What I'm going to write is dangerous...to me, anyway. It's risky on a couple of levels. Number 1 - it's going to sound cocky, and trust me, I know I have nothing to be cocky about. Number 2 - I may "jinx" myself. But damn the torpedoes...here goes. I felt very strong during this morning's 35-mile bike ride. I did 5 x 1 mile hard, 1 mile easy during part of the ride and hardly breathed heavily. My legs felt like iron. There, I said it. Cocky and jinx-worthy. Seriously, I can tell I'm peaking right now. I still wouldn't consider myself a cyclist (and I know most "real" cyclists could ride circles around me), but just comparing myself now to myself 3 months ago, I can FINALLY feel the results of the training starting to pay off. After yesterday's run-hike, I thought I'd be struggling on this morning's ride, but when I finished, I felt like I could turn around and do the whole ride all over again. How will this translate to my race next weekend? I don't know. But I'm finally starting to feel pretty good about it.
I'll probably do my hill repeat ride on Monday (which, I believe, had been THE key workout in my bike training), then probably an easy ride on Wednesday, then stay off the bike until race morning (Sunday, Aug. 9th).
Lots of work to do today, so I'm out. Enjoy your training this weekend, folks!
It's nice to hear about someone getting stronger at cycling. As a runner trying to be a triathlete, and pretty much sucking at the cycling part, it gives me some hope. Way to go and glad to hear you're getting stronger.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment, Sheila. Like I said, I still don't think of myself as a true cyclist, but I'm FINALLY starting to feel somewhat strong on the bike. I never thought I would! I still have a long way to go, but at last, some progress is being made. Be patient and keep at it. It'll just click eventually and the legs will start feeling strong. I just hope I can transition back to being a runner quickly! Good luck with your training!
ReplyDeleteDoesn't sound cocky at all. You sound excited and your improvement is very noticeable. THat is great Colin! Keep it up.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jill...and good luck with the back recovery. Sounds like you're about ready to start kicking butt again!
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