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I can't get to grips with how and why my form changes from day to day. I'd understand it if I was over training, changing my diet etc. But i'm training for a 200 mile 'race'. It's in a months time and some days i'm fine, some days (like yesterday) I couldn't turn a pedal, lungs hurt, legs empty, despite not having over done it at all in the days previous.
I always eat the same things for breakfast, always ride at the same time of day etc. I know some fluctuations are normal, but these are massive changes.
Bit worried as I need to get to grips with this before the race, if I have one of these off days i'm going to get dropped pretty quick and spent the next 8 or so hours grovelling. On recommendation I've started to use strava to track how many miles i'm doing each week, any tips to what else I can use to get this sorted?
Cheers all.
How much training are you doing, and how are you doing it?
I always eat the same things for breakfast, always ride at the same time of day etc.
Thats it, lethargy. Your body and brain are bored/demotivated even if its subconcious. Have a few days off, scoff yourself, have a beer, be lazy and change what you are doing drastically, and start training again on Monday.
When you do start, have a weekly treat day, where you do something very different and let your hair down with all aspects of your training.
You'd be surprised how "right" I am (for once).
@crikey, all on road really as the race is road. Training 8 - 13 hours a week. I build for 3 weeks, then rest off for a week, then build back up again, aiming to ease off for the week prior to the race.
I've been doing some LSD rides and some speed and interval work so that I have some power/speed when I need it.
(My apologies, I may have assumed you did the same thing all day every day. You'd be suprised how wrong I was on this occasion 😀 )
It's not always easy to explain what's changing, but your week of virtual rest before the race will almost certainly sort you out. The main thing you should do is try and get a week or two or really hard training in including one ride at least 70% saddle time compared to the race.
This is me applying athletics training experience here; some more experienced roadies may have something else to suggest.
I've been doing some LSD rides and some speed
Even amateur cycling is riddled with drugs...
Sorry, been trying to watch the Rich Hall thing while son plays X-box bloody live and crucifies the download thingy..
Anyway... Lack of consistency in my experience is a good indicator of not-enough-base-training.
It's how I felt in early season training and racing when I'd not really put the right amount of miles in, and was trying to run before walking, if you get what I mean.
Compare that feeling to the end of summer after road races here and abroad, after so many miles that I felt more at home on a bike than off it.
You really have to put lots of long boring steady miles in, not trying to race, not trying to go super quick, just laying it down, getting the miles in. This goes against much of the current HIIT style stuff, but in my experience, it pays dividends.
My early method for any racing, be it running or cycling, was to work up to the distance then work on doing the distance faster.
The advantage of this is mainly psychological; if you can do the distance you don't worry about doing it, you only have to worry about doing it quicker.
Lack of discipline in the EPO and HGH regime.
Need to get the dose right 🙂
I've got a reasonable base fitness level and kept riding all winter (I live in Southern Hemisphere) and fitness had not dropped much over the last 2/3 years.
I noticed it when I was doing rides on my trainer too, some days i'd just loose all energy in no time at all. I'd be trying to do 2x20min intervals and some days i'd just hit the wall 10 mins in and no amount of trying would help.
My mate reckons 'if in doubt - rest' so I might take a few days off and do nothing? Or get some Evening Primrose Oil like mikewsmith suggests.
i know how you feel....
[url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/why-does-it-just-click-and-some-days-it-doesnt ] why does it just click and some days it doesn't?[/url]
although i'm not training for any event, nor have i ever.
i'm sure my problem is that i'm too lazy, drink too much beer, eat crap food and don't properly exert myself other than when riding.