nice progress, now imagine yourself in 4 month and another 15lbs less to carry up that hill.

That Peter Sagan is quite a rider. Not sure I'll be in his class...

Weigh in day yesterday, 198.0. Up 3 this week and down 17 overall, 16 weeks.

Think that's a bit of a fluke, but that is what the number was. Certainly didn't slack off diet to the tune of 3 pounds in one weeks time.

This has been a May for the record books, as a far as rain in the area. Makes it tough to get my riding in, but I've been doing 3-5 workouts a week, varying between spin classes and body shaping class. I don't know if I'm in the best shape of my life, but certainly in the best shape of my last 10 years. 15 more pounds...

Weigh in day yesterday, 196.0. Down 2 this week and down 19 overall, 17 weeks.

Seem to be on a plateau. Sun has been out the last 3 days after raining 24 of 31 days in May. Record rainfall in North Texas this spring, glad I joined a gym this year or I wouldn't have had much chance to ride. Managed to commute to work yesterday, 12.5 miles each way.

Weigh in day yesterday, 195.5. Down .5 this week and down 19.5 overall, 18 weeks.

Collin Classic this weekend, 63 mile local ride. Now that the rain has stopped, it is hot and humid, so should be a challenge.

Weigh in day today, 194. Down 1.5 this week and down 21 overall, 19 weeks.


So the Collin Classic was a bit of a disaster for me, as far as being a test of my fitness. Pretty much the same result, hung around for about 30 miles before I had to slow down. I had hoped the weight loss would help more than it did.

I had an incident with about three miles to go, had to make a left hand turn with the pavement sloped away from the direction I was turning. I wasn't going that fast but all of a sudden the front tire tried to wash out from under me. Would have been really embarrassing, there was a cop blocking traffic so I could make the turn, as it is a sponsored ride. I wish I had a video, because I felt like I was a goner but my body somehow did the right things to save it. A half mile up the road I noticed the front tire was really soft, so I had to stop and change it. I suspect that is why it didn't grip the road like it should. At least I didn't come away with any road rash.

In!

On reasonably flat ground, losing weight is not going to be a huge factor. It'll help, but not as much as you think. I don't know the landscape of where you were riding but I think of the area as being relatively flat.

Regarding pacing, I learned the hard way that your power curve is what it is, but that there are different ways to achieve a given average power.

For example, I've found that over periods longer than 4 or 5 hours, I can probably only average 150 watts. If I start at 200 this means that I'm going to end up dragging my ass in at like 100 at the end.

In an aspirational period, where you're trying to improve performance, I'd recommend starting a long ride right at the average pace you think you can maintain, keep at it for the first half, and consider increasing it if you're feeling good. Once you more or less know what you can do, the general advice is to start *below* your average and increase in the second half. It can be very hard to do, because when you feel fresh at the start, 150 watts feels slow/easy.

How is the training going? Are you still keeping up with the exercises recommended in TCC? (intervals and what not?)

For any place with actual hills, it would be considered pretty flat. For this area, it's actually hilly, but all pretty short. Mostly little punchy hills. 1900 feet over 63 miles, according to Garmin.

Yeah, I was pretty much at threshold for the first 30 miles. I recovered over the next 10, and the last 20 was able to pretty much ride my normal pace. I would have felt a lot better maintaining a more even pace over the whole ride.

This is something I need to work on. The power meter has been a big help with regard to power output over time. I would like to do a negative split ride someday.

You've hit the nail on the head. I haven't been doing any structured training. My "training" rides have been spin classes where I just go as hard as I can for the hour, or the Saturday bike shop ride and trying to keep up with the fastest group I can. Those haven't led to the gains I was hoping for, I guess. Time to crack Carmichael back open and follow a plan.

+1 to all of it.

and don't forget: chances are high that your couple-friends were faster this year than they were a year ago (assuming they trained regularly over the last 12 month)... do you track your outdoor rides (by phone or gps watch?). strava is a really great tool to keep track of your own progress on segments that you ride regularly.

very solid job on the weight loss. keep it up!

Just read through this thread and your old thread for the first time. I took a peek at the Triple bypass ride, looks very interesting, i wonder if i can find something similar closer to home?
I also fluctuate in weight a lot and all this counting calories stuff has at least made me think about my eating habits. I won't start counting calories but I'll try to at least estimate the calorie content of what I eat from now on.
I added you on Strava btw.

Tron: Yes, I'm a data nut. I have almost every ride I've done since rediscovering cycling in 2010. I'm a strava member. Thanks, I'm happy with the weight loss. Going to make one more big push to get into the 180's for the first time in ? Honestly can't recall. Might be the first time this century. I quit smoking in 2000 (first time!) and put on 20 pounds, so I may have been 180ish when the century turned, but not much after that.

Marn, I followed you back. Fantastic job, 180 miles is an awesome feat. I wish I had started 20 years earlier, but I guess I can only do what I can do now. Hopefully I can fight the calendar a few more years. I would think there are more rides in your area than in the USA? Heck, come over next year and ride it with me. I'll wave at you when you disappear in the distance.

Twisted: Welcome, come on in.

I am convinced that you are capable of riding 180 miles if training for it, like you are training for the triple bypass event. It is amazing how resilient the human body is and quite hard to believe if you have never pushed yourself for extended periods of time.

Here are some pictures about 25 km from the goal, so I am assuming most of them made it, even if it did take closer to 20 hours for the slowest of them.

Weigh in day today, 192.5. Down 1.5 this week and down 22.5 overall, 20 weeks.

I'm going to start a structured program this week. I'm doing the time crunched cyclist experienced century program. It should help me increase my power output for an extended period of time. I did the first ride last night, one hour EM(endurance mile) pace. This is an easier paced ride than I would ever do on my own, and I find it hard to believe that this is the missing element to my training, but I am going to do the program. EM miles are somewhere between 50 and 90% of lactate threshold pace but really keyed toward the middle of that scale. On a 5 heart zone scale it would be zone 3, or the fat burning zone, I suppose.

Tonight's ride is more challenging, 90 minute ride EM with 3x8(5 RBI) steady state(92-94% of LT) intervals.

Weigh in day today, 192.4. Down .1 this week and down 22.6 overall, 21 weeks.

Flat week, which I'm ok with. Rode 100+ miles this week and upped my allowed calories goal by 200 a day. I'll see where that leaves me for the next week or two. If I stop losing I'll cut it back to 1700 calories. It was also my anniversary, and we splurged by going to chef Stephan Pyles Stampede 66 and had a really nice meal.

Doing 3x10 SS intervals this week. So far so good.

Anyone interested in a Tour de France Fantasy league?
http://www.velogames.com/

The price is right (free). You pick 9 riders and they score points based on overall GC, they get points for being in a breakaway, KOM points, and sprint finishes. Plus position in daily stage finish.

Anyway, if we can get a few people interested I'll set up a mini league for this forum. Otherwise you can compete against all of the other teams in the Velogames league.
We don't have much time, TDF starts Saturday.

Weigh in day today, 194.4. Up 2this week and down 20.6 overall, 22 weeks.

Holiday made it a little tougher this week. Still not worried, my intake wasn't that bad and life is still happening. I've been tweaking my intake trying to setup a smaller deficit(.5 pound a week), so I think I will have more fluctuations.

Doing a 60 mile on Saturday that I really enjoyed last year, The Peach Pedal in Weatherford. A fair amount of rolling hills.

Weigh in day today, 191. Down 3.4 this week and down 24 overall, 23 weeks.

Really looking forward to typing 18x instead of 19x. Did the Peach Pedal ride. I took a wrong turn and added two slow miles to the route while I figured out where I missed it. Had a good but not great ride. Great being defined as speed vs. freshness. Worked on my pacing. Tried not to "burn matches" on the up hills while working the down hills more than I would normally. I'd like to say this led to a much faster ride, but it didn't. On a cooler day I may have had more left on the end than normal, but once it gets over 95 I have to slow down. Its all a learning process.

Going to Las Vegas in late July. Checking out bike rentals to do a ride up to Red Rock canyon. Looks like a really nice ride with some good climbing, just have to get an early start and finish by noon or so. If it was a cooler time of year I'd like to try a ride up Mt. Charleston, but I don't think that is going to happen this trip.

Weigh in day today, 190.8. Down .2 this week and down 24.2 overall, 24 weeks.

Wavering on the bike rental in Vegas. Most of the bike shops are in an area I would like to ride from, west Las Vegas but don't open till 10. Leaving at 10 AM in July in Vegas doesn't sound like much fun. Option B is to get a bike delivered to my hotel on the strip the night before, and then leave early in the morning. The problem with that is dealing with morning traffic and a 15 mile ride before I even get to the part that I really want to ride, up around Red Rock area.

Finally getting in some riding this month, 134 miles 2 weeks ago and 106 miles this week. That is the volume I should be around, somewhere between 80 - 120 miles a week depending on intensity.

A friend of mine did the triple bypass a few weeks ago. She drove up from Austin, did the ride the next day, then drove home the night of. I told her I'd rather do a double-triple bypass than drive there and back. Ugh.

She's just off a pretty bad bike crash too, maybe 4-6 weeks ago.

Yeah, my plan is to make it a mini vacation next year. I have a niece that lives in Denver and my wife has some aunts in Springs, so we will probably take a couple of extra days and visit them and spread the drive out.

Great, now if I'll feel like a real loser if I sag out next year!

Weigh in day today, 192. Up 1.2 this week and down 23 overall, 26 weeks.

5 days in Vegas, what can I say? I didn't do too bad but not counting calories, either. Didn't do the Red Rock Canyon ride, just too many logistical problems to make it work. Kayaking in the Black Canyon was fun, though.

On Saturday did a 75 mile ride with 3000 feet of uphill in Granbury, TX that I did last year. My "moving time" was 25 minutes faster and total elapsed time was about 45 minutes faster than last year, despite it being hotter this year. I'll take that as evidence my weight loss is helping my fitness level.

Not sure if I have already posted this, but looking at doing the Enchanted Circle Century in September.
http://www.redriverenchantedcirclece...ml#TourProfile

Pretty long drive from home, but seems like it would be a good tester for the Triple Bypass next year.

25 minutes is a really great improvement for 75 miles, always nice to know the work is paying off.

The web page for that event blows. I had to read it for like 10 minutes to even find out where the damn thing is. Doesn't seem to even have a map of the route.

Thanks Rusty. I took the week off while in Vegas and my first time on the bike was the Saturday ride. I had really fresh legs.

Yeah, they went to the trouble of writing a long description of the ride but without a map it is hard to follow. It is in Red River, NM. It may not be the middle of nowhere but I think you can see it from there.
Here is a Strava link to someone that rode it last year:
https://www.strava.com/activities/191929770

<Drum roll please>
Weigh in day today, 189. Down 3 this week and down 26 overall, 27 weeks.

Feels pretty good to type 18x instead of 19x. I've been bouncing around between 189 - 192 for a couple of weeks, time to get serious again. Looks like the Enchanted Circle century is going to be a go for me, I'd like to be below 185 for it. I've got 4.5 weeks to get there.

I had mentioned in Marn's thread I was going to use two devices to record Saturdays ride to compare actual power vs Strava power estimates, but totally forgot to do it. I'd like to do it with my group ride rather than just an individual ride. Maybe this weekend I can do it.