unfortunately this time was not spent chatting over coffee and pastries. it involved my getting blood drawn several times, riding to failure with a tube in my month, nose clipped and drooling like a rabid cow.
After the testing was over I sat down with Nick to go over what we had just done. I knew, for the most part, what things would say. However there was much data that I didn't even know was possible to obtained. The usefulness of this info made my mind explode with ideas and it wasn't long before Nick and I were pointing at the data and getting giddy at what this all meant. 
My spin scan. a little right leg dominent, nothing major. my hips are a bit twisted and i expected this. Mechelle at Releaf Therapy is working on this issue. A pluss about my pedaling was that it was most efecient AT theshold wattage
A clip of me pedaling around FT wattage.
VO2 MAX
Last clip of me about 3 minutes from failure. Link to good vid. above. I can't get it to embed? The data that BPL gets from this is remarkable. The ratio of fat to carbs I am burning at any giving intensity! “Gotta be kidding me!” I said to Nick. The implementation of this lactate test and V02 test goes very deep into a long term training plan. I used to think that a VO test is cool But the number it gives is not nearly as trainable as FT wattage and therefore more of a bragging number. However when all of this info is put together it paints the most complete picture of an athlete one can ask for. The bottom line, It’s worth it. Also having Nick, a scientist and former Pro athlete him self, you really get the full experience. He knows what’s its like to be an athlete, and he knows this data inside and out.
Tim case RAAm solo racer, friend and client is recovering and doing well. after a 100 mile road race this past Saturday Tim saddled up on his single speed mountain bike and scored another win for the EK Endurance Coaching team! nice work Tim!
some power data and analysis coming soon!
some interesting things to look at.
Windy tough, heavy roads and tactics that made it hard for everyone. Well, some said it wasn’t tough in the pack but I thought it was. I saw Ryan Blew's power file but he is biger than me by alot. I would say i did over 3500Kj's today.
With 25 miles or so to the finish (18 or so to the base of a very nasty finishing climb) a big group, 14, finally got away after a whole race of half ass attempts. When we did hit the climb I felt like my legs had been in an oven for the whole day. You know how you feel when you wake up after sleeping on the beach for 3+ hours that how I felt. But… seems like a few others felt that way too. Up the first kick I was OK. At the front and in control. On the windy plateau there was only 12 guys left or so! OK nice! I thought. I tried to keep it steady. Not long after the finishing 3 miles kicked up I was with one other, then alone. I felt like I was gona crack at any minute but I just kept steady, talking to my self. keep goin EK, just don’t stop, don’t stop.
So 15th on the day. Hopefully the guys in the move burned allot of gas today. Well, more than me. It built my confidence to ride that well. If only that break was pulled back… what would have happened?? I can only hope to keep this up. at the very least its gona be fun.
RR podium
our eating room. where we spent most of our time when not racing.
Me, hanging on to my main rival in the Circuit race. I was able to drop his teammate while bridging but it burnt a lot of matches. It was worth it. Dealling with one of these guys was hard enough. 2 would have been impossible. The last 45' of the race was a tricky affair of engery conservation and tactics...
This weekend things worked out well. I haven't won a race in some time and while it wasn't the toughest field I have raced in the guy that came in 2nd (whom I was in a 2 man break with for much of the RR) certainly was. Being able to win not the RR but the Circuit race on day 2 as well was something I was not expecting . The team raced well and we took a few more top ten places.
The place we are staying at is pretty sweet! I was expecting to be sleeping on the floor at a frat house but my teammate’s friend has all the fixings. The food and hospitality is over the top. My room even has a sleep enhancer in the room! can't ask for more than that!
race reports coming soon!
Race report up. check "race report" link at right...
Chipo! (on left) 40 years old, hasn't raced in 3 years and still gets up front for a third place in some wet conditions! a role model for anyone.
The tour of the Gila is still pretty far off but if you plan to contend there... or just survive for that matter you better start planning now. This article will be up on a few mosre visited web sites soon. It has first hand tips and info on race logistics, training tips and the major obstacles laid out for you stage by stage! Check it out HERE.
Been getting allot of request for personal up dates and what I actuley do for training.
little vid for you below.
last week was good. got in almost 17 hr. I did do a big block of lifting weights in the gym but that has just past and now its time to turn that muscle into cycling specific strength!!
Peace!
Things got a bit...snowy on my ride today. But at 6,000 feet the snow was still dry despite the almost 40 degree temp!! Today was good I am finally feeling better and am finally able to get in some good quality miles. Today I did a little sharp shooting, killing 2 birds with one stone. I was able to get in a very solid strength workout while still getting in a good 4 hours of endurance riding. and best of all it kept me warm!
below is an article on this "one workout, two effects" issue. being able to identify and produce high quality workouts like this is vital for the time restricted athlete. which is every one, unless your a pro, and even they get busy. Monitoring my recovery I was able to do 25ish (lost count) stomps or over geared sprints. If any of my old rowing buddies are reading this they are probably laughing there butt off right now and my counting handicap is an old one! Improving my strength and A.E. is a something I simply HAVE to do this year. I was able to do all of these around 80-90% of my max wattage. While still putting out a good avg. wattage for the day. 189. by making sure I tock enough rest 10+ minutes I was able to get max power out of each effort with out fatiguing my self to much and sacrificing the endurance part or my endurance ride.
One work out two effects.
With busy schedules, many athletes just don’t have enough time to work on all the aspects necessary to reach their full potential. Let alone the Triathlete who needs to be effective in “all four sports”, see that article here www.performancetrainingsystems.com/newstips/article_ek_foursports.html .
Because of this, it is of great value if one can combine workouts. I am not talking about a brick workout or double sessions either. I’m talking about maximizing your time. Even pro’s whom train for a living need to be effective with there time and training. Do you think lance logged any junk miles while training for the Tour? Don’t think so. A great way to do this is by focusing on more than one aspect of your training in one workout. By placing workouts within workouts one can get a double whammy effect out of his or her training. Consult your coach before concocting your own “double whammy” workouts. One of the best ways to do one of these is to place tech. drills or hard intervals into a longer endurance workout. For example: In your 3 hr. ride, focus on your technique while riding up hills. Keep pedal cadence high and concentrate on pedaling “perfectly”. Talk to your coach about that too. Alternate standing and sitting. Stand up on one hill; for the whole hill, sit on the next. Hone your skills. Do fast pedal drills in your long ride or strides in your long run. Another option is to do intervals or some kind of harder effort in your work out. If you are looking to increase your power or speed, do your intervals after a solid warm up. Cool down easily, hydrate and fuel up appropriately, then continue with a low intensity endurance workout.
Bike example: 20’ warm up. 3x10’ level 3-4. (rest 3’). 10’ cool down, continue cool down at level 2 for 2 hours.
Looking to focus on more endurance for that IM. Do the intervals after 2 hours of riding at level 2. BAMB! Two birds with one stone! Please consult your coach or a coach before doing any of these as they are a bit more taxing than your normal single aspect workouts that mere mortals do. There are some “double whammy” workouts that are a bad idea. Example: working two different maximal effort zones in the same work out. Working long tempo, cooling down then doing 1minute intervals. Not effective training here. With proper planning there is no reason that anyone can’t finish that IM, be a contender in there age group, or win the big one.
Happy training!
