Weekly Overview:
Record cold weather is making it difficult to train. A change of ownership at the now-former Defiance Crossfit means that Tuesday and Thursday morning workouts happen at 6am, 30 minutes earlier. A crash in training on Friday effectively kept me from riding over the weekend. I'm fine, but my Tarmac SL3 is off to Calfee for frame repairs. Dieting continues; I've already lost a few pounds. (Mostly, I'm just losing body fat. I can go from about 10% to about 6% body fat, representing a loss of about 8 lbs.)
I promised to talk a little more about the diet. In designing my eating plan, I aimed for low glycemic, whole, natural foods, plenty of protein (at least 1.5 grams per kilogram of body weight per day), meals of not more than 500 Calories, and many small snacks through the course of the day. It sounds simple, and it is, but I used a spreadsheet to make sure I was getting enough of all of the nutrients I needed. Fruits and vegetables are great because they have a high fiber and water content, which helps you feel full, and reduces the glycemic load (i.e. no blood sugar spikes, no rush or crash). Pickles are a favorite snack, as they have a negligible number of calories. I found Monique Ryan's book "Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes" to be helpful, and largely in agreement with advice from our very own Mary Ann Levenson.
Workouts:
01-09 Monday
Prescribed: 45 min Z2 ride plus stretching session.
Actual: 1h Z2-Z3 on rollers plus stretching session.
01-10 Tuesday
Prescribed: Crossfit 1 rep max test plus 1h15m Z2 ride.
Actual: Crossfit was cancelled due to change in gym ownership. Rode 1h30m in bitter cold.
01-11 Wednesday
Prescribed: 90min tempo combo ride in AM with some Z3 efforts, 30min stretching session. 60min threshold efforts session in PM.
Actual: Completed 90min Z3 intervals and stretching session. Due to new management, Crossfit workouts are now at 6am. I don't have time to ride an hour and get to bed by 9pm on a work night, and I had a flat tire, so the second session was cancelled.
01-12 Thursday
Prescribed: 1 rep max tests at Crossfit, 1h ride including some standing start sprints.
Actual: Achieved new 1 rep max of 375 lbs on deadlift and 215 lbs front squat. Was toasted for sprints, though: 1377W max, less than last week.
01-13 Friday
Prescribed: 2-3h ride with Z4 efforts and Z3 efforts, plus 30min stretching session.
Actual: Coldest ride yet, I was wearing more layers than I have on a ride the whole time I've lived in CA. Z4 efforts up Alpine Rd were strong. After efforts, I climbed OLH just to stay warm. Due to reduced traction caused by a different rear tire and cold conditions, I skidded out while descending 84E. I'm fine, with some road rash, but I tore through most of my expensive winter clothing and cracked my frame. Great.
01-14 Saturday
Prescribed: 4h ride with Z4 efforts plus 30min stretching session.
Actual: Stayed home and glared at the cold weather from inside. I was sore and in no mood to go for a ride after the crash.
01-15 Sunday
Prescribed: Rest day, with option of 1-2h endurance ride.
Actual: Stayed indoors, still recovering from crash.
Weekly summary:
Time: 10 h 31 min
Distance: 144 miles
TSS: 633.4
(Distance and TSS only incorporate rides for which I have power data.)
I've copied this report to my blog at http://bikefleet.blogspot.com/, where you can also find past updates, race reports, and more!
Thanks for reading.
--Jose
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