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I'm a pescatarian (that's not a star sign) and probably have two bottles/pints of ale a week. So yeah nun amounts 😆
Getting my 5 portions of fruit/veg in comes easily (otherwise I'd starve ha) it's bulking stuff out that's the hard bit - mountains of oats/rice/pasta/vegan protein (can't digest milk). I do have cake like 3-4 days a week though so not exactly purist. 🙂
Mentally preparing myself for 40 mins of pain right now, by putting it off ha.
I hear cake is great as an energy source for 40 minutes of pain.
And a pint is a great recovery drink. 😉
In all seriousness though. I eat a pretty good diet. Lean meat, sushi, salads, plenty of fresh fruit and veg (mostly very fresh - straight from the allotment which is 50yds from the house). Don't have junk food. But I'm no nun. I do have the odd bar of chocolate, and have a beer or 2 a couple of times a week (mostly at home). I don't 'go out drinking' though.
I do tend to struggle to cut back on the calorie intake through the winter though. I'm down at about 72.5Kg at the moment (189cm), but I was up to about 78 in late Jan. FWIW, my Tanita scales reckon I currently hover around 7% body fat (high 6s / low 7s depending on when I weigh myself - which would reasonably correlate with being 13/14 at 78Kg)
FFS - not having a good night!
- Ribble have cocked up my frameset order - sending me the wrong forks and no headset/hanger/cable stops
- Rear tyre on my wheel was flat (non turbo wheel)
- about 15 mins into my workout the turbo lost resistance meaning I had to spin at 105rpm in 52/11 to maintain around 330w for over 25 mins!! My natural cadence is 90-96rpm!!
https://www.strava.com/activities/1078810585
Tonight is a good night for a pint!!!
Weird as exactly the same thing happened to me during today's Zwift. About halfway through the ride the turbo control cut out and just left it in what felt like the default resistance setting. Bit worried it was the turbo but maybe it's Zwift.
My diet is horrendous- hence why I'm 85(ish) kg 😆
I do reign it in with MFPal a bit but have no trouble bringing back a 2000 calorie deficit 🙂 I aim for -300 and lose about 3/4lb a week if I stick rigidly to it. I'm so hungry from work at the moment that in practice, it's around evens but I think I'm adding a bit of upper body mass which isn't helping.
Write up to follow 🙂
Oh but I don't drink 😆
@jd77, re. power, that's interesting, I thought because I didn't calibrate it was way out (too low), but maybe it wasn't too far out - I just shouldn't have struggled with cramp at ~240w weighted, but then it was warm and I'd had a few drinks the night before. What power meter do you use?
A 4iii - I dont think i remembered to calibrate mine either, but 240W NP seems about right compared to other rides with similar RPE (e.g. [url= https://www.strava.com/activities/1047761093 ]https://www.strava.com/activities/1047761093[/url])
I cramped as well, but I usually cramp through not eating enough which I dont think would have been the case on Sunday (4 weetabix with nutella, 1 banana, 3 bottles of energy drink and 3 gels)
Does everyone on this thread live like a nun and eat/drink nothing but puritan stuff?? Seems I need to to have anything vaguely resembling a good race day
Nope, although I cut down on the beer last week; had 4 beers spread throughout the week and none on saturday night. Did have a few beers on Sunday night though (after I got home from the race, I chopped logs for an hour or so, helped my wife inspect her beehives, and bottled a batch of beer, so I reckon I earned it)
Im 67kg at 170cm, and this has been steady since april. Usually go up to about 72kg in the winter as my riding volume drops off a cliff during cx season
I was a little bit jaded with Thruxton. It doesn’t really allow me to play to my strengths as the hill saps my sprint and there’s no real advantage to reward good bike handling. I know I’m not playing the right tactics either- but I am enjoying busting a few moves, even if they are more Dad-dancing than Disco-deva!
Hillingdon then, and back in May when I came here for rd1 of the West Thames, I raced with Nath and got dropped with three to go.
Whilst I *know* from my data that I’m fitter, that gave me my first goal- don’t get dropped.
Other than that, it was a case of seeing what sort of moves happened and responding accordingly.
It was anti-clockwise tonight, so I would have to ride the ‘hill’. I thought back to my first time here when it really was a hill, now I barely even noticed it- that felt good!
I felt out of sync with the different start time so had to think a bit harder about prep. A few keen guys were banging out warm-up sets on their turbo’s but I didn’t feel the need to do much. I ramped the volume up a tad last week so didn’t want to burn a match before I started.
I picked up some SIS caffeine tablets as an impulse buy in Halfords the other day and brought a bottle as a warm up drink. Yuk! They are minging! I need to experiment to see if I can change the taste as they literally made me feel sick.
I had to get petrol beforehand so necked a Whispa Gold as pre-race sugar and also a gel on the line- I meant business tonight!
A few warm up laps completed, we gridded up and got ready to go. The comm decided to remind us about the huge clumps of wet grass on the circuit (I think a few minutes kicking them off may have been better but hey ho) which of course put everyone on edge!
I was hoping the wet conditions would level the playing field a little with the 3’s but at the same time, guessed they should or could be better bike handlers than an average four (although not if they’ve only been doing indoor intervals and Zwift racing, hey Nath!) That’s a joke by the way so sorry about that!
So we were off and it felt good to be back! Just like the winter series but about 12 degrees warmer! The first couple of laps were sedate with some short punches off the front but each guy soon sitting up. The pack was rightly very wary with every corner a cacophony of useless scratchy brakes.
I had to concentrate a lot harder than Thruxton. It’s a lazy, easy, boring cruise compared to this that’s for sure! I milled around in the middle of the bunch, trying to pick out lines for later in the race and purposefully varying my position to reassure myself I could corner on any route once the pace picked up. Gradually from the third lap, a few more concerted efforts were made and the bunch had to Tally-ho and do some work.
As we slowed each time, I would hang back and roll in with momentum and make up a couple of places. On the bend before the climb, I would let a good two bike lengths open up and accelerate right through the corner- launching me back into the group for little or no effort.
I was still comfort braking more than I ought to though and having to force myself to let go before I tipped into Brians. My muscle memory wasn’t that fresh and it took me a while to start riding it properly again at full pace.
As I drifted forward after a few laps, I found I could read the race really well and began accelerating almost on a hunch. Sure enough, a guy attacked into the wind and I just surfed wheels and found myself in the move for a lap. Next lap, I was still there having not worked too hard when the counter was launched- so I thought ‘in for a penny!’ and did a strong surge to join his wheel. We had a tiny gap and guys were even trying to get some rotation going but that was never going to happen. A guy was solo up the hill at this point as the last man swung off and left me exposed in the wind. So I powered up the climb and got on his wheel- what’s all this Cat 3 fuss about!
As we went down the straight the next time though, he blew up and I was as high as I wanted to go at this stage of the race- 177-180 I think. Finding myself in the wind, I carried on at Vo2 max as the next counter came ripping past.
This is the significant difference from the 4’s I think. The attacks come at the hardest part of the lap, not the easiest and they are more sustained with more guys joining in.
Anyway, the bunch chased hard and I found myself off the back by ten yards. Hero-zero in a lap!
But….. unlike May, I have some muscular endurance now so I just kept turning the pedals and tried not to panic. Riding the shortest line possible, I knew if I could stay this close I’d be getting a meagre draft effect so that was my focus for the time being. Soon enough, by cornering a little faster each time, I got back on with a sigh of relief and set about recovering.
The front guys got tired soon after too and we cruised for half a lap so I took the chance to get some drink down my neck.
When the next attacks came, I was still well back so just let others cover the moves and did as much as necessary and as little as possible.
It didn’t take too long before I felt ready to carry places forward again and I knew we must be getting close to the end. With about five to go, another sustained attack took place and I just hung on and waited for it to subside.
Another surge happened with three to go but shut itself down up the climb. Taking a tight inside line at Brians, I used the good old outside line towards the Bus-stops and took a bit of wind to move forward to about 12th place or so.
Two to go and things got quicker but I felt more than able to cope. I was conservative but made sure I held my position and made up places when I could.
Last lap then and I felt in about as text book a position as I could be. Top third with loads of strong wheels to follow.
As guys drilled it up the hill around me, I just stayed seated and seemed to move slightly forward if anything. Oddly calm, things looked great! Top ten was right there.
Ok, I know, I’ve used that line and sadly, the next line many times before too!
As we went through the pinch point, I held firm on the exact course I wanted- right hand side. This would carry me to the inside of Brians, for the outside of Bus-stops and a nice roomy outside sprint to the line.
And then! Some guy (who as usual I’d had on my radar all race) came up through the bunch about 5mph too quick for the bend at the top of the hill. Petrified of hitting the brakes, he was literally shouting at everyone to clear the way. Three of us had to sit up and move wider.
And that was it really. Instead of being on the back of the front ten, moving forwards with a plan in mind, I was now ten yards back and chasing.
The ghost of TiRed’s past, reminded me to drop a couple of gears for the hill and I just held firm on what was by now about 20th wheel and got ready for a wattage Bazooka!
Whilst not quite a fresh one, it was better than many races lately at 1150w and saw me make up a few more spots for what I hope is about 15/16th place.
I say I hope because I can’t be certain if a break got away in the final two laps- I was up to my eyeballs in spray and grit so don’t know for sure.
So, didn’t get dropped, didn’t get points, but certainly didn’t feel like a small fish in a big pond.
It’s WAY more fun than Thruxton so I may head back next week depending on my schedule.
Edit- take that back, the big power spike was earlier in the race. Only 978 in the final sprint.
well done CH, pretty good achievement to be active in, and finish near the front of a 3/4
Bloody good write up & show CH (bar that one comment 😆 ) !!
Did you notice a guy on a Ribble R872?
Sorry- knew you'd like it 😆
No? Is that some kind of Bike ❓ 😀 😉
Guy I know has surprised me by showing up on my strava feed as racing there this evening lol
Oh lol! Did I beat him ? 😆
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Black circle. No obvious break. Beat our friend Johnny (red circle) 🙂
Anyone racing in those conditions tonight deserved a point! From the comfort of HQ I think there was a rider off the front of the 3/4s.
I rolled in in the minor points of the E123. Wet enough to be reminded of my triathlon days.
For Stat fans...
NP 333
AP 312.
A wet fart of a sprint.
Ah, would have said hi if I'd known. I didn't hang around for results- I had to wring my stuff out 😆
Yeah, I normally eat fairly healthily, rarely any alcohol - not through any particular choice, just usually forget about it.
I'm absolutely regimented with the training, but nowhere near as strict on the diet. Healthy so long as it still tastes good, rather than super dedicated on that front.
Interesting to know what everyone else has for breakfast on race day. I had porridge and a couple of slices of jam on toast.
Depends what time I'm racing. Today was scrambled egg on toast, then an impromptu fry-up at the local Farm Park café for brunch with the wife, an apple and chocolate mini roll for a snack and then Cornflakes with copious Chocolate Nesquick powder at 16:00.
Whispa Gold and SIS Gel pre race. Tuna on toast when I got home.
AP- 257w
NP- 282w
MP- 1155w
Speed- 25mph
@mtbtomo - I usually have porridge, but it was just too warm to contemplate, evean at 6.30 in the morning. I'm not particularly strict with diet, and only really do structured training in the winter when its not particulalry feasible to ride outside in the evening
Ah, would have said hi if I'd known. I didn't hang around for results- I had to wring my stuff out
My last race at Shrewsbury was minging, and I walked into one of the changing rooms to see a fellow rider washing his bike in the shower, so I just shrugged and walked into the shower cubicle in full kit 🙂
My bike was in a worse state after than most of the cx races last season
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Well done CH. I sat in the Hut while you raced as I was already wet and cold.
Raced the E123 immediately afterwards. It can best be described as a gritty jet wash. Conditions were atrocious. But unlike the 3/4, riding was largely impeccable. I sat in and cruised most of the race , back third. Always felt comfortable, even when visibility was awful - I have to wear my Rx insert glasses, which steam up! One rider really struggled to carry any speed through the bends. But he was strong on the straights. This kept opening up gaps. Some aggressive position holding, but just smooth and fast.
A few good hard breakaway attempts, one of which I blocked for a friend. No attacking from me though - TT tomorrow. So little effort in the sprint and back of the pack finish after 52 minutes. Average speed was a tasty 47 kmh.
Pre race, I've been using double espresso gels. Taken 40 min before the race to achieve peak caffeine concentrations at race start. This help keeps the heart rate higher from the beginning. Races are too short for caffeine to benefit if taken during racing (my day job)
What kit were you in TiRed?
First time I've raced Hillingdon that way round and took me a couple of laps to trust my tyres in those conditions... there was at least one rider worse at cornering so hopefully you're not talking about me 😳
Pre race like tonight I have a can of coke and packet of crisps.
Road race breakfast is gallo pinto, fried haloumi (sp?) and eggs. Plus some corn flakes if I'm still hungry.
Ah, well done TiRed!
That is the one and only thing better at Thruxton- no grit! I figured out I could remove the padded inner of my clear-glasses before the race as with it on, it reduced your peripheral vision too much. As it was, I still got grit in my eye but not too bad. The poor lady racing with us had a full on grit-beard 🙂
Our fastest lap was only 28.7mph 😆 and I hit 34mph during my 'sprint'.
Road race breakfast is gallo pinto, fried haloumi (sp?) and eggs. Plus some corn flakes if I'm still hungry.
Sounds good, but I dont think i'd have time to prepare that, what with having to go to the toilet about half a dozen times #nerves
Make a big batch of it and reheat each morning. Keeps for 4 days or so.
even the eggs? 🙂
😆 no and don't expect the cornflakes to be great after 4 days soaking in milk either
I arrived in my white summer kit, changed into my normal blue Twickenham jersey for the race. Putting a nice dry jersey on after the soaking was pure luxury!
Rode the best bike. Giant Defy Advanced SL with deep section carbon clinchers.
Conditions looked grim! I didn't even bother commuting in yesterday 😆
My pre race food/routine is essentially my breakfast, but more:
3 hours before = 150g oats, 30g vegan protein powder, 10g cocoa and 20g honey with soya milk (eaten cold)- with a big mug of coffee.
90 mins before = smaller cup of coffee and an energy bar
On the line = 1 energy gel, in the hope it kicks in for the sprint
On the bike = 40g go electrolytes
seems to work for me..
In other news, looks like I can carry more water on my training/commuter bike, as CH and I think this is an additional cage mount on the underside of the downtube?!
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Yes. That's a common bottle mount location for touring.
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Not sure I'd like road grime on my water bottle though ha. I didn't think there would be that much room under the frame?!
Looks like I can do my centuries non stop in future 😆
You would just stored the bottle there and then transfer the liquid to the other bottle when you stop. And a touring bike would normally have full guards as well. You wouldn't take the bottle in and out from there when riding.
I'd just stop at a garage or shop but if you really want to carry it all on your bike... triathlete style saddle mounted bottle holders?
SY. Which rider were you last night? You were probably in front of me f most of the race as I deliberately sat back for most of the race. I prefer that direction as the incline favours me - you may have seen me gaining positions regularly up the slope.
I mix the E123, club ride, and regular training ride. Wednesdays I race vets or time trial, so don't want to kill myself the day before - although some of my fixed wheel club runs have had a higher suffer score than the E123 races!
Nath it's a touring mount. Crud catcher styled. Stick a bottle in your back pocket. Or drink less. 2L is fine if you leave early enough.
@matts - yeah makes sense!
@the southern yeti - I cycle solo and so stopping to go into a garage/shop is a pita. Not sure about the 3rd bottle of water but I may as well use that mount if it's there!
Would feel a bit like a grandad though haha
ZeroBC black, blue and green 'digital camo' kit, riding my litespeed whilst waiting on a team Colnago.
nath, even riding solo I just race in and out of a garage, planning a route that ensures I pass one where the bike's always visible.
Your cornering is forgiven then 😉 I rather enjoyed the race. And it set me up nicely for this evening's TT in glorious conditions.
For CH, I calibrated my powerpod for best accuracy on the TT bike using an out and back ride (3 laps each way round). Then I rode 11 laps to confirm the calibration was where I thought is should be (40 kmh average was probably a bit fast for a warm up!). Then I raced to indicated lap power. Watts reported 312, watts from model 312 for time (22:43). It is bang on. this for no drafting, tweaked 5% lower rolling resistance and 5% more aero.
In road races it's not as accurate, but for circuits in controlled conditions, Physics is precise. BTW, the model is validated by other riders with direct force power meters too as it predicts their times to within 2% accuracy.
Plan is to couple with a DFPM to give CdA, but that is another thread.
I totally get that it works- it's just such a convoluted way of getting a very rig-specific number.
It's like driving a 15 mile loop to get to your neighbours house when you could have just opened the back gate 😆
You have the knack and get repeatable results which is all that matters 🙂
Ah well, got 17th in the end. 7th placed 4th Cat. It's funny thinking about upgrading though because I'd only be racing the same race anyhow so it wouldn't make any difference.
I've been thinking about the whole discussion around racing v training and whether racing yourself fit is even viable and I've kind of changed my mind a little- especially given the fitness boost I've witnessed in my own performance.
I think the key is to race to lose! Well, obviously you always want to win but you need those moments when you're clinging on for dear life and a reasonable IF/suffer score/NP at the end of it and of course, that's not how you win a Cat4 or 3/4 race!
Which also brings me back to TiReds list- to complete that, I need to win! And to win, I can't get many top ten finishes or I'll get an upgrade 😉 My best shot is the Big Events Cat 4 only in October I reckon. I'll go public now and say I want to win it! 😮
It was ironic I didn't go to Thruxton- there wasn't a race on anyway 😆 Obviously I'd have noticed when I tried to enter 😉
I think I will go back to Hillingdon next Tuesday. Then maybe switch back to Thruxton if Weeksy comes to play the week after.
I'm still torn with my training too. I ramped the volume up again this week a little with 2x 90minutes Z2 rides since Tuesday and it just made my interval session this evening feel really hard. I had 90mins Z2 pencilled in for tomorrow too but I'm going to swap it for 60mins recovery instead. I guess this is where a coach would earn their keep.
Beat MrBlobby up a local hill on Strava so it wasn't an entirely wasted session 😆
What?!!!! Off to check out Strava now... 😉
Perhaps 'hill' is stretching it a bit 😆
Today's update. It was horrible, I felt sick at the finish, and got lapped by at least the top half in the last couple of laps. Wallingford festival/ ORRL crit.
Strung out by a crash in the first bend then never really got in touch, just picking off others who had dropped off.
Slightly lighter on the scales this morn (82kg) so disappointed the associated watt/kg boost marginal gainzzzz didn't see me to glory.
And for the earlier question about fuelling for a 1330 start, 2 weetwbix and skimmed milk when I woke up about 7, same about 10, toast at 1130ish and a Clif bar about 1. Then a gel just before start.
Ah gutted for you Leigh. Didn't make it down to watch as it's my nan's funeral tomorrow so had to work today.
Have you entered Thruxton?
I'm going to Hillingdon- happy to drive you if you have the afternoon free? (Leaving here at 16:15)