Each week I try to review and reflect on my previous week on the bike. This allows me to see how my fitness and ability is progressing on a wider timescale than day to day. For previous weekly reviews please click here.
Something of a different week then.
I’ve decided to do the Tour de Zwift 2024 as a running event. That didn’t start particularly well but it has led to two things that I can do better in the remaining events.
Beyond that I did do some cycling, including an SST session, and a race.
Here are this week’s rides (and, ahem, run):
- Monday – New Years Revolutions
- Tuesday – Zwift Flat is Fast [2024] – Tempus Fugit (B)
- Thursday – Tour de Zwift 2024: Stage 1 [Run]
I did also go for a walk on Wednesday and Sunday, but I don’t track them.
In terms of the cycling, it was fairly full on.
Having had a full week off the bike, I was in that odd mix of feeling very refreshed, and completely out of shape. Throw in Christmas over indulgence, and you will see from the weight graph below that I was not doing good things.
So I punished myself.
New Years Day, bosh, onto the bike for a Sweet Spot Training session. Only the short one. That’s the one I always do.
This would be at my new FTP, which was 237w… aka 1w higher than what it was pre-FTP test 😀 Would I notice the difference?
No. Of course not. But that’s not to say the session was easy. It was a right chore. And I was very glad when it ended.
Not content with punishing myself once, I then did a Zwift race the following day. Now, I was able to get in a lovely long 30 minute warm up for this one. And I needed it, too. As this one was frantic.
The January Zwift Racing series is, once again, Flat is Fast. That’s not joke. It was ridiculous pacing. But I did alright in that race, slightly better than expected, and predicted. So pretty pleased with that one.
I’d typically do a ‘recovery’ walk between the two rides, so I went for a very blustery winter walk on the Wednesday.
That’s where the usual week’s proceedings ended.
Running? Are You Mad?
Then I said in the End of Year 2023 review that I wanted to do at least one stage of the Tour de Zwift as a run.
Why not Stage 1?
That was the impulsive decision I made on Thursday, 15 minutes before the event was due to start.
Crackers.
No warm up, and having not run for 2.5 years (since my last Zwift run). What could go wrong?
Well… actually the run went fine. Some technical issues, but I managed it.
Then I couldn’t walk for three days. Lessons were learned.
Firstly I need some better / proper running trainers. I’m off work still for all of this week so I’m going to pop into the local running shop and get a pair, and this shop also does gait analysis so I’m going to get the right pair at that. Kinda like a lesson learned from cycling, which would be to get a proper bike fit and then buy that bike. Only I didn’t do that.
Secondly I need a better / more accurate treadmill thingy. Well that’s not quite right. So I have a device called a Zwift Run Pod, which is a little thing you fit to your trainer laces and it measures your running stride and what have you and sends that data to Zwift. The thing is, is it’s crap.
Now, Zwift also sell another device called a Zwift Runn which also does the same thing – captures your running data from the treadmill – but it does it by measuring the belt speed of the treadmill using some stick on dots. It sounds equally sketchy, and it’s another £77 quid, but the Run Pod is so bad and inaccurate I think it’s worth it just to complete these runs without running way more distance than is being reported.
You may be wondering why Zwift sell two devices to address the same problem. Possibly because the Run Pod is so bad? Well yeah. But the Run Pod is useful if you don’t own the treadmill or use multiple treadmills. The Zwift Runn is more accurate but needs a device attaching semi-permanently to the treadmill.
Anyway, it’s ordered. So my next run will take place whenever it arrives. Hopefully during the week.
That’s going to cost me £77 for the device and probably around £120 for the trainers / gait analysis. Pricey.
Hopefully worth it.
But definitely going to be an interesting experience.
Will I experience the runners high? Or just the cyclists low of wanting to ride but being sidelined due to dead legs?
Anyway, the main thing is I cracked on with the fitness stuff into 2024. Big wins.
Oh, and I got myself some whey protien powder, another thing from the Yearly Review. I got the white chocolate raspberry flavour, and it’s absolutely delicious. It’s worth the pain of a run just to get to drink a cup of that. Bloody well should be as well, it’s effectively £1 per serving. Liquid gold.