Didn’t say it wasn’t a fun sloppy mess – will be back there either Sunday morning or Monday afternoon!

Roots and Powerline are definitely better since the trail repairs, but I’m mostly an XC kinda girl so all my favourite stuff up the top near the golf course was a bit soggy yesterday…

Not 100% sure where the video was shot, but I was up there yesterday and it is an absolute bogfest. There was still a fair bit of snow and ice around, although it’s warmer this evening so might have melted. Didn’t try the Powerline as the TT was run down there at the weekend and it was a river of mud before that.

If you do a search in my profile for similar threads, I’ve posted up my usual Strava route in the past.

Edit: forgot to say that my usual advice to chopwell newbies is to head uphill on fireroads and just explore any singletrack that appears and takes your liking. You won’t get lost (it’s a small place) and, if you do, head uphill on fireroads to get to the car park or downhill to get to Lintzford/the river.

I’d rest, or maybe just do a recovery half hour. You aren’t going to gain any fitness in time for the weekend by exercising hard tonight, but you may compromise your races if you still aren’t at 100%. Why risk it?

As an update on my woes, TR also suggested that the sudden jump in intensity was due to an inadvertent change in trainer resistance. They certainly haven’t changed the power curve for my trainer. The uploading/logging in issue was a bit more of a problem, but their excellent support team have come up with a workaround for now and are working on a permanent solution.

The bike that currently gets the most use in my house is my Edinburgh Bike Co rigid MTB that was bought for £200 when I was 12. I’m 32 now.

It’s currently in Frankenbike commuter guise and the only parts I’ve changed on it in the last 20 years are tyres (twice), cassette and chain (twice), chainset (once), BB (once) and shifters/cables (once). I’m fairly sure the bike itself is indestructible (it’s been in a couple of decent accidents too).

It was trying to sync to the server 3 times then just said “error- unable to sync”. I logged out, and now it won’t even connect to TR. Very annoying!

Hmmm, in that case maybe it was the positioning of the turbo. The garage floor is a bit uneven, but I didn’t notice that it was particularly wobbly or askew. Or maybe the resistance had changed up to level 3 rather than my usual level 2. Odd.

In other news, the TR app on my laptop is refusing to sync this evening’s workout with my online career. Any hints/tips?

I think I’ve managed to fix mine. I’ve just managed to complete Darwin (4×10 mins at close to FTP) at a much more reasonable RPE/HR (just over LTHR during the intervals).

It was a combination of:
1) resetting the wheel circumference – it seems to have defaulted back to 2120mm from 2136mm
2) moving the turbo back to where it was (6 inches to the left)
3) twiddling the resistance knob on the trainer a few times
4) not commuting by bike today

I’ll let you know when I get a reply from TR. In the meantime, I’m going to reposition my turbo/bike and have another shot at a workout tomorrow after work.

I first struggled on Jepson (http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/rides/1455791-Jepson).

It was just after I had the bike off the turbo for an outdoor ride, so I’m willing to concede that it might all be down to a slightly different setup. It felt very easy for the first two 8 min intervals, so I got off to check if I’d done up the wheel tight enough in the turbo (it was the same as always, although I think I’d moved the turbo a little on the garage floor). The third interval was waaay more difficult – average heart rate jumped from around 150bpm to 175bpm.

I’ve not been able to complete any workouts properly since. I’m sure it must be a setup issue because of the sudden jump but can’t work out for the life of me what I’ve done differently.

I’ve sent in a support request asking if they’ve messed with anything.

This is what happened to me last week – I can’t believe that I’ve dropped off that badly. I still haven’t got to the bottom of it. The bike had been off the turbo then back on, so maybe I moved it. Or is there a possibility that TR have been messing with the power curves of the trainers?

Is there an easy way to get data from Strava to Training Peaks? Or does Strava premium give much the same info as a free Training Peaks account?

I’ve not been doing the weekend long ride on the turbo – instead I’ve substituted it with a MTB or cross ride outside. That leaves the 2 midweek turbo rides – I’ve been trying to do them either on days when I work at the university (which is only a 16 mile round trip commute) or if I happen to drive to work (or work from home).

I’ve never tried to do the TR interval stuff outside on a commute. I imagine it’s relatively difficult without a power meter. A lot of my commute is one cycle paths though, so I could give it a shot based on HR data and RPE I guess.

Already on the low volume 🙁

Sigh. Guess I’ll just have to WTFU then!

Sweet spot base 2. Had no problems at all with SSB1 and got a decent rise in FTP after it. This is my second year of using TR too, so I’m reasonably used to the idea of turbo sessions. I think I’m just struggling to fit in commuting and “normal” riding as well.

Lol, I wish! Easier said than done with a 35mph head/crosswind on the way home this evening.

The thought of an 8 min test makes me want to cry!

HRM and virtual power only. I was managing it before Christmas (although only just, I have to admit), but now I feel as though my legs are made of lead.

What does the training peaks free trial offer?

I’m really struggling with TR at the moment. I’m halfway through Sweet Spot Base 2 and I slacked off a bit over Christmas, but I am now really struggling to get complete any workout at all. It feels like the resistance on my turbo has been turned up a couple of notches, even though I don’t think I’ve changed anything. I think a lot of the problem is that I’m commuting 4 or 5 days a week (average 20 miles per day), and the cold and wind is making me really exhausted.

Do you reckon I should just WTFU and power through, reduce the intensity of the sessions, or have some time off the turbo altogether (unfortunately I can’t cut down on commuting unless I get sacked).

My aim for all of this is to complete the MTB plan after SS2 in time for the first XC race of the season at the end of April.

Just bookmarking, as my parents live on the edge of the Cevennes

A cheeky bump for this, as I’m also looking to find a good location in Liguria for a self catering apartment. I’ve got a plan to book a week away with my mum, dad, boyfriend, brother and his wife, and sneak away for a day or two of XC-ish trail riding. Any suggestions?

It really depends what they’re on amlodipine for, and if they’ve tried any alternatives in the past. It’s a fairly common drug used to treat high blood pressure, so there are potentially alternatives depending on your relative’s medical history. It’s worth bringing up with the GP if you are concerned. However, I’m not aware that it is a common side effect of the drug.

The boyfriend has had 2 – the first was an 06 plate bought with his first paycheck, and was written off 3 months later on a twisty damp road after a night shift. I never got to drive that one! The second was a 10 plate (with traction control this time!) and was sold for more than we paid 3 years later. It’s my favourite car that he’s owned (he had an RX8 between the two S2000s and currently has an Evora).

We did Mauritius for a fraction of that price a few years ago – flights via Dubai with Emirates, booked the hotel separately (Paradise Cove) and hired a car. It was an unbelievable holiday. The staff and other guests (all honeymooners) were fascinated/horrified by the idea that we wanted to leave the hotel in our tiny hire car every day and go exploring, but we had a blast. We ate amazing street food, went on private boat trips (booked direct rather than through the hotel so didn’t share the boat with 50 loved up couples), and saw many sunsets on deserted remote beaches. It was ace!

+1 for going with the cardiologist. Can you speak to him directly? Maybe you could phone his secretary and ask if you could get a call back to discuss things? Your cardiologist will know exactly what stents he put in, what the rest of the arteries looked like, your heart function (not just the EF) etc etc, plus has presumably put a few stents in people from the West of Scotland before so knows what he is dealing with.

In terms of driving, the official DVLA guidance is that you can drive after 1 week from a heart attack if the heart function is good or mildly impaired on the echo scan, and 4 weeks if it is moderately impaired or worse (or you haven’t had a scan). If your EF is 64%, then that is in the normal range and you can drive after a week. There is no need to inform the DVLA.

The advice that I usually give regarding travel after a heart attack is the same as what your cardiologist has said (bearing in mind that I obviously don’t know the details of your case).

Best wishes,
Hannah (Cardiology Registrar)

^ +1000

Well done. We drove down the A68 from Edinburgh yesterday evening too (around 6pm) and the conditions were atrocious. I don’t mind driving that road when it’s dry and light, but horizontal sleet in the dark was very unpleasant. It’s one of my worst nightmares that I come across an accident like that and am not able to help (and I’m medically trained!).

It’s a fair cop. It’s still old though.

I haven’t read the page but there is a quite long list of academic citations at the end.

If only my PhD examiners would think the same about my ramblings in my thesis(which are meticulously and extensively referenced, but mostly bollocks).

FWIW, the most recent reference in that list is 11 years old, and it references one paper from 1911. It smacks of cherry picking articles that agree with your POV.

A 2012 meta-analysis of 175,000 patients showed that lowering your cholesterol with statins was a universally good thing, no matter what your baseline risk of heart or stroke disease was:

I’ve had good service from the Gravitate guys too – serviced my suspension before the summer and have always been happy to do little repair jobs or tweaks when I drop in (for minimal money/cake).

The Bicycle Repair Man in Prudhoe (now the Giant shop) always seem very knowledgable and a few friends have bought TCXs from there and have been happy with the service. They are a bit more formal and organised than Gravitate though, so less likely to fix something if you’re just passing (although did also take payment in blueberry muffins once)

I’ll ask him for help with this when he gets in from work – I’m sure he’d love to help out with what I presume is a purely engineering experiment…

Women are genetically smaller and more flexible, resulting in them being more bendy and compact, enabling this “single move” technique to work

It’s definitely not this. I pulled a muscle in my shoulder yesterday taking off my t-shirt doing this:

A woman does this in a flowing elegant move, generally starting at the bottom, cross their arms, and pulling the T upwards, inside out over their head in a single move.

I think rene59 might be on to something:

rene59 – Member
Woman peel their tops off over their head from the bottom up because they have boobs.

I think boobs might get in the way of doing that ungainly “reach behind the head and yank at the t-shirt” thing that my boyfriend does. Plus, women’s tops are a bit more figure-hugging than men’s, necessitating a slightly different removal technique.

I’m ashamed to say that I sacked off the weekend workout in favour of going on a muddy cross bike ride with friends, eating homemade brownies then finishing off the weekend with a curry and beer. I should feel guilty, but I don’t really 😳

I suspect TR will have its revenge on Tuesday…

One hungover Saturday, my boyfriend and I had breakfast, brunch and brinner – a full cooked breakfast for every meal. It was a good day.

I’m 5’5″ (165cm) and am a size 8-10. I’ve just checked the Craft long sleeved baselayer that I wore for the ride in this morning and it’s a size small. I’d say it was a perfect fit for me.

It’s made of stretchy material but is quite figure-hugging so I’d probably go with her dress size rather than height. I reckon the small will probably fit. I do find it’s a relatively long baselayer in the body, but I just tuck it in to give an extra layer of warmth!

Mine has lasted at least 3 years of near constant wearing in the winter and I keep meaning to buy another in case this one gets damaged and they stop making them.

I liberated a couple of sachets of KY from the ward I was working on a while back for this purpose. I then had to face the shame of trying to explain why on earth I needed KY jelly for my HR monitor when caught by the ward sister, who’d clearly never even contemplated the concept of training, HR monitoring, or exercise. It’d have been quicker and less embarrassing to just say I needed it for sex.

Since it ran out, I just use more spit now (for the HR monitor, before anyone asks…)

Sweet spot base 2 definitely starts to get more intense than SSbase 1, or you could go to the cyclocross or MTB plans for maximum torture. FWIW, I did SSbase2 last year, with a break in the middle to do the Festive 500, then moved onto the CX plan (the MTB plan wasn’t available last year).

Well, that’s the closest to death I’ve felt in a while! Felt good though. FTP up 10 from 192 to 202, so I’m edging closer to where I was last spring.

That’s my plan too – hoping to also manage the MTB plan before the XC season starts in Spring.

I’ve been missing out most of the weekend long rides in favour of at least one MTB ride a week, as I’m also commuting 4 or 5 days a week as well as doing the other 2 turbo sessions. I think I’ll also miss the Wednesday low intensity workouts in the plan – it’s just too much riding.

Gonna give the 8 min test a shot later… not looking forward to it!

Must not sign up. Must not sign up. Must not sign up.