What I’m reading today:  Sports Nutrition: planning all year round to ensure optimal sports performance via Peak Performance

More power to you.

Marc

Posted by Marc Walter as Daily read, Nutrition, performance at 11:27 AM MST

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What I’m reading.  Sports nutrition: the role of carbohydrates in endurance sports.

From Peak Performance online.

More power to you.

Marc

Posted by Marc Walter as carbohydrates, Daily read, Nutrition at 12:12 PM MST

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Lately there seems to be a lot of research coming out on cycling.  Here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here

More power to you.

Marc

Posted by Marc Walter as News at 8:20 AM MST

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Since the temperatures are rising here and here are a couple of good articles from Peak Performance on training and compete in the heat. Also, at USA Cycling coaches summit this past fall, we were presented with a really informative talk on thermoregulation by Dr. Stacy Sims Ph.D. She worked with Team Radioshack and Lance Armstrong before his last Tour de France. Here is the link to the powerpoint.

All in the name of science. Lance swallowing a thermometer.

More power to you.

Marc

Posted by Marc Walter as performance, power at 11:23 AM MST

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What can I say, about this stage, other than it was difficult but fun. Like I’ve said before that is stage racing. At a point you’ll think this is fun riding along talking with other riders. The next moment, usually quite a few moments later, you’ll be riding with the group thinking this sounds like a bad horror movie with all the heavy breathing.  You’ll run the gamut of emotions, over multiple days, on a bicycle.

The stage started in the parking lot of Walmart. My worst nightmare. All these cars and me on a bicycle. I decided to relax, take off my shoes, and find a spot in the shade next to the lawn equipment. I guess I looked like the picture of calmness as a photographer for the Arkansas Democratic Gazette snapped a few picks.

The beginning of most long stages is fairly casual. The pace was slow leaving town, slow enough to chat. Some of the nonsense people were talking about just made me smile. Back in the laughing group, tail end, there’s usually a few jokers. The pace was slow enough about half the group pulled over to make a mother nature call. The rest of us tooled up the road casually until everyone caught back on.

The race was fairly calm, a few hard efforts up some hills, up until the first feed zone. They put this first feed zone on a 3.3% hill. One of the major hills within the first 50 miles. It takes about 3 minutes to climb for a mile. I maxed out at 508 watts. Then, trying to get a feed with 80+ guys also trying to get a feed and you can imagine the chaos. Plus, I had to find neutral support for a bottle. Things went a little south from here for the next 4 miles or 10 minutes. It’s a matter of staying with a group over the top. The six of us, and some others attached, did catch on. This is the point last year that I lost the group and where my knee gave out. Also, it was before the feed zone where I hit a road killed armadillo and got both wheels off the ground.

The next section, up to Mt. Gaylor was fairly uneventful.  The road gets a little more twistier and some super fast descents. There was an interesting time when we came to this intersection with rumble bars. Some guy got all squirrelly, his wheel came loose, and his brakes locked up the wheel. Pretty wild.

Now it was just a matter of getting over Mt. Gaylor with the main group for me. The climb is approximately 12 miles at average of 2% and starts at mile 78. The climb started off at 6% for for .8 mile. I held on just barely. Barely is what happened for the next 1.5 miles at a grade of 3%. Lots of surging and gap closing as guys were popping. Eventually one of the poppers was me. I looked back and two others were coming up. I jumped on and the group was 300 meters up the road. We worked it and caught back on. Bad timing though as we hit some steeper sections. Myself and the other two guys got popped again. This time for good. We worked it to get the group within sight at the top. We needed to catch before the group got over the top because once they got that downhill a group will motor away. We chased for the next 23 miles or 52 minutes with 4 of us. Mostly just Mario from Iowa City Specialized and myself for half the distance. Finally convincing the  other two to work and roll through and not to take big pulls. In this situation, it’s better for us all. More than likely you won’t cramp, like they were saying, and gives the stronger guys a huge breather. It worked out fine and we motored at a good pace. Everyone congratulating each other, at the end, for making it work.

Tough race and a fun race but that’s racing. In the end I lost about 7 minutes. Let’s see how it goes for Saturdays 86 miler. My recovery ability is fairly good.

More power to you.

Marc

Posted by Marc Walter as My training, power, Training at 10:51 AM MST

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The time trial is a 2.5-mile uphill course in Devil’s Den State Park with an average grade of 6.8%. I’ve done this as a master 40-49 in 2004 in 10:11 after a 50 mi road race. In 2005 I did the Pro, 1,2 when there was a road race on Friday and Saturday was a road race and TT. My TT time was 11:59. In 2007, as a master, my TT time was 11:01 after the road race the same day. In 2008, as a master again, my TT time was 10:42 after the road race again. In 2010, first event in the 1,2′s, in 11:15. In 2011, first event for 1,2′s, I posted a time of 10:25 and 1:43 down.

As you can see, I ran the gamut of variability in times and in circumstances for when the time trial was performed. There really isn’t much of a pattern other than I struggle to get below 10 minutes.

This year I did produced the best 10 minute wattage I’ve ever seen. That’s what racing does. It brings out the best. I’m still working on developing the musculature in the left leg, though. It’s really only recently that I’ve tried any maximum sprints. The leg is not producing the best power. The leg still feels like I’m contracting the muscles differently. Today’s TT compared to last year, when I still had the wire holding the kneecap together, felt like a world of difference. What the leg needs a little more time now in the higher wattage range. I’ll also start going to the gym to develop the leg, lifting weights, now that I have a larger and more comfortable range of motion.

The course actually starts off going slightly downhill in the first .5 mile as you can see from the file below and averaging 395 watts at 23.1 mph, 99 rpm’s. For the next mile and 4:21 minutes of loneliness, I tried to settle in 372 watts at 13.1 mph, 83 rpm’s. The next section, before being caught, I lost some focus. For the next .8 mile and 3:50 minutes my watts dropped to 339, speed 12.6 mph, and rpm’s 82. This is fairly typical, drop in power in the middle part of a TT, and not very good pacing. The next .3 miles and 1:03 minutes I was caught by another rider and passed. Trying to keep him within sight and knowing the finish was close, my watts went back up to 406 in 1:03 minutes, speed 13.7 mph and rpm’s 88. Definitely not the best way to pace a time trial where you you want to have a more steady effort in the middle part.

Devil's Den Time Trial; 2.5 miles in 10:25 minutes

All in all, the progression is coming along fine. My big goal for the year is masters nationals over labor day weekend. It’s nice for me that it’s a little later in the year since I’m still building the left leg. I tell everyone, don’t ever break your kneecap, it’s one of the worst injuries an active person can have. I believe Robbie McEwen broke his and he hasn’t been the same. There was a reason why those mafia guys broke peoples kneecaps.

More power to you.

Marc

Posted by Marc Walter as My training, power, power file, Training at 6:35 AM MST

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