29/3/11
It's been a while since my last post, and to be honest, it's not because I've been training so hard I haven't had time, or dieting so hard I haven't had strength. Unfortunately it's been work - again.
I haven't been completely idle, couple of weekends ago I rode both days clocking up 170ks and I've managed to get in at least one mid-week ride. There's been a fair bit of walking. Walking happens
when it's late and been a long day and I just need to unwind. This is preferable to the other unwinding, and just as frequent option of red wine and cheese.
There are a couple of things to report. I bought a pair of Rotor Rings, which are elliptical chain rings for my bike. These are supposed to let you exert more power on the vertical part of the pedal
rotation, i.e. pushing down and pulling up. You are supposed to ride easy for the first 700k of using them. I haven’t done 700k yet and what I have done hasn’t been easy, so the jury is still out.
Having said that I have noticed that they allow you to spin the pedals a lot faster and have made it easy for me to pedal a smaller gear up hill faster.
Sort of related to the Rotor Rings, or rather related to me not going easy while my legs get used to them, is a new IT Band stretch I have discovered. The IT (iliotibial) Band is a tendon that runs
down the outside of the thigh and IT Band syndrome is a notorious issue with cyclists.
The Stretch
Lie on your back and spread your legs. Now take one leg (the one to be stretched) and cross it over the other one. The idea is not to move the non-stretching leg and to keep your bum and hips flat to
the floor. I’ve tried a few IT Band stretches and this one really seems to work.
Oh, and by the way I have a mid-year goal. I’m going to France to ride up Mont Ventoux in Provence. Mont Ventoux is one of the iconic climbs of the Tour de France and goes by the name of
the “giant of Provence”. With that in mind I was up at 5am and back into the training.
8/3/11
I’ve been keeping up with the running to a greater (wet weather has made cycling the least preferred option), or lesser (can’t run two days in a row
due to sore muscles) extent. It definitely gives you more bang for your buck on the aerobic front, but can be hard on the legs – if you are carrying
extra weight, or have slightly deformed feet (severe pronation) as I do on both counts.
One solution or at least a way to mitigate the sore legs is stretching and JointFX. I take 2 JointFX’s every morning, and I have a 30 min yoga routine
on DVD that I follow. I haven’t done the yoga in months (I misplaced the DVD), but am getting back into it. All I can say right now is that I have
lost a lot of flexibility – my “down dog” is not what it used to be. However the JointFX has eliminated soreness I was experiencing in my knees.
There is a route I go on quite often, down the hill, on to the coast and back, is a favourite one with many of the other middle aged folk
(and obviously the young beautiful fit people) around these parts. As I was running down the hill to the beach, a guy in his forties all
kitted out in the “gear” and looking pretty fit was walking up the hill. When he saw me he said (in a broad Yorkshire accent) “Aye, you caught me
walking, red handed” and laughed sheepishly. He was of course speaking of the unspoken dirty little secret, of walking while out on your run. He was right.
When you are running you give the “eyebrow” wave to fellow runners, but those in running gear walking will not make eye contact with you – they know
their shame. I must have chuckled for the next couple of k’s thinking about the serious macho business of out of shape middle aged male joggers, and
this one guy’s admission / observation.