I had a lot to say but none of it sounded great today. So now I have 3 drafts going for future posts.
Haven’t thought about ATP since high school biology.
Workout Details:
Bison, not Buffalo
This week is a rest week in my training. It is the 6th week of a 12 week program focused on getting my base fitness to a solid foundation. I was expecting to be exhausted all week. Yesterday I woke up and took my time and had planned on skipping the strength workout. By the end of the work day I was recovered and ready to do the workout.
Today’s prescription was a 1 hour ride at level 2. Turn and do not burn. I took a left out of the driveway and headed up highway 184 towards the town of Dolores. I went out about 30 minutes and then came home. The air was a little cold but once I got moving in the sun everything was good to go.
Overall the ride was great and today was pretty solid overall.
Happy mothers day to all you mothers out there! Kate and I spent some time with my mom at their home in Durango. We brought some homemade chocolate treats that Kate made: buckeyes, peppermint patties, and orange truffles. Too maintain social distancing we sat outside and wore masks.
Bike talk:
The free-hub on my bike is not acting 100% free lately. Normally a free-hub spins in the opposite direction of the rear wheel when you stop pedaling. This allows you to coast without stopping the forward revolutions of the rear wheel.
The issue my free-hub is having is that it has some additional drag occurring at speeds over 20mph. This causes slack to occur in the top length of chain between the cassette, which is on the free-hub, and the chain rings. The chain then drops in between the bike frame and the wheel.
If that sounds fun picture this: the way you find out it’s happening is when you are going 20mph or faster. In the end I learned that if I continue pedaling at a certain rate, I can prevent the chain from falling and potentially destroying the wheel while I am riding it. 😬
The good news for yesterdays ride was that we were halfway through before I realized by bike was kinda broken. The bad news for today’s ride was that I knew the whole time, and still went for a 3 hour ride.
Workout Details:
3 hour ride, any terrain, level 2 and 3 zones. Get back home.
After last Sunday’s ride, I was pretty tired. This week is week 3 of the current 3 week progression cycle in my 12 week training program. That means its the hardest week of the 3. Starting the week tired evolved into being very tired after yesterday’s ride. To the point where I was not excited about today’s ride. Last night and when I woke up this morning I was dreading the idea of a 3 hour ride.
So I got up, made breakfast, and got on my bike.
As soon as I started pedaling down the driveway I was grinning and knew this was gonna be a good ride. The weather was in the 40’s which is chilly but the sun was shining warmly. Once I started climbing I knew I would be warm for the rest of the day.
I turned off on Road 40 and headed up to the Chicken Creek Nordic Area. From there I cut over to Road 41 and continue on the Chicken Creek Road trail. This time, instead of dropping into Chicken Creek Trail, I took the 561 into town. The 561 is paved from just about where I topped out, all the way down. Its fast.
I took 2 hours climbing up for 15 miles to gain 2000 feet of elevation. In 30 minutes I was back to zero. From there I made my way back home with a couple of climbs and was on time to make it to Mother’s Day.
Don’t have a cow, man.
Even with a malfunctioning free-hub, and me being wingey first thing in the morning, it was a great ride. I hope you had a great Sunday as well!
Today was a 2.5 prescribed ride in level 2. Kate and I slept in and got a mid day start. Our goal was to ride in to the woods a bit, go to town for a bag of coffee, and then ride home. We wanted to see if there was another route to the Forest Area known as Chicken Creek. We tried Google’s suggestion up Road 38 but it ends up hitting a private section that you cannot ride through.
Social Conscious Bandits
So we ended up riding to Road 40 and getting to the trail area. Today we rode a new to us section of trail. Rush Spur was a mellow bit of trail that kicks you out onto Road 41. From there we dive bombed into Mancos to the coffee from our local roaster: Fahrenheit Coffee. Since we were down there Kate got a soy latte, and I had an iced coffee. They freeze their coffee into ice cubes and then pour fresh brewed onto them. If you have leftover coffee cubes you can pour them into your water bottle.
From town its a 6 mile ride with two climbs, but its all paved and the weather was great. I hope your Saturday was a great one as well!
So close to the weekend! What are your plans? I am gonna get a couple of bike rides in, naturally. Hopefully I will have all the equipment gathered to wax my bike chain for the first time. I hope to have a report on that shortly.
I don’t know about you but I have an addiction to my screens. When we hit to road we eliminated the TV screen but the laptop and phone still dominate our attention. I have been trying to practice just being aware of how much of my attention is focused on screens throughout the day. TLDR; its a lot.
My current focus is to get up and out of bed without looking at my phone. I can hit the stop button for its alarm clock but I cannot look at the screen until after I am up and moving. Even then I need to resist checking the news, twitter, email, texts, etc. My reasoning is that these are distractions from my own thoughts. First thing in the morning I should be taking the time to check in with myself. How do I feel today, physically and mentally? What big things do I need to accomplish today? Its way too easy to fall into the routine of following what your screen tells you to do. There is enough time for that later, but the morning should be your time to think about what you want to accomplish today. Then do it.
Workout Details:
Today’s workout in Training Peaks
Today we do 6 minute intervals 5 times with 3 minutes of recovery in between. The pace of the intervals should put my heart rate into zone 4 or perceived effort of heavy breathing with limited ability to talk. In other words we are going to go hard then rest then do that 4 more times.
Last week was a 4×6 so we are stepping things up a bit. Next week is a rest week with a Heart Rate performance test on Saturday. That will help identify how the training for 6 weeks has affected me. At the start of the 12 week training program I did a performance test which involves pedaling as hard as you can maintain for 20 minutes. From that you take the average heart rate and that is your threshold heart rate. You can do math to figure out your heart rate training zones or just plug it into the Training Peaks calculator like this:
These are my heart rate values based on the test I did April 7th 2020.
This then gives me a guide for my training. When I need to ride in zone 2 I know to stay within 123 and 136 bpm. Usually I aim for 130 bpm for Level 2 cause its easy to remember when I glance at my watch during a ride.
It would be really nice if Apple let you set these values in the Watch, but they don’t yet. (I have submitted a feature request on this, naturally.) Having them set in the Watch means it would vibrate and notify me when I am in the wrong zone. This is available in more specialized sport technology from Garmin. However with those devices you have to wear a heart strap which I am not a fan of.
Personally I don’t understand why Apple hasn’t just purchased Training Peaks at this point. The software fits into their goal of helping people track their health. In fact it does one step better than Apple’s system as it tracks fatigue. Fatigue is important to track as it can lead to over training which can become a big problem. Currently Training Peaks is free to use and $120 if you want all the bells and whistles. Apple could make it free software with every watch. This then gives coaches a broader base of users to work with on Training Peaks as well.
The workout was great and the route worked perfectly. I got a 20 minute warm up getting over to Road 40. Then rest for 3 min with 1 min of Zone 4. Then rest for 3 min then 1 min of zone 5. Then rest for 3 min and begin the workout.
The 6 min intervals were hard but not sprint, blow your lungs out hard. One thing that is interesting about training with a heart rate monitor is that often I can back off of the gas a little bit and still be in the prescribed Zone.
It got down to 36F last night so we brought the plants inside to prevent a freeze on them. We should have done the same with the water hose. Not a fun thing to wake up to. Nothing burst but there was no running water to start the morning with. Rather than sulk I hopped on the bike and got my workout done.
Reading:
Great writing makes remote work better. It saves time, reduces meetings, removes extrovert bias, and invites other perspectives.
You don’t need to write articles to be a better writer. Let every Slack message, email, and text be vehicles for you to improve.
Pretty simple workout today. Ride for 1 hour at the level 2 effort. I did an out and back up to my new favorite road to ride on: Road 40. There are a few things I enjoy about riding on Road 40:
The traffic is really mellow
The scenery is wonderful
The climb is mellow enough to maintain a Level 2 effort
The biggest challenge this morning was the temperature. It was cold. I ended up wearing gloves and a jacket. Still my finger tips were freezing.
Quick one for today. Work has been pretty busy and I have a lot of chores now that we are back on the land. See you tomorrow.
So far the writing in the morning habit is falling off the face of a cliff pretty well here. I am thinking about writing all day though so that counts for something, right? 😎
Watching:
In the past I have had bad calf cramps when running. After my last knee surgery I am not allowed to run anymore which solved that issue. However it was interesting to find out that electrolytes do not directly prevent muscle cramping. That was the second to last time I say cramping on this blog ever again.
Listening to:
Gonna find you.
Reading:
What the Happiest Countries in the World Have in Common – Among – “While rankings are based on several factors, including political rights and economic equality, these countries have a few key metrics in common: low corruption rates, universal public services, and great access to the outdoors.”
Workout details:
After yesterday’s very long bike ride I will admit I wasn’t the most excited about today’s workout. Fortunately it was a strength workout so I didn’t have to ride my bike. Sometimes my butt gets tired too. 😬
I did the recommended routine and did 3 sets of 3 pull ups. All were done with a wide pull up grip, no kipping and feeling more natural or something. It turns out that pull ups are just hard and you have to work hard to do them. 😎
The rest of the workout went well and I watered our yard for a few hours. The sound of the sprinkler ends up being a nice distraction while you are doing a workout.
Happy Sunday! I got some yard watering done and a big ride. Gonna sleep well tonight. I hope you enjoy the post.
Watching:
This guy.
Listening to:
Make time for yourself.
Breakbeat science at its finest
Workout details:
Not a bad view.
Today’s prescribed ride was for 2.5 hours. I ended up at just over 5 and it was great. Let me tell you more…
Go Kent!
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post I have discovered that riding up county road 40 and cutting over to road 41 and then continuing to climb into the San Juan National Forest is pretty awesome. I also mentioned wanting to go further today and making some type of loop out of it.
Just the start of things.
That is what I did and it was pretty epic. Just a little past where I turned around yesterday the road descends into a ravine which you then get to climb out the other side. That climb was the first time on this road that I’ve had to use the smallest chain ring on the forward set of gears. This gear is also referred to as the granny gear due to its magical ability to climb steep trails and roads. That’s probably not the reason why but it seems the least offensive.
Big trucks!
Anyway, once you get over that climb it pretty much flattens out and you complete the climb of a trail known as Chicken Creek Road. The trail is a road and it’s about 8 miles from the parking lot to the top. Since I started from my home it’s about 15 miles to the top. There is a junction and you can go deeper into the forest, return on a different road back to town, or drop in to Chicken Creek Canyon and come out at Jackson Lake reservoir on what is known as the Manco’s Spur. I wanted to ride some single track so I dropped into the canyon and that is when the adventure began. I was two hours out at that point and it would take 3 hours to get back home
Downhill’s aren’t necessarily relaxing:
One of the smoother sections of downhill.
Apple flavored apple.
On a paved or even most dirt roads going downhill is a time to relax and enjoy the view. Many mountain bike trails are built on challenging hiking trails. In the Rocky Mountain there are a lot of rocks. The trails here tend to be rocky. When you drop into a canyon you add the additional challenges of water crossings and roots. This trail has all three obstacles in spades.
Dont be this person!
It is still early in the riding season which means there is still a lot of water on the trails. The problem with wet trails isn’t that you get stuck in the mud. It’s that you create deep holes in the mud. When those holes dry they become a rough and rutted trail. So it is important not to go into mud and as a benefit you dont get covered in mud.
Tree jump! Um yeah how about no.
Did I mention creek crossings?
Cool section of trail.
Avoiding mud when there’s a lot of moisture cause the creek is running high means you are walking a lot. Add to that and the freshly fallen trees from last winter and there is a lot of tile spent not riding your bike. This meant that I ended up going down about as fast as I had gone up. On one hand that means I am going up at a decent pace. On the other hand it means I’m slow on this downhill. Oh well. My time for being the fastest has come and gone. These days I’m happy to be out riding with a huge grin on my face.
Over all I did 35 miles with 3000 feet of total climbing over 5 hours with plenty of stops for photos and resting. Before I rode home on the pavement I stopped by to visit some friends and steal some water. All from a safe distance of course.
If there are two things you need to maintain on your bike they are the tires and the chain:
Tires need air. Most pumps have gauges and generally your tires will tell you what pressure they should be inflated to. You should check this before every ride. Proper tire inflation will ensure a smooth ride and reduce the potential for a flat.
The chain needs to be cleaned and lubricated. Regularly. Compared to bearings in your wheels or the bottom bracket your chain is open to the world and all of its dirt. The chain is also one of the most used part of the bike as it is in motion whenever the pedals are moving. Finally it is made up of a lot of parts that are rubbing together causing friction and wear. Here is a nice overview of how to clean and maintain your drivetrain:
Workout details:
Long ride today, about 2 hours with some technical work. I opted for a new route that I have thought about doing a lot. Taking a right out of my driveway I went about 3.3 miles and took a left onto County Road 40. This climbs steadily to a trail system called Chicken Creek which crosses over to County Road 41. CR41 goes way up into the San Juan National Forest, which is what I did. The weather was perfect and I didn’t see any vehicles driving until I turned around and was descending.
I am at a loss for words how great this ride was. I felt like I could have just kept riding all day. If I had not made a commitment to help a friend I would have just kept going till I hit snow.
I will probably take the same route tomorrow and see if I can link up to Road 561 and come back into town by Jackson Lake Reservoir.
Big day, today! Its day 1 of the 100 days of blogging challenge. I have reached out to my coworkers to join me in writing a blog post everyday for 100 days. We start today, May 1st 2020, and continue till August 9th, 2020.
So far these are the other sites involved in the challenge: Jon’s Fitness Blog
As the challenge progresses I will be highlighting various posts from these sites and anyone else who takes up the challenge with us. You don’t have to do the full 100 but it’d be a lot cooler if you did!
We also have a step challenge happening for the month of May at work which I am participating in. To start that off I went for a leisurely 1 mile stroll before my morning workout.
Personally:
This is a good challenge as writing is a good habit to practice. While I keep a journal, what I write there is just for me. Publishing something for anyone in the world to see puts a little more pressure to make it something worth reading, maybe. My personal goal here is to make writing about parts of my life for others to read about into a routine. There is a chance I will also improve my grammar.
Professionally:
I work at a remote company and thought this would be a great way to get to know my coworkers better. Yes we have Slack for instant communication, but in the end Slack is a tool for work. Sure we post personal photos, share links, and talk about personal things, but that only happens when I am working. I have found that restricting Slack usage to working hours is an essential activity.
A blog post on my own website is a personal place that I feel comfortable sitting with anytime. In the morning I write about my workout and maybe a podcast or music I have listened to. During the work day I might throw a link into a draft to remind me to come back to it later. After work I sit for a few minutes here and there to have something ready to review and publish in the morning before work.
The snapshot of my life that is shared here is a more complete picture than the one I share on Slack for 8 hours during the work week. Having other coworkers do the same should help gain additional insight into who they are and what is going on in their world.
Format:
I have a rough idea of the format that these posts will take:
I start with some discussion about what is happening in my world in general.
There is a section of what I am listening to, from music to podcasts to audiobooks.
There is a section of what I am watching, mostly youtube videos related to cycling.
The final section will cover the workout I did that morning. (As an added bonus this helps keep me motivated to get those workouts done.)
This will evolve as the challenge progresses.
Whats happening:
Today is Friday so I am thinking about the weekend, duh. I will get in a couple of longer bike rides this weekend. I am also going to help out a friend by doing some work on her vegetable farm for a couple hours each day. I did an internship with her a few years back for one summer and that is what brought us to the area. Kelli is a great friend and it will be a nice distraction.
On our land we are getting plans figured out for adding drywall to our cabin. Once that is done we will install an off grid solar system so that we will have power for lights and appliances. There is an idea of maybe spending next winter here.
Grassland looking to the east.
I have also been watering the yard just outside our parking spot. We made a 60′ radius circular driveway and the center of that makes up the ‘yard’. Of course the rest of the land is just a huge yard but we aren’t trying to water all of that. There is also discussion of setting up Kate with an herb garden.
Listening:
This came up in my Apple Music feed during my workout this morning and I looped it at least 30 times.
Watching:
Learning blender for making a mockup of the cabin so we can play around with design ideas. This program is awesome and challenging, but awesome.
Workout Details:
Today is a strength day so I did the recommended routine again. Had a nice break through on the pull ups today and did 3 sets of 3 with varying hand grips. Did neutral, wide, and finished with reverse (aka chin ups). Felt ok about the Neutral ones, the wide ones started strong, and the chin ups were 100%. The rest of the workout was good but I lost motivation on the core exercises at the end. I did half of them.
68 Bits of Unsolicited Advice – “You can obsess about serving your customers/audience/clients, or you can obsess about beating the competition. Both work, but of the two, obsessing about your customers will take you further.”
Listening:
Open Source World – TED Radio Hour – Wide ranging conversations about Open Source. From Tim Burners Lee and the start of the World Wide Web vs Gopher, to Linux, to open architecture. Lots to cover here but a good reminder of where things came from to give us the ability to post to and read from a website like this one.
For today’s workout.
Workout Details:
4×6 tempo ride today which means we are working a bit harder.
Warm up: 20 min warm up to level 3 heart rate, 3 min at level 1, then 1 min at level 4, 3 min at level 1, 1 min at level 5, 3 min at level 1, and then we start the intervals.
Intervals: 6 min at level 4, then 4 min at level 1, 6 min at level 4, 4 min at level 1, 6 min at level 4, 4 min at level 1, 6 min at level 4, and ride at level 1 till total time hits 1 hour 15 min.
This was the first time I have done intervals on the highway in Mancos. It went very well. I made sure to use the hills for the hard efforts and then would turn around and ride downhill for the rest period. The weather was perfect with no wind and temperature in the high 40’s to low 50’s F.
Have a great day and see you tomorrow for Day 1 of the 100 days of blogging challenge!
