice and quiet.

Squat 65kg
Bench Press 52.5kg
Row 40kg

Saturday 10th January

Woke up and decided it was just too windy to be out on the roads. I don’t kow what it is this year – am I just making excuses or am I just more cautious… either way it was another turbo session…

TrainerRoad – Ruskin https://www.strava.com/activities/239139390

Sunday 11th January

A direct paste from before Christmas… .Lots of good intentions but the day just slipped away from me and it was another waste.

Monday 12th January

Up early (2 weeks in a row!) and into the gym for 5x5’s.
Squat 67.5kg
OH Press 35kg
Deadlift 40kg (Proper deadlifts as opposed to Romanian, starting the weight low as it will build week on week)

Club swim:

W/U:
3 x (150m FC, 50m kick w/board)
Main:
4 x (50m FC Fists, 50m FC Catch-Up)
3 x (100m FC Easy, 100m FC Hard) (with pull and paddles)
50m BS
4 x 200m FC
Total: 2450m

Tough session and a jump up from the week before. Cramped a little during the first of the last set so used a pull buoy - amazing how much easier it is.

Thoughts:

Started off the week a bit mad but have settled back into training quite well. Still missed a couple of bike sessions so need to be mindful of these and try and improve on consistency.

Week 11 - 110.6 kg (+3.4kg put on in last 5 weeks / -6.4 kg total) – So Christmas saw me put weight on – unsurprisingly but I’m still a good bit down on where I was. In November the temptation was always to wait until after Christmas to start but I dread to think where I would be if I had waited!

Finally booked in to see a physio about getting a referral for my knee. Early morning session next week so should know more about the problem next time I update.

Diet still needs to be sorted. A few too many treats still being consumed that were left over from Christmas. Going to start doing a TRX / KB class in work at lunch time. Not sure how it will fit in with the other strength training I’m doing so we’ll see if it’s of benefit or if I need to drop some of them.

The idea of lunchtime classes also makes me realise how poorly I do use my time. I do very little before work and nothing at lunchtimes at the moment meaning I try and fit everything in to the evening. Sometimes that’s just not possible or one session leaves me too tired to do another straight after. So I am going to do more sessions in a morning before work (I’m terrible at waking up!) and then when I can start running again I ‘ll be able to fit a couple of runs a week into a lunchtime slot. I’m missing running at the moment – not because I enjoy it but I find it one of the best exercises to lose weight.

De Bhál · 17-01-2015 1:01am

8 pints in two hours...impressive.

couerdelion · 21-01-2015 6:03pm

Tuesday 13th January

Kettlebell / TRX session in work at lunchtime found it tough enough!

Turbo session – TrainerRoad, Devils Crag

https://www.strava.com/activities/240676421 - 75 mins of turbo

Wednesday 14th January

Gym for more 5x5

Squat 70kg
Bench Press 60kg
Row 50kg

Was meant to be an easy swim but forget my togs.

Thursday 15th January

Kettlebell Class in work.

Evening swim session with the club or it was meant to be but I forgot my togs again!
Another turbo missed too.

Friday 16th January

Day off and a few beers with a friend.

Saturday 17th January

Woke up and decided it was just too icy to be out on the roads.

TrainerRoad – Mono (90 mins)

https://www.strava.com/activities/242199699

Then to the gym

Squats 75kg
Overhead Press 35kg
Deadlift – 45kg

Sunday 18th January

TrainerRoad – Coloseum (90 mins)
https://www.strava.com/activities/242955610

Monday 19th January

Club swim:

W/U:
400m
Main:
400m Time Trial
3 x 50m FC Easy, 50m non FC
3 x 200 w/pull Easy
3 x (50m skull or kick, 150m FC)
Total: 2300m

Surprise Time Trial and go great. Two missed sessions this week and a few weeks off at Christmas + general laziness meant it was never going to go well.
6:46 - Went out way too fast for the first 100m and then paid for it later on

Thoughts:

Finally saw a physio. I've a suspected tear in my meniscus at the femur/tibia - medial meniscus with a bakers cyst and have patella tendinitis brought on by adaptations to the way I'm exercising and moving to protect it. Also have really tight quads. A good few rehabilitation exercises to be done and strength work to help the glutes and hips and he's hopeful I'll be back running sooner rather than later. Squats are banned though so all the weights I've been doing hasn't helped - I did a few squats with him watching and I hadn't noticed how much my knee was moving out as I subconsciously moved to protect the knee. I'm limited now to 30 degree bends until I go back a week Friday to see how rehab is going.

The rest of the training is getting there - still not consistent enough yet. I swim with a group Thursdays and its also a day I'm meant to cycle so I need to manage that better. I also need to remember my togs when I go to the gym so I aren't missing sessions for stupid reasons. 90% of the battle is turning up so forgetting stuff is frustrating.

Week 12 - 110.3 kg (-0.3kg week / -6.7 kg total) – Diet has been poor and I'm struggling to get back into the groove. Need to address it.

joey100 · 22-01-2015 10:11am

Physio give you any idea of when you might be back running??? Still plenty of time to get marathon ready! Will we be seeing you at the start line of the TT on Sunday?

couerdelion · 22-01-2015 10:26am

joey100 wrote: »

Physio give you any idea of when you might be back running??? Still plenty of time to get marathon ready! Will we be seeing you at the start line of the TT on Sunday?

Hopefully be back starting to run by March.

I'll be on the start line on Sunday - although it possibly might just be as time keeper.

couerdelion · 27-01-2015 11:36am

Bit of an rest week with a bit of testing too.

Tuesday 20th January

Turbo session – TrainerRoad, Givens - two sets of 3x3-minute VO2max repeats at 110%, 120% and 130% FTP

https://www.strava.com/activities/243824011 - 60 mins of turbo

Wednesday 21st January

Rest Day

Thursday 22nd January

Evening swim session with the club. Another Time trial.
2 seconds slower but I had to stop twice to empty water out of my "spare" goggles as I'd forgotton my usual ones.

Friday 23rd January

Day Off

Saturday 24th January

Gym - weights, stretching and rehabilitation exercises

Sunday 25th January

Club Winter TT - Round 1. I organise so had no problem doing the timing. Some improvements on last year and it looks like last years runner-up is just as strong, if not stronger, this year...

The reason I did the timing was that I was due an FTP test and knew that today was my best chance of doing one in a reasonably rested state. I had tried one earlier in the month after a swim session and had to abort as I couldn't hold power. After Tuesday nights session I knew I was probably going a bit better than where my FTP was currently so was looking forward to pushing the FTP up. Previous test had me at 297w and I'd manually upped that to 300w during training in the last couple of weeks. Aim was to get to 310w to put me in a good position to continue to build during the season.

Happy with the result. 2x8 min test. First block was 362w for the 8 mins and second 360w for the 8 mins which gave an average of 360w and an FTP of 324w. Pretty close to where I was this time last year despite a lot less training.

https://www.strava.com/activities/246007278

Monday 26th January

Gym and then

Club swim:

W/U:
3 x (150m FC, 50m BS)
Main:
2 x 50m 3-6-3 drill 15RI
4 x 50m one arm drill 15RI
6 x 50m catch-up drill 15RI
3 x (150m FC w/pull 15RI
100m FC w/pull 10RI
50m FC w/pull 5RI )
3 x (25m BS, 75m FC)
Total: 2400m

Enjoyable enough until I cramped. I had been doing single leg bridges for my glutes and I think that had probably fatigued my hamstrings too as I'm still a bit too reliant on them during the exercise. Hamstring cramps are the worse.

Finshed off the day with light weights routine.

Thoughts:

Good testing/rest week - happy enough that fitness is improving in the right direction.

Week 13 - 110.3 kg (-0.0kg week / -6.7 kg total) – Diet still poor this week. Off skiing this weekend so aren't expecting that figure to come down either. No chance of cycling for the five days I'm away but will try and swim.

The below quote is from my first post in this log - not a lot has changed unfortunately...

First Post in Log wrote:

My major limiter is my weight. I'm around 110kg (6ft 4) and whilst I'm never going to be light... I know that I need to be under 100kg and ideally around 95kg. Whilst this doesn't stop me being competitive... it's not great for going up hills. Weight loss will be something I concentrate on in the New Year once Christmas has been and gone.

joey100 · 27-01-2015 12:40pm

looks like last years runner-up is just as strong, if not stronger, this year...

Stronger, definitely stronger!

couerdelion · 11-03-2015 3:50pm

It has been well over a month since I last posted which is too long to then try and do a complete catch up of every session. So as a brief catch-up – went skiing came back did a couple of weeks of half-hearted training, went to the Middle East with work and drank and ate like it was going out of fashion, as well as some stupidly long working days (6am – 11pm

). Did a couple more bike sessions after that and then decided I was feeling up to racing again.

Saturday 11th March

Clonard RC A4 Race - Was at a wedding the night before till 0130 and was I not picking someone up I might have missed this to catch up on sleep. We got there early enough and signed on. Then I realised I had packed 2 right gloves and no jersey. Fastened my numbers to a polo shirt with the collar turned in and put a rain jacket over it – it didn’t look too bad but it was slightly warm and as I noticed during the warm-up, not particularly breathable. After watching the A1/2 and A3 races roll out the A4 race started and I thought I was in a pretty good position but I quickly realised I was on the wrong side of the bunch and directly into the crosswind – as the pace picked up I just wasn’t able to keep going – HR maxed out pretty quick (I’m assuming, no strap with me either) so I pulled over and made sure the people going past saw me messing with my brakes so would assume I had a mechanical. I then had a word with myself – I’d paid for the race so there was no point turning and going back. I set off and caught a couple of Sword riders in front of me, one of them jumped on my wheel and we set off catching riders in front of us. Eventually caught a small group of some other riders – from Cuchulainn, Team 905, Fixx and one or two others, and we rode the route together. I’ll be honest and say I probably didn’t do my fair share of work in the group. I went to the front a few times but a lot of the time, especially on the way back, I was just hanging on to the wheel in front of me. If anything the fact I didn’t get dropped on the hills gave me a small boost, but the lads weren’t racing them so who knows how the actual race might have panned out.

So, my first race off the season and I was well off the pace. Last year I started at Monasterevin but pulled out after 10km with a chest infection and then didn’t race again till May after a training week which always gives me a boost (and I’ve still to come in mid/late Apr). So perhaps I am not too far behind. Certainly my power figures are similar enough, but I’m a little heavier so W/KG is less but that should be easy enough to take care of.

https://www.strava.com/activities/264257334

Sunday 12th March

I had notions of going out with the club for a cycle but the legs were in bits. Hit the gym instead. Still doing rehap / prehab work on the knee and my first phase of getting back running is walking on the treadmill on a high gradient. 20% incline at 4.5mph was tough enough. HR got up quick enough and I was sweating. Only had to do 20 mins.

Monday 13th March

Swimming – Sessions with Tri Club. 2300m done before I started to cramp in the shin and got out 10 mins early.

Tuesday 14th March

Turbo session. I’m looking to increase my TT ability this year as so I’m using the Half Distance / High Volume plan in Trainer Road for that purpose – and adapting where I can (i.e. Outside rides on a weekend).
Todays sessions was Bashful.

https://www.strava.com/activities/266187084

Thoughts

Back “racing” and not enjoying struggling round. I was in two minds about racing again for a while and whether it would be better to wait till my fitness is better and I’ve more weight lost. But I’ve decided to keep plugging away. Getting dropped isn’t the end of the world and I didn’t have the ideal preparation for the race.

Weight is 110.0kg this morning, so (compared to last time I logged) - Week 19 - 110kg, ( -0.3kg period / -7.0kg total)

I’ve now less than 9 weeks to go till the first of my main events – Mallorca 70.3 on the 9th May. Realistically 0.5kg a week is achievable so I’m going to reset my targets and 105.xkg is now my short term goal for the 6th May.

couerdelion · 17-03-2015 9:15pm

Wednesday 11th March
Rest day. Tough day in work and not in the mood for training.

Thursday 12th March
Turbo – Trainer Road, Castle Peak. Meant to be 1:45 of effort. I lasted a little over 1:30 and then stopped. Struggling to hit the power highs after an hour so modified slightly.
https://www.strava.com/activities/267189310

Friday 13th March
Easy 1 hour recovery spin on TrainerRoad again.
https://www.strava.com/activities/267607863

Saturday 14th March
Club spin. Was planning on racing on Sunday as were a few others. With most of the faster racers in Mayo and the intermediate group pretty full we formed a racing group and headed off for an easy 60km. It wasn’t easy! I think everyone other than me was on their race bikes whist I was on my winter bike with mudguards. Gave me a good kick in the arse and a reality check as to where I am at the moment. It was my first time out with the club and on the roads (other than last weeks race) this year.
https://www.strava.com/activities/268140924

Sunday 15th March
Boyne GP. I’d asked around the club as to what this was like and was told it was fairly flat with a slight drag at the back towards the finish… lying b*st*rds. Did a short enough warm-up then got to the start ready for the off. It set off at a decent enough pace but nothing too bad and was down into a valley followed by a climb up to the main road. Left there and down the main road towards the castle and everything felt good. Sharp left then left again and the drag up towards the finish. I was poorly positioned coming in to this and was already at the back. I stayed there all the way to the finish line when eventually the elastic broke and I just could get back on. Finished the race (another 4 laps) by myself and was wrecked afterwards – didn’t see the point in going back to the van till I’d done the same distance as everyone else. Only way I’m going to improve.
https://www.strava.com/activities/268639827

Monday 16th March
Rest Day

Tuesday 17th March
IRC St Patricks day race, Summerhill. I’d asked around the club about this race too and from the responses I was expecting it to be worse than Boyne. But, if I want to improve I’ve got to keep toeing the line…
Had a quick warmup by riding out to Rathmoylon and then following the circuit back to Summerhill. Then waited for the start. We were last out and there was a bit of uncertainity at the back as to whether we had started or were still neutralised. I stayed tucked in at the back for the first lap. Second lap I ventured up near the front but wasn’t prepared to put my nose into the wind, 3rd lap I started at the back and managed to move up for the sprint but then got boxed in so eased off and finished in the bunch. Finally a race completed this year without being dropped!
https://www.strava.com/activities/269665455

Thoughts
Another couple of races done and I can feel the strength returning. Hoping to get back running this week as the rehab is going well and that will help with the fitness especially in being able to hold the HR at a high level for a good while (I think that’s called stamina!) That should help with the ability to hold the power down for longer both on the flat when going for breaks and holding the wheels up the longer hills.
Weight is 108.2kg this morning – Week 20 – 108.2kg (-1.8kg week / 8.8kg total)
Bought a set of fitbit scales and an activity band this week. The scales mainly because I needed new ones. They give me the same weight as the last set so any weight loss is real and not just because of new scales! It’s also easier than logging weight in an excel spreadsheet and also it’s a great motivator trying to make sure that your weight is consistently trending in the right direction. The activity band / monitor is there to monitor sleep quality and to try and get me a little more active – a few more flights of stairs and a walk at lunch time isn’t much but over a few weeks it should all start to add up.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi · 17-03-2015 11:22pm

Races will bring you on a lot more fitness wise, well that's what I am finding:)

couerdelion · 24-03-2015 3:33pm

Eileen Slimy Family wrote: »

Races will bring you on a lot more fitness wise, well that's what I am finding:)

I agree definitely. I think that its better to jump in and suffer and be humiliated than keep training and keep wondering if you're up to scratch yet...

Wednesday 18th March

Gym - Some weight work and then first running action in a good few months - since the torn meniscus was diagnosed.
Treadmill was set at 20 degress and I walked for a minute then ran for 30s for 20 minutes. It wasn't fast or pretty but the knee felt fine.

Thursday 19th March
Turbo - I'd been messing with my settings and had left it on Virtual Power. The way this works is that it knows the power curve for my turbo and therefore what power I need to be putting out to attain certain speeds. As long as everything remains constant (tyre pressure, tightness of flywheel against tyre etc) then it's pretty accurate. Having a brake block clamped against the rim skews the readings as I found out when I was putting a massive effort into hitting the required watts. Realised half way through what was ahppening and switched over - had burnt myself out by then though so slightly modified the session so I was doing 30s efforts rather than the 1 minute asked for.

TrainerRoad - Bird: https://www.strava.com/activities/270903975

Friday 20th March
Gym - More weigth work and then another run. Down to 15 degree slope and 1 minute on, 1 minute off.

Turbo - 1 hour easy

TrainerRoad - Lazy Mountain: https://www.strava.com/activities/272552869
Saturday 21st March

Club Cycle. Nice easy cycle with the group, weather was fantastic for March - Ended up with an hour sat outside the coffee stop (some of the lads spent 3 hours there!)

https://www.strava.com/activities/271652435

Sunday 22nd March

The Des Hanlon profile was enough to scare me off. I'm not a man for the hills so I went to LoughRea to race instead at the SevenSprings GP. Race was sketchy to say the least. A few riders seemingly unable to hold a line and plenty of lads quite happy to sit on the wrong side of the road and not move up. First race this year where I've moved up and down a few times with relative ease. Was up near the front for the last lap and coming into the last km was in the top few places as we began to climb up the final drag. My legs just didn't have it in them though and with about 100m to go to crest the hill my legs said "no more".A few had gone round me by then so I would have at the best been sprinting for a minor place. Sat up then and let a load come round me whilst I took it easy to the finish - so another race done and another where I've finished in the group.

https://www.strava.com/activities/272550979

Started to cramp up coming home so went for a walk straight after I pulled into the parking space - 6km or so, and no more cramp!

Monday 23rd March

Gym - Run/Walk Upped the amount of time on the treadmill and the amount of running. Eased into it with 1 min run, 1 min walk and buit up to 8 x 2 min run, 1 min walk. Knee is feeling ok - a litle sore but nothing too bad and no where near the amount of pain it was when I first tried running after the injury 6 months or so ago.

Thoughts:

Good week. Plenty of cycling and adding running slowly back in which will help with the stamina. I'm feeling like form is coming back and fitness is getting there too. Plans for the next month is to get more time on the bike outside. So, a couple of decent rides over this weekend and then have 4-5 days on the bike over Easter. I've a warm weather training week planned in mid/late April and the week after I'm back it's the Waller Cup in Wexford. I did it last year and got into a bit of a break that didn't last too long - but then got caught out on a hill and dropped. Plan will be to get round with the group this year.

Week 21 - 107.7 kg (-0.5kg week / -9.3 kg total) – Saw much lower on the scales this week and probably poor diet choices over the weekend led to me adding a little bit back on. I'm finding that the fitness band is definitely making me walk more. Most lunchtimes I've been out and done 2-3km of walking on top of the 4km I do to and from the car each day. Now I know it's not a lot of exercise but it's the small things that add up.

daragh_ · 24-03-2015 6:21pm

Are you doing the inter-club league this year?

If not will probably see you in Wexford!

joey100 · 24-03-2015 7:35pm

Good to see you getting back into it and running again. That half is approaching quickly, have to do a bit more running in Sardinia this year.

What's the idea behind having the treadmill at a high ramp for the running??

couerdelion · 25-03-2015 1:25pm

daragh_ wrote: »

Are you doing the inter-club league this year?

If not will probably see you in Wexford!

Yes, I'm for the ICL again this year. I tried to get myself demoted back down to limit but they didn't believe my excuses.

We can plan our breakaway in Wexford during the first race

joey100 wrote: »

Good to see you getting back into it and running again. That half is approaching quickly, have to do a bit more running in Sardinia this year.

What's the idea behind having the treadmill at a high ramp for the running??

Unfortunately I will be doing plenty of running in Sardinia on the back of doing feck all for the last 8 months. I'm actullay looking forward to it though. You miss the things you can't have and all that...

The idea of the high incline is that it mimics running when you are walking as you are having to lift your knees higher than when walking on the flat. You can also run slower and get the HR up easier so still getting the same benefit in the workout but without as much impact on the joints.

couerdelion · 31-03-2015 3:31pm

Tuesday 24th March

Easy enough Turbo on paper as this was a 'recovery' week. Instruction though called for sprints and endurance spins to be thrown into the mix.

https://app.strava.com/activities/273588424

Then headed to the gym for a few weights

Wednesday 25th March

Day off

Thursday 26th March

Turbo - Another easy session albeit 2 hours on the bike.

https://app.strava.com/activities/274554584

Friday 27th March

Turbo - 1 hour easy. Usually Friday session:

TrainerRoad - Lazy Mountain: https://app.strava.com/activities/274967657

Saturday 28th March

Club Cycle. Miserable morning and a real temptation to turn over and go back to sleep when I saw it was raining. Winter bike got another outing and I wrapped up well. Headed out from Lucan into the wind and up towards the embankment. Drifted off the back coming into Saggart - HR was sky high and just couldn't hold the power up the drag. Same again coming out of Saggart and up the embankment. HR sky high but not consistent with power (or that's how it felt anyway). Luckily the group had waited at the top of the climb and I sat in and stuck with them for most of the rest of the ride. Coming into Maynooth for coffee I got split as I drifted off the back and a car jumped in the gap. Had a few people come back to help me back on including a couple of the juniors but even though I managed to get back I was soon gone again and got to the coffee stop 30s or so behind. After coffee I set off by myself back - wasn't caught so they were too busy talking.

https://app.strava.com/activities/275283134

Sunday 29th March

Up early and to the gym for a run. Warmed up for 5 mins then did 30 mins at a very easy pace. First non-stop run for a good while.

https://app.strava.com/activities/275767708

Home for brunch and then Was going to do an easy turbo but decided to get outside whilst it was dry. Headed over towards Batterstown and up the trim road. Around 50km done and as always soaked at the furthest point away from home.

https://app.strava.com/activities/275880406

Monday 30th March

Rest day - started to feel ill so decided to take the day off. Hopefully it's nothing too serious and rest and fluids will be the end of it.

Thoughts:

Biggest week on the bike for a good while - dissapointed at how flat I felt Saturday but if I was starting to come down with something then that would account for high HR and low energy levels.

Week 22 - 106.9 kg (-0.8kg week / -10.1 kg total) – Hit the 10kg down mark. Would love to get at least another 10kg of before the end of the season - short term target is still 105kg.

couerdelion · 15-04-2015 10:31am

Tuesday 31st March - Friday 3rd April

Chest infection. Unlike previous years I decided on complete rest so I could get over it as soon as possible.

Saturday 4th April

Walk - needed to get out so went for a 6km walk. Chest felt ok, no wheezing.
https://www.strava.com/activities/279061046

Sunday 5th April

Easy Cycle - Headed out for a 50km loop round North County Dublin. Trying to keep the HR low and seeing if the chest felt well enough to start to push on again.
https://www.strava.com/activities/279842506

Monday 6th April

Easy Cycle - Just a quick ~30km. Still easing back into it and not wanting to push it too hard
https://www.strava.com/activities/280888145

Tuesday 7th April

Cycled out again through North County Dublin this time with a mate so at times a little bit harder as we pushed each other but I'd stressed it was meant to be easy so nothing too mental. Stopped for coffee in Ballycoolin and sat in the sun for a while - glorious day. Left him after coffee and then hit a couple of strava sprint sections and pushed it through them on the way home.
https://www.strava.com/activities/280888152

Wednesday 8th April

Day off

Thursday 9th April

Back to the running - 40 mins at a 2% incline at 6:40km pace. It's slow but I need to build back slowly. No point going all out and injuring myself again. Trying to keep HR around the 130bpm mark. I find that the incline allows me to get the HR up but slows me down. Plan for the half iron man next week is to target 7 minute kms and aim for a 2.5hr run. No records likely to be set that race!

https://www.strava.com/activities/282826902

Hit the Gym after to start back on the weights.

Friday 10th April

Run - 30 mins / 2% / 6:40kms
https://www.strava.com/activities/282826905

Saturday 11th April

Club Cycle - 'Easy' Spin. Told thi swas going to be an easy spin - didn't feel like it as we set off up Laraghcon and I was close to being dropped. Settled down and enjoyed the ride. I was on the winter bike and it wasn't feeling great and I knew the headset was sticking slightly. I though the back wheel was looking slightly buckled too but when I checked I realised the bearing were knackered, and in the front wheel too. They were only cheap ones from planet X and they've lasted 2 years so happy enough. Will probably get new bearings put in and keep them for spares as I got some Campagnolo Zonda's early in the week for the racing and have some more training wheels to put on the winter bike.
https://www.strava.com/activities/283224587

Gym - back in the gym for more weights

Sunday 12th April

Long run - 1 hour / 2% / 6:40 min km.
https://www.strava.com/activities/284258339

Monday 13th April

Swim - Around 2,500m done (lost count) - 2 x 400m TT's during the session too. 2nd one was about 20s slower. Not sure if that was because I had to overtake people or fatigue as it was my first swim for a while.

Tuesday 14th April

Cycle. Cycled home from work via the park and did a few laps whist I was in there to see how I'm going - I'm in a similar enough place to last year by the looks of things.
http://www.strava.com/activities/285481671

Thoughts
After a big bike week last time out I suppose it was inevitable that something would happen to derail me. Still, at least I was sensible this year and it seems like the chest infection has gone rather than hanging around for months as I keep training and don't wait for it to clear.

Week 22 - 106.2 kg (-0.7kg period/ -10.8 kg total) – Was hard with Easter and all the chocolate that was around. I did partake in a bar or three but back eating better now and a little closer to the 105kg target.

"Enthusiasm is the yeast"

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