Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2015 20:08:21 GMT
So for one reason or another (my open uni work, actual work, family time & riding my bike) I've not actually been on here in what seems like forever!
I promised Radchenister a review/update with my coaching so here it is!
I initially signed up for coaching as I'm very time limited; I have an 18 month old daughter and missus to look after whilst undertaking a second degree through the OU on evenings and also working full time - never mind wanting to race! It's a wonder how I fit it all in at times, so the coaching was to make sure it does.
I'm now about halfway through the second quarter of having coaching and it really has changed my approach on the bike - I've realised what cadences are best for what situations, to never freewheel downhill & how lucky I am to live at the top of a moor!!
Unfortunately I can't really go into the depths of what the plan consists of, but to give a rough outline I train 6 days a week with one day off (and two/three days off every 4 weeks) with sessions ranging from half an hour turbo time to at the moment 4 hours on the road. Each session is structured with various different intervals based on either cadence, power, heart rate or length of time.
My first quarter was all about base strength and conditioning and whilst my average speed on training rides hasn't increased exponentially, my recovery times and ability to ride at sweetspot and above for longer periods of time has.
For those who follow me on strava - I've been taught to discount speed during training and focus on the other variables so as to reap maximum benefit, although occasionally I am allowed to be let loose! I've also dropped around 10 kilos of weight with another 5 to go for this season and my FTP has gone from around 240 when I started (2.4 w/kg) to 318 (just over 3.5 w/kg).
I did my first race on just three weeks of training (a 3/4 at Bishopwood) and got dropped at the end of the first lap when one of my own club's race team riders tried to breakaway and the pack reacted by kicking the pace temporarily up to 35mph (unfortunately I couldn't respond at the time!). After that race I stuck purely to training for a month or so until the club's evening 10 league (V318 & V314 courses, which are lumpier than some) started up where I've gotten my time down from a mid 30 to a low 26 on my Kinesis training bike with mudguards (and no aero bars!). I was hoping to break into the 25 mark yesterday, but the TT was unfortunately called off - however I've got a proper 10 on the V718 (one of the fastest courses in the country) coming up in August and my coach has got me aiming for below a 22.
I've now got a bunch of races coming up - a mixture of 3/4 races and crits where the aim is to try and get more experience of racing. I'll also be doing a few tactical cat 4 only races to ensure I get my cat 3 license before the end of the season, then aim for cat 2 the following year. For those wondering, thanks to the influx of money and recent popularity of the sport, Cat 2 is where every racer ideally wants to be at a minimum because being on a race team at that level means you get some sponsorship (free bike services/repairs, free nutritional products, free kit, discounted coaching etc).
The aim of my current quarter is boosting my lactate threshold and vo2max, so I'm more focussing on boosting top end speed and TT ability with the idea being that I will be able to break away from the front of the pack and then TT Tony Martin style if it comes to it. I will hopefully add to this thread with any further developments as and when I can (and get the time to), but in summary I've found coaching is really paying dividends - at the very least it's put paid to any arguments with the missus over cycling as every 12 weeks she signs off the plan!
I promised Radchenister a review/update with my coaching so here it is!
I initially signed up for coaching as I'm very time limited; I have an 18 month old daughter and missus to look after whilst undertaking a second degree through the OU on evenings and also working full time - never mind wanting to race! It's a wonder how I fit it all in at times, so the coaching was to make sure it does.
I'm now about halfway through the second quarter of having coaching and it really has changed my approach on the bike - I've realised what cadences are best for what situations, to never freewheel downhill & how lucky I am to live at the top of a moor!!
Unfortunately I can't really go into the depths of what the plan consists of, but to give a rough outline I train 6 days a week with one day off (and two/three days off every 4 weeks) with sessions ranging from half an hour turbo time to at the moment 4 hours on the road. Each session is structured with various different intervals based on either cadence, power, heart rate or length of time.
My first quarter was all about base strength and conditioning and whilst my average speed on training rides hasn't increased exponentially, my recovery times and ability to ride at sweetspot and above for longer periods of time has.
For those who follow me on strava - I've been taught to discount speed during training and focus on the other variables so as to reap maximum benefit, although occasionally I am allowed to be let loose! I've also dropped around 10 kilos of weight with another 5 to go for this season and my FTP has gone from around 240 when I started (2.4 w/kg) to 318 (just over 3.5 w/kg).
I did my first race on just three weeks of training (a 3/4 at Bishopwood) and got dropped at the end of the first lap when one of my own club's race team riders tried to breakaway and the pack reacted by kicking the pace temporarily up to 35mph (unfortunately I couldn't respond at the time!). After that race I stuck purely to training for a month or so until the club's evening 10 league (V318 & V314 courses, which are lumpier than some) started up where I've gotten my time down from a mid 30 to a low 26 on my Kinesis training bike with mudguards (and no aero bars!). I was hoping to break into the 25 mark yesterday, but the TT was unfortunately called off - however I've got a proper 10 on the V718 (one of the fastest courses in the country) coming up in August and my coach has got me aiming for below a 22.
I've now got a bunch of races coming up - a mixture of 3/4 races and crits where the aim is to try and get more experience of racing. I'll also be doing a few tactical cat 4 only races to ensure I get my cat 3 license before the end of the season, then aim for cat 2 the following year. For those wondering, thanks to the influx of money and recent popularity of the sport, Cat 2 is where every racer ideally wants to be at a minimum because being on a race team at that level means you get some sponsorship (free bike services/repairs, free nutritional products, free kit, discounted coaching etc).
The aim of my current quarter is boosting my lactate threshold and vo2max, so I'm more focussing on boosting top end speed and TT ability with the idea being that I will be able to break away from the front of the pack and then TT Tony Martin style if it comes to it. I will hopefully add to this thread with any further developments as and when I can (and get the time to), but in summary I've found coaching is really paying dividends - at the very least it's put paid to any arguments with the missus over cycling as every 12 weeks she signs off the plan!