Ketchup

Heinz is OBVIOUSLY the correct thing to put on chips. However, that ‘s not really what this blog is about.

:¬)

CATCH UP

It has been a few weeks since I wrote two blogs quite close together in an attempt to let people inside my head a little and with approximately a month until I am in Bilboa it felt like time for another update or two.

Let us work through where we are:

1. Weight – still shite, it isn’t tragic but the focus has not come, I can control the carnage but not improve , once more I shall say there is still time as it is only a couple of kgs.
2. Gym training – abandoned, it looks like the road I went down made things worse not better so I have stayed out the gym. However, this does not mean I have neglected my conditioning, no way would I do that instead of the gym I have been doing Karate and have my first grading this weekend. I’ll never be brilliant but I like the focus and control needed.
3. Yoga – thank god I took up Karate as this has got me focused enough to do “some yoga” which given my ongoing running off the bike issues I had lost faith.
4. Running – I like running and always have, being told to give up ultras by doctors was one of the worst days of my life. However, here I am a decade later letting out my inner “Seb Coe” and although I haven’t achieved the track season that looked possible I am at least back to where I was in May. I’ve been doing a few more miles but I don’t run every day and I am very careful.
5. Cycling – triathlete or duathlete cycling is crucial, neglect the bike too much and you won’t be there with the big dogs in T2 so it won’t matter how well you run. An ironic statement from a man who basically still can’t get off the bike in T2 and race.
6. Brick work – I have done some, not gone crazy but I have done some, that said some events coming up will see the intensity on these sessions go up a little.
7. Physio therapy – I stopped seeing Jack after Romania as it was not working. We made progress and I got through Aviles and for that I will be forever grateful but then it stopped and I went backwards. I am now seeing someone who does the Bowen Technique which is a lot of pressure points and manipulation. Very much big picture view stuff and how the body is linked together so she works on all of my body. Initial signs have been promising but more on that in another blog.
8. RACING – going to break this out a bit and see where it takes me
   1. Trail 10km running race, I ran around 38 mins in a controlled manner which was good enough for 2nd overall. I was not long over COVID so was trying to be sensible. I had no issues at all.
   2. Crocker Hill hill climb on the bike, this was dire. I used the training bike which is hardly rubbish but I had no legs, afterwards analysis said that I had achieved overload and ran out of run. Track Monday , 10k Wednesday and then the HC 2 days later was too much as I recovered from COVID. The good news was apart from fatigue there was nothing damaged over this first week.
   3. Track League 800 and 3k, this was embarrassing. I’d had about 12 days since my last race and wasn’t confident going in. Reps on the Monday night at track were acceptable but I didn’t deliver at all on the night. There was a lack of confidence in my ability and when I analysed the data it showed that I had shut down. In effect I felt better knowing the run was bad because the effort was bad.
   4. Track League 1500, this started off like Wednesday and I was so bad at 800 metres I laughed out loud as he read out the split. However, an incident in the race changed things and the last 600 metres had me running back where I should have been running. Not a great run but finally a good sign :¬)
   5. BMCR mtb nationals, I ran long the morning of the race and that came back to bite me on the arse(hamstring actually) as I had a total lock up of the hammy. It cost me a DNF but I got some very good training in until it happened. The story here was not that it happened but the fact I was ok within a few minutes and within 5 riding through the course I was able to keep up with racers. The reality is I could have carried on but paranoia and thinking about Sundays Welsh Masters encouraged me to be smart.
   6. Welsh Masters Track 400 and 1500. Putting on the Wales Jersey always makes me proud and lining up for the 1500 I was in the best place mentally I had been since COVID and just wanted to run well. Damn it was a quick race and even with one of my quicker first laps I was being dropped. However, I stayed on it and came home with the time I would have expected to run in May which was inline with my mile PB, not the 4.3.x I wanted but a seasons best and fastest time since 200X. After this event I had about 10 mins before I ran a 400 flat. BLIMEY, where did that come from? Ran the fastest time of my adult life having only gone faster as a schoolboy.
   7. Cat and Fiddle hill climb. Had been a while since the last HC but I have been training well and adjusting the road bikes a lot in my quest to prepare for Spain. Felt a little crazy on the start line with a 52 tooth chainring mated to a 36/11 cassette in my zipp 404 wheels which my dura ace mech could not use(its ok from about the 30). However I was a man with good legs and a plan. I got off the line and paced this pretty much bang on. It was not a good weather night with a headwind for most of it and people suffered due to longer time on the course. Once I recovered I exclaimed how happy I was with my ride. Best 20 min power of the year and perfectly lined up to where I thought my FTP was when I ran the numbers. 5th overall and 2nd VET missing the win by 5 seconds.
   8. Finally, the Try on the Tyne duathlon. Yes I travelled all the way to Newcastle to do a race the night after a full gas 25min HC effort. Making things dafter I was in a non drafting race and had brought my road bike not the TT bike. Managing expectation I had entered as I needed the race effort and I just can’t get the intensity right in training. I rode to the event from my hotel and had a jog before the start. Made the decision not to be crazy of the line I ran a very calm 6mm pace for the run. HR supports this conclusion and I was very comfortable into T1. My course recce told me that the flying mount had no value so I put my shoes on before leaving T1, paid off as I passed 2 people faffing. Bike course had turns and ruts but it was a TT bike course so I was happy not being swamped. I came into T2 just behind 5th and with a better T2 left with him. With no clues we left T2 together but sadly as soon as we crossed the bridge my RIGHT(wrong leg) hammy went ping, it was short lived but yeah it happened again however, again it was quickly fixed. After this I got on with it and was closing back in on 5th when the left leg did finally let go. Again much to my surprise it was very specific and responded very quickly allowing me to run strongly all the way to the line. Yes I had issues but for the first time in a while I had actually run most of the 2nd run at 6.x pace. 6th overall and 1st V50 on a road bike.

I want to write a separate blog for the weekend just passed covering the few days coming into the weekend as well as the actual weekend so I shall end this one here.

Stay Safe

Gobi