Well, the past few week's training has been working after a successful training run up and down South Stack Steps today. A total of 1,600 steps up and 1,600 steps down, although the stopwatch was only timing the way up. Average time for each set of 400 steps is 3 mins 40 seconds. This time is a steady pace up the steps and not an all out rush.
Here is my intro below, apologies for the poor sound quality though, recent videos have been much louder!
I met up with Richard and his family at South Stack, who came along to watch me train. The weather was much clearer compared to last week and less wind too.
There were more people around, partly because of the improved weather, and I passed a few people on the way down as well as up. There was one guy who went up and down twice, even his young son managed to go up and down once!. My first trip down and up the steps was a warm up, followed by stretching the lower part of the body. After stretching the first of three timed runs up were recorded. The heart rate was 185bpm but recovery was very good, with only a few minutes was all that was required.
The starting point for the steps is right at the base of the steps and I decided to make a short video half way down the steps to show how steep some sections are.
Aerobic capacity has improved over the last week, and this was demonstrated with a better average time of 3mins 40 on all three timed runs.
There will be another timed run in the next 7 days, after which specific training will taper and carb loading will begin.
Sunday 19 February 2012
Tuesday 14 February 2012
Riding on the brakes!
Today it was time to improve the performance of the lungs after the step training at South Stack last Sunday, as it was evident although the lungs were strong, they needed a slight push to cope with the legs, as they were fine on Sunday, but the lungs were slightly behind.
You may notice there are no pictures today, as time was running short, so will keep the blog to a minimum!
I'd already noticed that the turbo trainer resistance was still not working to full capacity, therefore decided to add my own resistance, by increasing the pressure on the rear brakes! This had the effect of burning rubber (by slowing down the wheel rim, and increasing friction between tyre surface and roller surface) to an extent that rubber smell was clearly coming from the back wheel......and all this was done whilst the bike was raised at a 25 degree angle to simulate hill climbing.
This certainly has the dseired effect as I was able to increase the heart rate temporarilly to a new average rate of 165. However, I still allowed for recovery to simulate 'cresting', before shifting to a lighter gear and spinning lightly. This was mixed with sprinting for 30-45 seconds at 110-120 rpm, to create a good intense speedplay session.
This will help to increase not only speed but increase the lactate threshold and improve endurance.
You may notice there are no pictures today, as time was running short, so will keep the blog to a minimum!
I'd already noticed that the turbo trainer resistance was still not working to full capacity, therefore decided to add my own resistance, by increasing the pressure on the rear brakes! This had the effect of burning rubber (by slowing down the wheel rim, and increasing friction between tyre surface and roller surface) to an extent that rubber smell was clearly coming from the back wheel......and all this was done whilst the bike was raised at a 25 degree angle to simulate hill climbing.
This certainly has the dseired effect as I was able to increase the heart rate temporarilly to a new average rate of 165. However, I still allowed for recovery to simulate 'cresting', before shifting to a lighter gear and spinning lightly. This was mixed with sprinting for 30-45 seconds at 110-120 rpm, to create a good intense speedplay session.
This will help to increase not only speed but increase the lactate threshold and improve endurance.
Sunday 12 February 2012
Tower 42, Recce, London
Well folks, popped to London town to visit friends and do a close up of Tower 42 - looks epic when you stand next to it and look up!
I was going to go inside the main stairwell, to take photographs of the stairs to gauge them, but decided not to in case the security guard thought I was up to something lol!
We also passed the almost completed Chard Tower near London Bridge - this no doubt will be a potential event in the future!
While navigating the underground, I also took advantage of some in-weekend training by going up the stationery escalators in the underground, much to the interest of some commuters travelling on the opposite escalator going up - where I was able to not only keep up, but pass those on the escalator!
My hotel room where I was staying was on the fifth floor, so I made good use of the stairwell everytime (of course I could have gone all the way up, but at 12 storeys, it's nowhere near as 42!
We also passed the almost completed Chard Tower near London Bridge - this no doubt will be a potential event in the future! While navigating the underground, I also took advantage of some in-weekend training by going up the stationery escalators in the underground, much to the interest of some commuters travelling on the opposite escalator going up - where I was able to not only keep up, but pass those on the escalator!
My hotel room where I was staying was on the fifth floor, so I made good use of the stairwell everytime (of course I could have gone all the way up, but at 12 storeys, it's nowhere near as 42!
Sunday 29 January 2012
Rain doesn't stop play!
The waether forecast was right, a cold front passing over Anglesey giving continious rain and damp weather - no point in doing a brisk 50 miler and getting soaked!
Instead I took my '50 miler' to the gym! 1 hour and 30 minutes of cardio and lower body work.
10 minutes warm up on the turbo, followed by the usual advanced stretching in preparation for 30 minutes of speedplay work on the turbo. In addition to this, I wanted to simulate hillclimbing as well as speedplay, so the front of the bike was lifted at 25 degrees.
After this, I used bodyweight and dumbells to work the buttocks and quads even more (top secret training going on here!) followed by calf raises.
Balance along with ankle and knee strength is coming along very well, the wobble board has been a huge investment! My business will be making its own version in the near future!
There's 4 weeks to go, so actual stair climbing will be used to beef up training over the next 3 weeks. The final week will invove carb loading - so watch this space for tips!
I'm planning on going to London in a few weeks to do a recce of Tower 42 and to eye up the 42 storey beast!
Instead I took my '50 miler' to the gym! 1 hour and 30 minutes of cardio and lower body work.
10 minutes warm up on the turbo, followed by the usual advanced stretching in preparation for 30 minutes of speedplay work on the turbo. In addition to this, I wanted to simulate hillclimbing as well as speedplay, so the front of the bike was lifted at 25 degrees.
After this, I used bodyweight and dumbells to work the buttocks and quads even more (top secret training going on here!) followed by calf raises.
Balance along with ankle and knee strength is coming along very well, the wobble board has been a huge investment! My business will be making its own version in the near future!
There's 4 weeks to go, so actual stair climbing will be used to beef up training over the next 3 weeks. The final week will invove carb loading - so watch this space for tips!
I'm planning on going to London in a few weeks to do a recce of Tower 42 and to eye up the 42 storey beast!
Sunday 22 January 2012
Fuel, Big gears and chasing showers
The weather for today was favourable, if a bit breezy. I wanted to get a few extra miles in, so went into Llangefni and up towards Four Crosses, via Penmynydd Hill - a great way to get warmed up after a few miles, average heart rate up here was 161.
Going was good from Penmynydd to Four Crosses with a tailwind making for a good 23-26mph average at times. However, I decided to conserve my energy as I knew I would be battling a headwind all the way from Llanfairpwll to Rhosneigr. The strength of the wind can be seen in the distance between Cable Bay and Rhosneigr with the rough seas (right).
I also met up with a fellow cyclist along the way near Mallatraeth and Aberffraw, who was taking a different route to me, and shortly aftera quick catch up, I took a pit stop for the Video blog (below)
After that I carried on towards Llanfaelog, taking a circular route into Rhosneigr and was shortly rewarded with a strong tailwind, which allowed for a good return - allowing me to use the 52:19 gears, and power up the hill out of Rhosneigr towards Llanfaelog and likewaise from Bryngwran towards Gwalchmai (Treban Hill), averaging 25mph on the flat. However, I did end up catching a small shower which crossed my path near Gwalchmai and into Mona, which was refreshing!
The momentum carried me up the hill in 52:21 from Mona to Rhostrewhwfa at 16mph, and the training during the last week has made a big improvement over last week along this particular section.
I took on extra fuel during breakfast, and this certainly helped with maintaining muscle glycogen levels throughout the ride (being topped up with regular energy drink). A return back in time for lunch and refuelling!
A decent run today so can't complain!
Going was good from Penmynydd to Four Crosses with a tailwind making for a good 23-26mph average at times. However, I decided to conserve my energy as I knew I would be battling a headwind all the way from Llanfairpwll to Rhosneigr. The strength of the wind can be seen in the distance between Cable Bay and Rhosneigr with the rough seas (right).I also met up with a fellow cyclist along the way near Mallatraeth and Aberffraw, who was taking a different route to me, and shortly aftera quick catch up, I took a pit stop for the Video blog (below)
After that I carried on towards Llanfaelog, taking a circular route into Rhosneigr and was shortly rewarded with a strong tailwind, which allowed for a good return - allowing me to use the 52:19 gears, and power up the hill out of Rhosneigr towards Llanfaelog and likewaise from Bryngwran towards Gwalchmai (Treban Hill), averaging 25mph on the flat. However, I did end up catching a small shower which crossed my path near Gwalchmai and into Mona, which was refreshing!
The momentum carried me up the hill in 52:21 from Mona to Rhostrewhwfa at 16mph, and the training during the last week has made a big improvement over last week along this particular section.
I took on extra fuel during breakfast, and this certainly helped with maintaining muscle glycogen levels throughout the ride (being topped up with regular energy drink). A return back in time for lunch and refuelling!
A decent run today so can't complain!
Thursday 19 January 2012
Steady is the word!
This week has been a steady progress and developing on from last weeks' gains by allowing a combination of maintenance, core and cardio work. Today was no exception!
After a warm up and lower body stretching, a 20 minutes interval training session followed on the turbo trainer. This provided a good mix of lower group work and cardio vascular training. After a few minutes rest it was time for the wobble board.
This is used to strengthen the knee and ankle joints by forcing mucles which are not necessarily usedall the time. I use slow and steady squats with arms outstretched. It's both fun and a great strengthener and muscle activator around the lower joints. The advanced training will involve weights, but for the time being body weight alone is sufficient.
This adds fun and stimulation to 'spice' up my training - I can't wait for the next session on Sat!
After a warm up and lower body stretching, a 20 minutes interval training session followed on the turbo trainer. This provided a good mix of lower group work and cardio vascular training. After a few minutes rest it was time for the wobble board.
This is used to strengthen the knee and ankle joints by forcing mucles which are not necessarily usedall the time. I use slow and steady squats with arms outstretched. It's both fun and a great strengthener and muscle activator around the lower joints. The advanced training will involve weights, but for the time being body weight alone is sufficient.
This adds fun and stimulation to 'spice' up my training - I can't wait for the next session on Sat!
Saturday 14 January 2012
Great day for outdoor training!
It was a nice clear day today, so I decided to take full advantage of the weather to do a 45 mile run before lunch. Maintained an overall average speed of 16mph over a rather hilly course. It was a cold start, so a 10 minute warm up on the turbo allowed me to go straight out and behin training in earnest. Bike and rider both going well and last week's training has certainly given an edge to the training. A quick refuel after 20 miles before carrying on. Once back at the gym, it was a short warm down session on the turbo followed by stretching and a quick re-warm for a minute.
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