February 1st 2009 How to overtrain!

Monday, I was down the gym and did an excellent time on the rowing machine. Because I hadn’t trained over the weekend I was feeling good and knocked another 20 seconds off my recent performances, however, I had overdone it. In the evening my boss was having leaving drinks but I had to leave the drinks early feeling poorly. I didn’t really feel better until Tuesday afternoon.

Tuesday evening I did manage 2 hours on the bike in the gym. I took it very gently.

I have entered the 2009 Dragon Ride. Last year we booked our hotels at Christmas staying at the Premier Lodge on the M4 service station. This year I had yet to arrange accommodation for Dragon Ride. When I was prompted/ reminded by another Pelotooner I immediately started phoning around the local hotels in Bridgend. It seems all the hotels within 10 miles of the start are already fully booked. Tourism in Wales that weekend looks like it is picking up. I had a brainwave (thats the one and only for 2009 used up) and remembered that my parents had friends in that part of the world and so I rang them. It turns out they live half way around the Dragon but their son and his family live only 3 miles from the start and they have offered myself and M the spare room for the Saturday night. I think we might be babysitting the kids whilst Mum and Dad get an evening out.

M saw a Time VXR Edge advertised by The Green Bike Company on their website. It was an ex-demonstrator going about half price. He was looking for a winter bike so he could put his Look 585 away and save it for the summer (although this Time is better than a winter bike). He bought it and will be testing it over the coming weeks.

Saturday afternoon I did 44 miles with Big G. We had a leisurely ride around Surrey in the good weather and had a good chinwag stopping for tea, a pastie and cake at the National Trust tea shop on the top of Box Hill. Incidentally, I was reading an article in one of the cycling magazines and it confirmed that it is illegal for a cyclist to pass this tea shop without stopping for tea and cake so it is official, you have to stop there.

Sunday I was supposed to be going out with M and I was not looking forward to it as the forecast was bad. I got up, got dressed in my cycle gear, I then received a telephone call from M to say he was feeling poorly. I was relieved I didn’t have to go out in that cold weather. I wasn’t going to let myself off so I went into the garage and got on the TACX imagic. I did two and a half hours of cycling up the Peyresaud and the Aspin. I must admit I was in the easiest gear all the way up the mountains (I was still pushing 160 watts) and after an hour and a half I had to take a 10 minute break. It was a tough workout and I wished that the old bike I am using on the TACK had more gears.