IMLP 12/8 - Setting the Baseline
All,
Welcome to Week 12 - AFTER this week, 8 weeks remain leading up to race day!
HUGE Big Day reports across the board! Quite humbling from my view. Smart, hard working, veteran type output is what I see!
I had a good Big Day as well. Got out about 6:45 a.m. on the bike and took a chance that I could avoid lightning storms. (The thought of another 4 hour ride on the trainer was not something I could bear). I had only rain and wind near the back half. I was very pleased coming in with 4:05 and an overall .75 IF set from my GF FTP baseline just a few weeks ago. That took some focus, let me assure you. I ran well off the bike and negative split the GAP pace on the back half of a 7 miler over rolling hills. Cooler temps (75 degrees) made a big difference.
I drink about 24 ounces every 30 minutes. Maybe a little less at 75 degrees. I use 3 scoops of GE per 24 ounce bottle (I weigh 175 lbs.) At :10 on the hour I put down 1X Caf Power Gel and at :40 1/2 Power Bar. That formula works well for me. Once I see ~80 degrees I have to add Salt Stick caps and more water. During training I like to reward myself around mile 70ish with a coke and a banana........
During the run I am drinking 5 - 10 ounces of GE half strength every 2 miles and 1 Clif Blok shot 1X caf every 2 miles after mile 5-6....
Sat afternoon we traveled to Broken Bow OK to spend the weekend in a Cabin and on Sunday we did a Family hike over some tough terrain in a Monsoon shower crossing some areas that had flash flooding......beautiful and dangerous......
Monday was a Travel day - no swim.
This morning was "Back to Reality" with an FTP test where I validated/matched my FTP set 3 weeks ago after 8 weeks of GF Plan:
https://www.strava.com/activities/312122905
That was painful..........
Have a great week for those testing and setting the baseline this week!
SS
Comments
Well my plan was 40min of FTP work today... Saw SS post before heading out the door and somehow managed to put down a 2 x 20' (2') outdoor aero FTP test.... 42' NP power came in at 218 which is just under my current Power Curve and 12 watts lower than last years best.... Yeah I have lots of reasons and excuses , big weekend , not rested , blah , blah , blah.... But it is what it is and I'm happy with results :-)
https://www.strava.com/activities/312224007/laps
William my two cents is to keep the zones earned in the last 5K. Adding the volume of 3 swims a week and ~8 hours of biking can make those 2X1s begin to feel heavy. IMO, if you are doing all that volume and they still feel EZ, then add another one and call it a 3X1....................Adding a 3rd interval should, in no way, cause you to compromise hitting your other volumes/targets however.
SS
Completed my FTP test...dropped by one watt to 207 (NP was 218).
All I have to do now is lose 45 pounds and I'll match Tim's watts/kg! LOL
VO2 Max down from 249 to 245.
I can live with it...I did wait until after work...maybe I would have saved a watt or two if I got it done before work.Significant gains on the VO2max but pretty steady on the overall FTP. I'm still adjusting to the Kurt Kinetic trainer (man, that thing can just kill my legs INSTANTLY) so I may need to rebaseline, but I'm pretty comfy with the results I saw today...
Now I am trying to decide if I should do Sat and Sun workouts on Thursday and Friday since I am unable to complete them on required days. Oh, and our pool is closed for this week and the lake is forbidden because it is private...there is another pool to the tune of $500...not a viable option. I am thinking of doing swim cords instead. Any advice on switching all this around would be awesome. Oh, an I would do the 5k TT on Sat or Sun.
Woop, woop! Happy Training!!
Is that something I can see on the actual computer and not my Ipad?
How are you feeling since Knox? I was DONE for about 3 days after that race.
Mandy
@Don,
BAM!!! I have it!! Now I shall be super smart!!
THANK YOU!!
Mandy
VERY NICE WORK BTW !
@ Mandy, Stu, Derrek, Don - Nice work getting through the FTP test! I know those suck!
That last 5 minutes for me the clock feels like it is moving backwards.............
All,
If not completed already, please input your data at the attached EN link, IMLP tab:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...=1#gid=125
SS
Here's a quick roundup of my last week of training:
Thursday 5/21 -- long run of 13.4 miles at 7:50 avg pace
Friday 5/22 -- 3100 yd swim sandwiched between two ~20' runs to the pool and back
Saturday 5/23 -- 3hr30min ride followed by 2 hours of doubles tennis
Sunday 5/24 -- 1hr run with lots of hills
Monday 5/25 -- 20' swim at the pool and 1hr walk with my wife & dog to try and preserve some SAUs; plus, some more light tennis with my 10 y/o boy!
Tuesday 5/26 -- 1hr swim with 40' run including lots of hills in Central Park
Wednesday 5/27 -- bike test! lost some FTP since the end of OS but attribute that to injury, laziness, and lack of intensity in recent bike training; going to run with the numbers from this test and see if I can't find some additional watts between now and race day; tacked on a 40' hilly run afterwards
Wife and her friend did shopping at outlets and online over the long weekend. I came home and ordered a Wing57 in White with Red trim (EN!) :-D
Got refit for a saddle today. New Cobb JOS Randee. Higher stack height on cockpit. Bars moved forward and leveled out more. Weight loss and flexibility improvement allowed cockpit tweaks.
Looking forward to my 5k test to chip away at my pace. Also excited for a comfortable outdoor ride Saturday and Sunday!
I was well hydrated (3 liters of water today with nuun tablets), so I'm at a loss. Maybe my legs just needed a little more time after the 5 / 20 test yesterday. Anyway - got a good bit of the workout with 12 x 50s and 10 x 100s at an 1:48 pace... but any ideas on the inner thigh cramps would be welcomed!
@Stuart - my experience with inner thigh cramps (from run) is it starts with fatigued major muscles (e.g. glutes, quads) and our body automatically engages the inner thigh muscles to share the workload. Since the inner thigh muscles are not designed for and not trained for that type of work, they quickly fatigue and cramp from over usage.
This was my first 40' TT and first time testing outside. Previous test were on the trainer using Trainer Road and virtual power. Yes, I need to get a power meter. It was a tough effort and mentally tough but after the first 10-15 minutes I found a grove and enjoyed holding the faster pace. Afterwards I did a Z1 brick run just to add to my suffering. Today was masters swim and I did an easy 3 mile recovery run. Now I'm trying to get my mind right for the 5K TT Thursday morning...12.5 laps around a high school track.
vDot remains at 35
@ Derrek / Don - no surprise to me that we are seeing you guys throw down PRs on the Run TT!!! Been very consistent putting in all the work and it is well deserved! Way to lead!
@TC - HUGE TT w/ great speed one day after the Bike FTP test - proof that you are not human as I have been saying!
Did my TT this morning and kind of got my ass handed to me. A little slower than the past @ 76 degrees and 90% humidity. Did push and drive my HR up and hold as you can see in the attached: https://www.strava.com/activities/313545372
Time to suck it up and move forward!
SS
I did my 5k test yesterday on the track... Using the Garmin 910xt I ran 3.1 miles in 19:10 which is way faster than I am capable of .... Usually Garmin measures 1/10 long on a 5k which really affects the pace average.... I have never tested on a track , after that data , I "google edumacated" myself on the TRACK , went back today to run my brick as 12.5 laps around lane 1...... This measured 3.3 miles WOW... So my test was closer to low 20min .... Still happy with that... Since we never really know the distances of the courses we race on I have always been a fan of just using the Garmin data we get , after all that is what we monitor when training and racing.... But from now on I will test on a 400M track for consistency and reality.... Bike was hills, v02, strength , 5 x 1' V02 , 4 x 3' V02 , 4 x 4' low cadence strength work!
Today was a big ride. We are of course having crazy weather. Yesterday during my run it was 80 degrees and humid. Woke up to 55 degrees, rain and big wind. I waited around for the roads to dry off and headed out into a 20+ mph west wind. I rode west into that wind for 45 miles. The gusts were very strong and nearly stopped me on a few occasions. Fortunately it was a head on wind. All the way out I was thinking how great the ride back was going to be. It was for the first 25 miles. Then the wind shifted and really beat me around.
On the ride analysis, I went out a bit too hard. The wind was really strong and it was hard to ride into. I pushed 10 to 15 watts too high for the first 20 miles. I settled in after that and just focused on staying aero and keeping my VI low. Because of the route I took(out & back) I only had 4 bottles of infinit with me. I brought one banana because that was all that was in the house. I managed the 4 bottles right to the end of the ride and ate the banana at the turn. That was not enough fuel and I would not have done well on the run. I did stop to empty my bladder twice. Too much coffee before the ride or it would have only been one time. My bicycle performed very well. I shifted often and it responded each time. I may move my seat another few mm's forward as I got some friction issues.
90 more miles left to ride. I thing those miles will be in two ride.
Like you said running 12.5 laps in lane 1 on a 400 meter is exactly 5000 meters. And using Gamin's time, you can calculate total and mile paces.
Today, I did an OWS of six lengths of my lake >> 3800 meters. Garmin claims 4300 meters, but I don;t buy that for a second 1:15.45 moving time. A beautiful day, fog lifting as we (wife and I) started, sunny/59>65F, calm empty water with a 5 mph tail wind on the way out. One of the reasons I like training, those OWS on a day like today.
Good opportunity for a "re do" to review and get the pacing right!
Great stuff by everyone else. Plan to get it done this weekend after I recover from overloaded work week.
Full week recap to follow.
I will say that my 920xt is crazy. Vdot predictor is in high 40's, and predicts my 5k time at 21:16. Yet recorded my fastest mile on the watch today of a 7:38. I love the watch but, this forecasting is just off.