Memories of summer ... and not the good ones

Brutal workout last night. Beaten on by the MOB crew. We skipped a week in the training buildup and hit the week 4 session instead of week 3. It included (amongst other easier elements) 3x3min TTs, a 30 sec per gear progression down then up (starting @ 100 rpm and trying to keep the rpms high) and, the biggy for the day, a 10 min alternating sitting standing gear down 2 then 1 up progression. This one we started in 53-17. It became clear after about the 2nd minute that starting in 53-17 was wrong. So, when I shiffted up I went up 3 gears rather than the one and carried on. I also was not keeping the desired rpm. Not anywhere close in fact (when it called for 85 rpm - the very first step - I was @ 70).

It was tough but I was getting through until about minute 6. At that point, I was leaning heavy on the handlebars, Grinding over the gears, and any semblence of smoothness in my cadence had evaporated. Joe saw I was struggling and barked at me to keep going.  That gave me enough time to call up memories of last summer. I reminded myself that this training is to get over a cat 2 mountain this summer and I thought about how I was feeling during the worst moments of that cat 3 climb. I was in my easiest gear, barely ticking over, heart rate 1% off off complete explosion. I just remembered the searing pain in my legs, the laboured breathing and how I focused on only one revolution. Don't worry about form, just focus on completing one more revolution. One more revolution.

Both last summer and last night were absolutely excrucuatingIy painful but I got through it. Those memories, and being convinced that this interval was not as hard as the one from the summer when in fact was probably just as hard, got me to push through a mental barrier I think.

Legs are very very sore but I'm very happy with the overload effort I put in. Joe suggested afterward I am ready for Hanging Rock, about 1.5 months earlier than I thought I would be.

Distance: 22.86 km

Speed:  20.19 kmh

Cadence:  79 rpm

AVG HR:  170 bpm

Weight:  207.8 lbs