A Good Week!

Target rides - 1 x 20, 1 x 25

Actual rides - 1 x 23
                       1 x 40 (but pretty flat)
                       1 x 23 (but pretty hilly - see below!)

Hours on trainer - 3

The first week of my official training programme has been a good week!  A mixture of a quiet time at work and a few sunny afternoons has meant I've put in some good miles.  I'm conscious that there'll be some weeks where I can't fit in all the rides I need to, so I'm chuffed I've been able to do more than planned this week.

www.justgiving.com/JanesBigTrip

Fellside.  It's much steeper than it looks on this photo!  It's the hill that brought on my Cycling Tourettes last year.  I managed to make it up there today without swearing once - mostly because I couldn't breathe!

Training Programme

When I booked this trip last summer, Peak Tours sent me a suggested training programme which is designed to take someone from being pretty bike rusty, to being ready for the trip in 10 weeks.  I've based my training programme on this, but adapted it to reflect that I'm not so rusty, and can begin at higher mileage rides.  The plan is to start with distances of around 25 miles, and build up to 70 miles in a day, starting with 2 or 3 rides a week, and increasing to 5 a week.  I'm told that getting out on consecutive days is the best training too, as there will be no rest days on the trip.  So, allowing for a week off just before I leave, this 10-week programme starts tomorrow!  It will be good to have a schedule now, not just a case of getting out when I can.

Training this week:

Miles Cycled - 52 (1 x 27, 1 x 25)
Hours on Trainer - 4

Some good company on this morning's ride.  Thanks Martin and Gill for letting me tag along!

www.justgiving.com/JanesBigTrip 

A Weekend Away

I knew that we were planning a weekend away this week, so I expected not to fit in a lot of training.  However, thanks to a quiet week at work, and an understanding husband, I've not done too badly!

Miles cycled - 54 (2 x 27)
Hours on the trainer - 4
Hours on the rower - 0.5

We headed south to visit friends en route to Heathrow, where we waved off our eldest.  She was heading to Russia to study for 4 months, so it was a mixture of nerves and excitement at the airport - for all of us!  Then we paid a visit to our son (studying in Cardiff), to take him for Sunday lunch, fill his fridge with 'real' food, and take him some of his favourite local beers.  Back on the bike on Monday.....

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A fond farewell

A happy reunion!

Nutrition

I've been reading up recently on nutrition and hydration.  It appears that getting the right balance of proteins and carbohydrates, and at the right times, can be key to a successful endurance event.  And apparently, just drinking water isn't good enough either - should be energy drinks.  The more I read, the more worried I get!  If I consume all the calories I'm going to need, I reckon I'll spend more time chewing and swallowing than I will pedalling!  I think I'll stop all this research, and just get on with it....

Training this week (with 13 weeks to go):

Miles cycled - 60 (2 x 18, 1 x 24)
Hours on turbo trainer - 3
Hours on rower - 0.5
Books deleted from Kindle - 1 - a book on cycling nutrition (see above!)

Brocklebank. A good training road - not especially steep, but very long! This is just the bottom half!

But the view from the top's not bad - you can see our house from here!



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The Other Cyclists

Part of the adventure of the trip for me is that, until we all arrive in Penzance, I won't know any of the other 24 people who'll be cycling with me.  Over the last few weeks, we've been introducing ourselves to the group by email.

About to head out on a training ride

At 46 (and three quarters), I'm not quite the youngest of the group - that accolade so far goes to a 35-year-old fella from South Wales.  Most of the others are individuals, like me, who are doing this for their own reasons, and because it's on their 'bucket list'.  There's a couple who'll be riding a tandem, quite a few blokes on their own or with a friend (not many women have been in touch yet), and even 4 coming over from Canada to do the trip!  But they all seem to be quite keen cyclists, and a few have done some long endurance rides before.  Looks like I'll be bringing up the rear most days then!




Training so far this week (with 14 weeks to go):

Miles cycled - 20 (In my defence, we've been a bit busier at work this week, and the weather's been awful)
Hours on the turbo trainer - 6
Hours on the rower - 1
Kindle books read (whilst on the trainer) - 2 - Mary Berry's autobiography, and a book about a man who cycled End-to-End in 6 days unsupported.

 www.justgiving.com/janesbigtrip