Each week, Zwift used to send me an email summarising my activity for the previous week. For previous weekly reviews click here. That now seems to have stopped… or sometimes it comes on a Tuesday. Whatever. It started this series, but I will continue without it.
This week consisted of four rides, which is down from the five ride target I usually set for myself.
The difference this week is those four rides took over 7 hours in total. I’m not 100% sure, but I think 7 hours in a week is a new record for me.
This weeks rides were as follows:
- Tuesday – Tour for All 2020: Stage 4 Shorter Ride (Indoors / Zwift)
- Wednesday – VLOG #5 – Lytham St Annes (Outdoors)
- Friday – Chillout Ride (Indoors / Zwift workout)
- Sunday – Preston Docks (Outdoors)
Of all the rides this week, I’d say the Lytham St Annes outdoor ride was the one I’ll remember. It was long, hot, and fairly exhausting. But did I have fun?
Well, I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.
It certainly seems that after each ride, as of late, I haven’t felt happy.
This isn’t to say I don’t think there has been a fitness / physical benefit to the ride, but I am coming to the conclusion that my mental state is a bit messed up with currently having no work and the jobs market here in the UK feels like it’s on its arse.
I’m here, ready to work, good at what I do, and have a skill set that has been in constant high demand for my entire working life: software development.
And yet, with an average of one to two new roles being listed each day, it feels like I’m going to be “unemployed” for a very long time to come. I don’t really buy into the whole “woohoo, free holiday” kinda vibe, so it just gets me down. I’m sure that’s affecting me mentally, and that is having the knock on effect to my riding.
This isn’t to say that I’m not keeping myself busy. Far from it. I have a ton of stuff I’m doing in my ‘downtime’. I just wish I could enjoy it more.
One other possible cause of my mental state after each ride could be having put so much into the Tour Stage 4 Race.
I’m super happy with how that turned out. It’s hard for me to get a screenshot, but the power curve shows me hitting 223w bang on the hour mark. Really, really pleased with that. Though that effort itself could be another reason that I’m feeling a lack of desire to really push myself hard when riding currently.
This is partly why I am yet to complete Stage 5 of the Tour For All 2020. I lack the desire to race. I will definitely do the group ride, likely tomorrow at this point. But I need to find it within me, from somewhere, to get my kit on and get annihilated in Category A for the final time.
Thinking ahead to this next week, I’m guessing I won’t hit 7 hours again this time. Never say never, of course, because the weather forecast for the week ahead is amazing.
Maybe I need to find a more inspiring route. Maybe a climb would be a better bet. Or an outdoor century attempt. I really don’t know. Something has to change, and hopefully that is something on the job / work front.
I think the other thing I need to be mindful of is not every ride has to be a balls-out max effort kinda thing. I struggle with that outdoors more so than in, to be fair. I find it hard not to go harder than intended.
Hopefully this time next week I’ll be in a more positive mood, and fingers crossed I’ll have lined up some new work. That would be nice. I’m 90% sure that’s my biggest issue at the moment.
Downside is: once I do have work on, I have less time for riding my bike. Can’t win!