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.
Any week that features a climb of the Alpe du Zwift will always be a tough one in my eyes (or legs). Throw in a midweek climbing ride and it’s little wonder I was feeling more tired than usual as of late.
However, I have enjoyed the week’s rides. Not going to say I wasn’t a little nervy with a ride of the AdZ looming over me, but I made it up and my time wasn’t anything like as down as I expected.
Here are this week’s rides:
- Tuesday – Tour of Watopia 2023 Ride: Stage 3 – Climber’s Gambit (Standard)
- Wednesday – Lionel Sanders’ Yellow Day Workout in New York
- Thursday – Race Watopia: Stage 3 – Two Bridges Loop (B)
- Saturday – Tour of Watopia 2023 Ride: Stage 3 – Tour of Fire and Ice (Longer)
The one key difference from this week to most other weeks in recent memory is that I didn’t do an SST session.
I can’t say I like doing SST sessions, but they do appear to be the most beneficial “bang for your buck” type of riding, as far as I am concerned. Hard work, but high reward.
The thing is, Climber’s Gambit was my start to the week, and that one cooked me.
Then Thursday is my regular racing day, which only left Wednesday to throw in yet another hard session on the week, with the Alpe du Zwift ahead at the weekend. I didn’t want to do it. I felt tired and generally not in the mood.
So for once, I gave in and listened to my body.
Overall I am sure that was the right decision.
In its place I did a much easier hour with three x 10 minutes at 180w instead. I still broke a sweat, but it was more than work enough after the day before, and with the following day being a race.
As per on the race day I got annihilated.
Actually this was partly down to me not knowing the route.
I thought we were on for two full climbs of the Reverse Hilly KOM. But no. We turned off after that first steep corner.
What that meant was that I got dropped (as expected) on the first climb, but I could have gone a bit harder if I had known we were turning off early.
Anyway, I don’t think I’d have done that much better overall, so I’m not exactly down about it. If anything the Tour of Watopia is taking my mind off racing pretty much entirely. It’s just another hard ride on the week.
That’s not to say I didn’t try. I always try. Otherwise what is the point of turning up?
Saturday’s ride on the Tour of Fire and Ice route was the key focal point of my riding week.
If there is a true FTP test on Zwift, I consider it the Alpe du Zwift.
It takes me about an hour from the bottom to the top, and during that time I set myself a paced max effort. That is, in theory, the biggest effort I can realistically sustain for the full hour.
For this attempt I set myself a target of 235w per segment, which I didn’t really achieve.
However, I did average 231w for the full climb, which I am pretty happy about, all things considered. For reference, my FTP at my test about a month ago now was 236w, and personally I don’t hold full confidence in the accuracy of my ability to hold that power for the full hour.
So I feel I was pretty close to the reality of what that FTP Test told me.
Anyway, it was a better result than I expected. I’d have been happy to come in under the hour mark. To come in under 57 minutes felt like a massive win.
I thought there was 6 events in this Tour of Watopia, but alas there are only five.
That means two now remain.
This week we have the Road to Ruins and the Big Loop routes. Both cover the Jungle Circuit, but the Big Loop sees a climb of the Epic KOM. Quite looking forward to that actually, it’s been a while.
Pretty much like last week, I’m looking to get the Standard ride done midweek (probably tomorrow, but possibly Wednesday), and then the Longer ride done on Saturday. A lot less anxiety about the rides this week 🙂
Overall though, good progress and a good week. Can’t complain.