Today marks exactly one year of Zwift membership, and that also means exactly 1 year since I got my bike set up – though very much improperly – and took my first tentative pedal strokes on Zwift.
I never blogged the first three rides I did. I had enough on my plate, I guess, and I also didn’t take any screenshots or things of that nature. I was but a very unfit newb.
My first ever ride was on Innsbruck.
Being complete unaware of what lay ahead, I set out – very slowly – and meandered up towards the forward KOM. I didn’t even make it to the start of the KOM before I was strongly questioning what the hell I was doing thinking this cycling thing was a good idea.
Oh my.
I did try my first attempt at a “sprint” – by which I thought that was spinning really fast, and maxing out at 417w.
In my defense, the bike wasn’t even secured to the trainer. Tortunately I was so weak that my sprint exertion didn’t rock my bike off the trainer.
Realising that climbing was going to take some practice, I swapped over from Innsbruck to Watopia. Heading out on the flat route, I didn’t make it a full lap before I was done and dusted for the day.
Oof, top work me.
Again, in my defense there was a lot of problems to be solved in these early rides. I had very little idea what I was doing. But clearly, I was extremely unfit. I knew that much.
The first two rides had been on the Friday night.
When Saturday came I was still very much struggling to get the bike and trainer set up correctly. I made another effort to ride on Innsbruck. This time I made it to the start of the KOM before I very rapidly, and very sadly totally blew up.
Man alive, those stats.
L. O. L.
On my third day I started blogging.
And whilst it’s been a hard journey, I am so grateful that I took the time to document my progress in such depth, as it really is eye opening to realise how unfit I was, how far I’ve come, and hopefully how far I can still yet go.
Here’s to another year!