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.
This week’s review covers both the week just gone, and the one before it. The stats look blank but I was somewhat active during the first week. Basically I’d gone on holiday but didn’t want to announce it on the blog for various reasons.
The holiday was Tuesday to Tuesday, so hopefully that explains the odd pattern of riding. Also I haven’t uploaded the walking activities during the previous week, so whilst I know I did ‘some stuff’, it doesn’t show and isn’t covered here.
Anyway, here are this week’s rides:
- Wednesday – The DeFattening (Outdoors)
- Thursday – Chop Chop (Indoors / Zwift)
- Friday – Gone With The Wind (Outdoors)
- Sunday – Out Bretherton Way (Outdoors)
Getting a week away in the sun was great. Much needed. It could only have been better if I had some work to know I was coming back too. The hazards of my job (contract software developer) mean sometimes I am between jobs and that can be stressful. However, I’m not overly concerned about that and am planning to have all of June off regardless, in order to unwind, relax, then hit the remaining 5 months of 2022 feeling refreshed.
During my week away I definitely over indulged. This was like 90% food, and 10% alcohol. I’m really not a big drinker, and when I do drink I prefer sugary cocktails (ahem, ladies drinks) rather than pints / beer.
Even so, I was probably pushing >6000 calories a day, which is pretty bad. Meal times were a treat, I can tell you. Four or five courses wasn’t uncommon. I reckon I built up a ~27000 calorie over head. Whoops.
The other bad thing to cover would be that my wife has come down with a bad case of Covid since we got back. Not surprising, given the plane situation, and the grotty airport facilities. But hey ho, here we are. I reckon I have a much milder form given I keep waking up with pulsating frontal headaches, much reminiscent of when I last had Covid myself.
So it kinda makes sense how I felt this week.
Heading out Wednesday I was very refreshed. It was a nice enough day, even though I over dressed and sweated my way around the ~40km ride. Not wanting to over do it, I decided to head home at about 30km, aiming to do several more >40km rides over the next few days.
However, whilst I felt fine on Wednesday, when I woke on Thursday I felt knackered. Maybe it was covid related. I don’t know. Even so, it was raining outside, but I was determined to do a ride even if it was something easy. Enter Zwift, and my reliable FTP Builder sessions. An hour and five at 160w ought to do it, but I wasn’t great throughout.
And that pretty much continued into Friday. Even though I got outdoors on Friday I felt really worn out from the get go. Fortunately without anything else doing, I hadn’t spent my energy on other tasks so pootling round pretty much saw me off.
I figured at the time I should probably take a rest day on Saturday. Normally Saturday and Sunday are guaranteed / sacrosanct riding days for me. I get at least an hour, and often without any pressing time deadlines. Not like weekdays. But with being off work, I figure I have a little more luxury in my time scales, so I decided I could take the breather and see how I felt today, Sunday (at the time of writing).
And what do you know?
Today I felt great. As good as Wednesday, if not better.
Today’s ride was great one. Nice enough weather without being too hot nor too cold, and a decent route without too many stop / starts.
Even so, should I take Monday as a rest day?
The question begs because tomorrow I have an interview for a new role at 9.30.
Now, that will probably mean a crappy nights sleep, even though I’m not overly fussed either way. It’s ~20 days till the end of the month / my alleged holiday, and there’s plenty of other things to apply too. But it would be nice to get the exercise boxed off early and then I can properly relax. I just have an odd feeling about that role, like it might not be right… and usually my gut is righter than my head.
See how it goes.
Not surprised the Training Status graph is totally screwy. I suspect that will even out over the next two weeks. Not worried about that.
About the only plan I do have at the moment is to ride the Trough of Bowland again before my break is up. Ideally this week. It’s ~2.5 hours approx, 75km-ish. Really looking forwards to it, just need to judge the weather because last time I went up there and it was a bit damp, I had a properly hairy moment on a descent which scared the bejesus out of me.
Ideally I’ll hit >170km this week as well. After all, I don’t have much else to do but ride. That works out at about 35km a ride so it should be doable over five days.
Gotta burn off all them Spanish pies after all.