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I had an operation 7 weeks ago. It basically prevented me from doing any exercise for 6 weeks and circumstances dictated that an additional week went by without anything happening either.
So, I tried my peloton (I know don't judge me) on Sunday and nearly died. I couldn't believe how out of condition a relatively short lay off has made me. I also weighed myself and have put on 7lbs in the same period of time and I already had plenty so didn't need more.
How do I get my fitness back, I have a big (80 miles a day fully laden) tour in Italy coming up at the start of May. I am worried that I will struggle to get my fitness levels back.
So what's the best advice?
Thanks
Nick.
Slowly,but you know this anyway.
Make a plan,stick to the plan and you will get there.
It's the hardest time of the year to get going from zero,that's why a lot of the NY resolution crowds fail,but make May the target and get started...Now! 😆
Depends what your operation was, but in fitness terms May is an eternity away. Especially if you were fit before.
Slow and steady then one ride it’ll just click in again and the legs will feel good.
I've had to regain my fitness twice now after layups for 9 and 12 weeks before so know what you're facing. Both times have been infinitely easier than when I've lost fitness due to gradual declines.
The key is how fit you were before the enforced layup. Both of mine were down to accidents and I was in decent shape just before them so the drop seemed significant! If you want to get back to your previous level just don't rush it, do little and often to start with then extend a little every week or so. If you can do that then take a week to settle at that level consistently then move up another level and so on. This goes for whatever metric you're looking to improve: power, stamina, recovery etc. Don't be afraid to take a step back if required and definitely listen to your body with regards to rest. You should find you make a decent jump every 2-3 weeks that way, like I would suddenly find a regular hill went from incredibly tough to perfectly doable almost overnight.
I found that a rough guide of 2 weeks of regaining for every week you lost is about right so your 7-8 weeks off should take 14-18 weeks to regain again. As you have until May then that's plenty of time and will allow for any hiccups along the way.
Just remember that regaining lost fitness is a lot easier than building it up from nothing.
I couldn't do anything more strenuous than walk around a football pitch once a day - on a good day - for 18 months thanks to long covid. Seven weeks is nothing. The good news is that even after 18 months of near total inactivity, I still retained a surprising level of base fitness thanks to long term training adaptation. I did the Festive 500 around six months of having got back on the bike.
If I were you I'd stop worrying and just get on with doing stuff. I'd have given my eye teeth to have missed just seven weeks. Oh, it's perfectly normal to feel disproportionately crap on the first few sessions back, there's physiological stuff going on with blood plasma volume etc.
I'm sure you'll be fine by next May.
I was pretty fit before the op, not height of summer fit but in a good place. Nice to read the encouraging comments. It's just at 58 going backwards makes it look like a long steep climb back to full fitness.
If you’ve got a turbo that’s zwiftable there’s a back to fitness training plan for exactly this kind of scenario (I think it was initially based around childbirth so probably even greater loss of fitness)
I did it at the start of last winter after having a bit of a break but as I was just being lazy it probably started a bit too steady for me.
Good to hear you are on the way to recovery. Sounds to me like your confidence might have taken a bit of a knock. How about you start with walking - you can decide how brisk. Then start to ease yourself back into cycling when you feel ready. Don't pressure yourself too much for the first couple of weeks back on the bike. Enjoy it - it's why you ride!! All the best.