Sunday, August 12, 2007

Happy Hour = Happy Legs?

Typical North County San Diego afternoon:


So I was dragging ass all last week. I was just beat. On Friday morning I got up and hit the TCSD Friday morning swim at Fletcher's Cove. After the swim I jumped on my bike and rode the 7.25 miles from Solana Beach to work. I just took it nice and easy, but still felt tired. After work it was back on the bike to my truck in Solana Beach and then I extended my ride a little bit to make it about an hour and to try and get the legs to come alive. I started to feel a little better but I was stoked to be back at my trunk and on my way home.

Once I got home it was a quick shower and then my brother and I hit happy hour at the Crazy Burro, a mexican joint right around the corner from my house. Fridays are kind of nuts there. With Karoke in full swing the patio and bar were pretty packed. Luckily we got some seats at the bar right in front of a TV with the Padres game on. Then it was all about some Dos Equis drafts, chips, guacomole, and carne asada tacos. It defintely hit the spot.


My plan for training for the weekend was just to kind of wing it and see how I felt. If I was too tired I was just going to shut it down and really focus on feeling fresh for the next block of training. I am kind of shocked with what happened.
I slept in Saturday monring and then took my time and got up had some coffee, a powerbar and was out the door to go run in San Elijo Lagoon. I ran for 70 minutes/9.75 miles and felt great. I could have easily went longer but I am trying to very slowly build up my long runs right now. I have not run over an hour since before Temecula. Just a lot of 45-60min, hilly running. Then the plan was to get out on the bike in the afternoon, again ready to pull the plug at any time.
The ride was killer. My legs felt as good as they have in a long time and it just wasn't my perception. Watts don't lie. The power numbers tell the tale of the workout.

Entire workout (165 watts):
Duration: 2:15:18 (2:19:01)
Work: 1327 kJ
Norm Power: 194
Distance: 35.268 mi
Min Max Avg :
Power: 0 526 165 watts
Heart rate: 90 178 144 bpm
Cadence: 29 141 87 rpm
Speed: 2.2 39.5 15.8 mph

3454ft. of climbing:

Mean Maximal Power Curve:


When I first started using my Power Tap I was kind of discouraged with my power output. You read about all these guys throwing down these huge power numbers, but then I had to realize it all really comes down to the power to weight ratio (w/kg). These days I am weighing in at a hefty 131 lbs so I am defintely happy with progress over the past couple of months. It's good have some measurable data and being able to track my progress has been rad.
After the ride I cruised for some dinner and beers at Karl Stauss. Saturday nights menu consisted of a killer gilled portabello mushroom sandwich and a personal favorite, Red Trolley Ale.

Sunday I started the day with a 1.5 mile ocean swim at Feltchers cove (obviously after some coffee). I headed out solo and just cruised. It was just a mellow aerobic swim. Then I headed home chowed down on some oatmeal, watched the Padres game, and then hit the trails for some MTB action. I had another solid session on the bike with quite a bit of climbing. I didn't pin it on any of the climbs, but just sat in and grinded them out. I also managed to take spill in the last 20 minutes. Nothing major but nothing like going over the bars to finish off a solid weekend on training. The intensity will start this week!
Duration: 2:16
Distance: 19.17 Miles
3375ft. of climbing

Post ride... covered in dirt and bloodied knee:

My post workout fix: Recover-Ease and PowerBar Recovery shake.

2 comments:

Jim Vance said...

Cutting back on the beers should help that watts/kg ratio!

xteric said...

It's so difficult to do what you're doing: taking it easier then turning it up when needed! I did the 2.7mi Donner Swim Race last Saturday; it was long. Off to Xterra Ogden tomorrow for some climbing.