My blood will paint the way to the future ...

Well, maybe not blood as much as sweat. Sweat and tears.

This week is the first week of the new Annual Training Plan (ATP), and it started with a good weight workout and zone 1-2 spin at the gym. The current phase of weights is the Muscle Strength, so lots of weight, small number of reps, lots of sets.

The ATP that I have is a straight progressive periodization plan, with progressive increases in training hours and Training Stress Score (TSS) during each successive week and during each successive phase (with built-in recovery and rest), until the Race week where the TSS and hours trained slides well down to allow for a final recovery before racing.

Before I get too deep into the nitty gritty (which probably should be a separate post anyway), I'd like to take a moment to examine my goals and training objectives for the 2012 cycling road racing season.

First, the goals:

• Lose weight; I'd like my specific weight by the end of the year to be around about 165 pounds (down about 55 more pounds), with a "wouldn't it be wonderful if ..." weight of about 150 pounds, which represents an additional 70 pounds lost.
• Start ten to twelve mass-start races in the current season, which will be enough to upgrade to Cat 4 for next season.
• Improve same-kind race metrics over the course of the season (i.e., TT speeds late in season should be higher mile-over-mile with similar HR/power output vs. earlier in season; crit speeds should be higher, etc.)

Second, the training objectives:

• Be able to finish my Pistol Hill training ride in about 90 minutes without pushing my HR into the 5a or higher HR zones.
• Raise LTHR by 3-5 BPM (or alternately increase power output at the same LTHR by 20-30 watts as measured on the power meter in the spinners at the gym, with a preferable wattage of 210-220 for 30 minutes at LTHR on those machines).
• Stay within about 10% of the TSS and total training volume in 90% of the weeks during the season.

Third, the pie-in-the-sky dreams:

• Win my age/cat in at least one race
• Place in the prize pool for at least 3 races
• Signup for and finish the 109-mile el Tour de Tucson in less than 5 hours, or the 94-mile Cochise County in less than 4 hours 15 minutes (thus qualifying for Platinum status for the 2013 el Tour de Tucson).
• Place in the prize pool for the Tucson Bicycle Classic

Oh, and I know everyone wants to hear about New Year's Resolutions and such. I don't do NY resolutions. I believe 100% that if you recognize that you want to change something, or do or be something different, you should get to that right away. I didn't wait for New Year's to start cycling or training or losing weight, I started it the moment it started to bother me. But if you must, consider the above my resolutions :)

Yes, it's the season ...

... for illnesses. I've been sick twice in the past two weeks, first with a sore throat and now with a swollen/drippy nose and headache. Because of that, no workouts since my last attempt at my own personal Pistol Hill ride.

I do have some big plans though. I believe that I should be able to feel well enough Friday to do a couple of repeats of Escalante, though three or four would be better. I am working the front half-shift on Christmas, so I would like to also do a ride sometime Saturday, and I should be able to do Pistol Hill on Monday, then get in another short ride Tuesday morning before doing the back half-shift Tuesday. Wednesday I'm going to take a rest day, maybe do some recovery zone spinning on the trainer inside, but then on my birthday Thursday I'm going to rock Pistol Hill again. This time going all the way to the southern intersection with Camino Loma Alta (which means I'll be doing the Cat 4 climb on Pistol Hill twice; once westbound and again eastbound). I'm sure it's going to be a butt-kicker but I'm determined to do the "full" ride. Thirty miles. Seeing that at least a couple of the races I plan to do next year are more than twice that distance, I probably should get cracking eh?

Review: Bellwether Axiom bike shorts

Today's review is of the bike shorts I've been using for a while now, the Bellwether Men's Axiom Short

First, I will start by saying that I now own two pairs of these shorts; since I bought the original pair in July 2010 I have lost a decent amount of weight and some thickness, in my legs and backside among other places, and so the XLs that I bought then don't quite fit right anymore. They still work, and are still serviceable, but I needed to get another pair anyway so I just pulled the trigger and got another pair of these, just in LG instead of XL.

So, the first piece of information about these shorts is that not only did I like them, I bought a second pair. And I will buy a third pair when I can afford another one.

Any pair of bike shorts with a built-in chamois will work to some more or less degree. I have an older pair of Pearl Izumi shorts with a basic synthetic chamois, and they work okay. But the Bellwether Axioms have a couple somethings extra: first, the chamois is anatomically padded with a stiff material, and has a breathable front panel designed to keep particularly sensitive parts cooler than otherwise would be true. The fit on the shorts is amazing, and I'm really impressed with the chamois.

Unfortunately, the way the chamois works means that the shorts cannot be tumbled dry, and must line dry. This might be true of any synthetic chamois (I always line dry the PI shorts but just as a preference and habit, not anything I've read that says it's required), but because of the padding of this particular chamois, it takes a while longer than my other shorts. Not that this is a HUGE con, just something to keep in mind.

The legs have a silicone gripper panel, which is not uncommon; what it has that seems to be uncommon is two thin grippers rather than one thick one, which means it hugs less tightly but still stays put. It feels better than the PI shorts. The outer material is a dimpled construction, which seems to work quite well, and the seams are all totally unnoticeable while wearing and riding. No chafing, no bunching in the chamois, and no ride up on the legs == winner.

The shorts are running about $75, and are not the top end of the Bellwether line (that would be the Chronos shorts, at around $115/pair), but are in my experience way better than the normal low-end shorts, shorts that a person just starting to cycle (for weight loss or aerobic fitness or whatever) would otherwise buy.

My recommendation: buy as many pairs of these as you can afford (within reason; if you're only going to cycle two days a week then two is probably your best bet!). They are excellent.

Tentative 2012 racing schedule

Yes, I know I owe you some reviews, and they are coming. First, I wanted to announce the tentative 2012 road racing schedule for Quixotic Raindrop Cycling (which is just me ... for now!).

Please note that some of these dates are estimated and based on last year's dates (in most cases they appear to be based less on specific dates, and more on which weekend). Also, these are primarily events in or around Tucson. There will be more added as the season progresses and as USA Cycling updates their calendars.

23 January: Avondale Criterium; Avondale, AZ
25 February: Tucson Criterium Series (#1); Tucson, AZ
2-4 March: Tucson Bicycle Classic; Tucson, AZ
7 April: El Tour de Mesa; Phoenix, AZ*
21 April: Old Pueblo Grand Prix; Tucson, AZ
28 April: Tour of the Tucson Mountains; Tucson, AZ*
3 June: Thunder Road Time Trial; Sahaurita, AZ
8 July: 3 Bears Time Trial Series (#3); Red Rock, AZ
21 October: Sonoita-Patagoina Time Trial; Sonoita and Patagoina, AZ
17 November: El Tour de Tucson; Tucson, AZ*


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*: Not "races" per se; these events are rides and benefit various charities.
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In order to upgrade my USA Cycling racing license for 2013 I'll need to start in 10 mass-start races, and I only have seven scheduled so far, so there will be some additions. I was looking at possibly the Colossal Cave Stage Race, which is a three-stage race just like the Tucson Bicycle Classic (a Time Trial, a Road Race, and a Criterium), and there are a few other time trial and crit races around the state that are possible.

Weigh-in

As of 0540 on 04 December 2011, 225.8 pounds. That's up 2.0 pounds since the previous recorded weigh-in on 18 November. Which overall isn't as bad as it could have been, but still moved in the wrong direction.

Recent activity

Of late, I've been backing off just a touch, trying to lower my training score a little bit week to week in an effort to "true the blade" so to speak. My rides on the river path have been at a lower HR range, while I've been cutting back on the road rides off Old Spanish Trail and points nearby.

The most curious thing happened as a result of that. When I went off to my river park ride last week, my HR (and HR Zone) were in good averages while my speed was improved (just a little ... I mean, from 11.8 mph to 12.3, but 0.5 mph improvement with a concomitant reduction in HR to output that velocity is pretty much the point of training, right?). Ever since then, I've been able to average 12+ mph on rides that used to be in the 11 or less range, and have been able to push 13+ on some rides. I think I might be getting the hang of this cycling thing.

In addition I've been able to upgrade some of my non-bike gear (selling back old cell phones can be a nice way to do that!), including a second pair of the Bellwether Axiom shorts, which I will review later in the week. I also have been experimenting with various drink mixes for both during-activity hydration/electrolyte and calorie intake as well as post-workout recovery, including a new jug of Cytomax sports drink mix that I will review next week as well (a preview: I got the 4.5 pound jug of Pomegranate Berry ... and it is DELICIOUS). Also new: a doo-rag (the Halo Protex bandana), a pair of cold-weather tights (which haven't arrived yet; when they do, I'll review them), and also some stuff that's not really new but that I need to talk with you about: the Garmin GSC 10 Speed/Cadence sensor, and the Respiro Sport Men's Saddle.

Here's a list of recent workouts, including a link to view them and time/distance (reverse chrono order):

03 December 2011 1 hour 32 minutes, 18.73 miles
28 November 2011 48 minutes, 9.37 miles
26 November 2011 1 hour 23 minutes, 18.52 miles
22 November 2011 1 hour 20 minutes, 16.79 miles
17 November 2011 1 hour 49 minutes, 23.49 miles
15 November 2011 2 hours 6 minutes, 25.28 miles

Tomorrow's a shift day, so there will be no workout but I will do a weigh-in first thing in the morning, and I have a 33 mile ride (probably take a hair under 3 hours) planned on Monday. I'll let you know how that goes.

Oh ! I almost forgot, I am officially a USA Cycling Category 5 road racer, as of today, and that license carries through all of 2012. I have been scheduling next year's training periods, and my races, in Training Peaks, and when I get confirmation of the dates for my chosen races I'll be sure to post them here.

Donovan's Trek

Trek 3500 (2012 model year), of course.

Having been waiting for many years to finally plunk down a large amount of money and buy a decent quality bike, and having gone back and forth about which model to get, what kind (road vs. mtb), and etc., I finally decided to go ahead and drop the hammer on a mountain bike. Specifically, this one:

Ain't she a beaut?

First, the pros: This is a real bike. It's got reasonable components for the price. It has good wheels, tires, and tubes. The bike is Aluminium, rather than steel, which is important to me since I weigh a lot more than necessary, and it's good that my bike does not. It was quite inexpensive for what I got. It's a hardtail, not a rigid frame, which I really wanted.

Next, the cons: it's not much of a mountain bike, it's really more of a light-duty trail and urban area ride. The front fork only has 63mm of travel, which would get eaten alive on many mountain trails. This one is the cantilever-pull brakes model, not the model with the disc brakes.

On my Scale of Awesome*, this bike gets an Awesome. It's a HUGE improvement over the Wal-Mart specials that I've been riding, and even if it's not much of a mountain bike for most trails it's PERFECT for what I wanted: a starter bike to introduce myself to MTB, a good light-duty trail machine, something that I can take on the sometimes crappy roads and urban bike/multi-use trails to lose weight and gain cardiovascular fitness. For me it was particularly important to get a bike that wasn't fragile and high-maintenance, a bike that will take my heavy body and not really care much. Once I'm down under 200 pounds and have had some time to get better at the general act of cycling then it will be time to consider a Real(tm) Road Bike. Something like a Trek 2.3 Apex or the Cervélo R3 or something like that. 

I made one significant change to the stock bike as sold, which was to add a Respiro saddle. That I will review separately; for now, it's a saddle designed to help relieve perinial nerve/artery pressure as well as keep the perinial area cool(ish) during long saddle times. I added a bottle cage (duh), bought a front and rear light for low-light riding, and I picked up a few other essentials as well. The base bike was about $350.

Yeah, you read that right. If you have a decent helmet already, and don't care to get the Respiro saddle, you can get a brand-new Aluminium Trek 3500 MTB for less than $400.00. If you get the disc brake model then you can expect to add about another $50 or so, which is still a SCREAMING deal.

If I had this decision to make over again, I would probably still pull the trigger on this bike, though I might consider getting the disc brakes instead. The next step up in this category (the 3700 Disc) adds a 100mm travel front fork, which is a nice addition. The next step up in bike quality is to the 4300 Disc, which really is a mountain bike, but is near double the price of this bike.

So far, I've ridden 249 miles on this bike, most of it on multi-use rec trails in town on my Diabolical Plan To Rule The Cycling World By Losing A Bunch Of Weight. The shifting is pretty good, though I've noticed a hitch going into and out of 4th gear both up and down (it takes a while to catch). On the Scale of Things that Suck†, it's Okay and Fine. Mildly irritating but nothing more than that. It's the lowish-end of the Shimano MTB shifters but still beats the Stuffing out of the shifters I've been using on the $80 Wal-Mart Total Suckage bikes. The crankset is a 42/34/24 with a 14-34 7-speed cassette, and works very well. I'm still learning to keep track of where I am in the gears and chainrings without looking at the shifters though, sometimes resulting in my dropping into a gear that is really not appropriate for the conditions. Such is learning!

So. Final Verdict: Inexpensive starter MTB-style bike good for initial purchase of a high-quality bike. It's not going to tear up your normal MTB trails, but it will work for bunny trails and is excellent for the urban jungle.

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*: the Scale of Awesome is a five-point range from: Horrible, Bad, Merely Adequate, Awesome, or Super-Awesome.

†: the Scale of Things that Suck is a five-point range: Total Suckage, Sucks, Okay and Fine, Better than Expected, and Frakking Amazing.

Back in ... red and black!

It's been so long, I'm glad to be back.

Yes, I've been gone a while, and yes it's been eventful and there have been things I probably ought to have been blogging about but just couldn't sit down and get done! So let me catch you up a little bit.

First, as mentioned, I went and bought a decent bike. It's a Trek, Mountain Bike, model 3500, and I really like it. I will post a separate review of the bike shortly but I've put more than 100 miles on it so far and it's really been a huge boost to my biking and weightloss efforts.

Second, I've been biking. Quite a lot, actually. I knew I would once I had a decent machine to work with, and it's been really a lot of fun. There are several rides I'd like to do, and some that I've been doing a lot, so that's been fun.

Third, I've been losing more weight. Yes, that probably should be obvious: multiple thousand-Calorie exercises done in a single week + same Calorie intake as before should = weight loss. And, it did. Down to 221 pounds now, and in the morning I'm going to hop the scale to see where I'm at at the end of this week. I believe it will be below 220, but probably not by much.

Previously, I'd been posting reviews of every single workout, which I don't believe I'm going to continue doing. What I'll do instead is get Training Peaks to post blog entries automatically since I do a brief review each time I put a workout up on TP, and have that be the individual post. That means the posts on this blog will start to be more specific to equipment, nutrition, and book reviews, as well as overall progress toward my ultimate goal of getting to a good racing weight (somewhere between 145-165 pounds, I believe). That should make it more interesting to read.

Yeah, yeah ... I know, darn it

It's been a while, I know. And it's kind of ironic that I haven't been posting, because I've actually been working out more often, more productively, and with more focus than I have in a decade. It's even more ironic that I am posting today, after I've been sick for a week with a cold and couldn't workout at all.

My friend and I joined the nearest LA Fitness as members (which basically just means we can use any LA Fitness in America, except certain higher-level clubs here and there), and with the exception of this week have been going three days a week to do strength and cardio. Started on 13 August, and since then I've made tremendous progress in my strength. The cardio has been relatively minimal, mostly just enough to get a lung-burn in weekly. I've been focusing on improving my leg strength, specifically to make the cycling pedal stroke more efficient and make the hill climbing not quite as much of a challenge to the cardio workout.

Speaking of cycling ... I bought a new bike too ! I will give a better review of it a little later in the week, after my third good long ride on it, but I will give you a hint: it's an awesome value and a really good starter bike.

So later this week, I will post a full on review of my new bike, and a post detailing the improvements from the gym workouts.

Here's the first pic of the new bike:

Quick weigh-in results

Current weight: 226.2 (+2.5#)