I’ve just decided: Goal weight: 130lbs. Seems like a solid, tough goal. If I can acheive that weight, I will be dynamite on the climbs. Dynoo-mite!
I think I will be racing out at the track tonight. Goal? Not to DFL. Then tomorrow I will be riding up Larch Mtn with the team. Goal? Not to be so far behind that they turn around and come back down while I’m still climbing. Well…to be farther then 1/2 way up when they come back down. 
UGH! I really want to be able to keep up with the team next year. I’m not sure how lofty a goal this is, considering many of the people I’m trying to keep up with are Cat 3’s (although i don’t really feel the need to try and KOM or anything…well, QOM that is 
). What I do know is that I get obliterated on every damn climb. And I spent a lot of time up on Skyline and thereabouts climbing my ass off this spring. So, how can I get stronger for next year?
What do I feel I really lacked this year?
- Lacked strength. This is what really gets you up the long climbs, and I get immediatly popped off the back of every one.
- Too heavy. Enough on this already.
- Lacked speed. Sprinting? What’s that?
What do I feel I excelled at this year?
- Power. Short, standing climbs seemed to work in my favor (Hagg Lake, Silverton).
- Threshold. Despite no TT training this year, I can still hold a top ten finish in a TT, and currently hold 5th in cat 4 women BAR points for TTs. (I reg’d for the state championship TT…maybe I should practice?)
- Endurance. I can pretty much ride forever. Could probably do RAO (race across oregon).
So…how can I improve my training for next year? More climbing. More weight-lifting and core work (I really flaked out on this big time last winter). Less crap food, and better recovery food. Sprinting and speed-skills workouts (hello track). LESS OVER TRAINING! I spent a lot of time doing long LT intervals, which were great, but then I didn’t have energy for sprinting workouts. And I did this over and over, week after week. So I need a better plan for next year.
I don’t know why I get so bummed always holding up the rear. I mean, obviously, I don’t like getting dropped, having everyone wait for me, feeling fat and slow, feeling like my training is getting me no where, feeling weak, feeling like I have the female excuse–I don’t want excuses. I want to be in the pack, attacking on the climbs, dammit. I know I should train for the category I am actually in, or want to be in, but I don’t ride with women. So I need to keep up with the guys, regardless of the fact that some of them are “career cat 3’s” and I’ve only been racing 1.5 years. DAH! I think I finally understand why someone would dope. You feel like you’re at the end of your string and you can’t possibly figure out how to get one jot faster/stronger. Obviously there are about a billion better things I could be doing in my training, since I’m self-trained and am a horrible coach. But I do feel like I ride so much and have trained so hard and yet still…not feeling so good.
I look at the chicks who are rocketing up the climbs and winning Dooley mountain, and they are SMALL. Like tiny, like little dolls I could crush with my hands. I look at them and wonder where the hell they’re hiding their muscle, because I know there must be a ton in there…somewhere….and then I compare myself, I feel like a huge orge next to them. Hell, I feel like a huge orge next to some of the guys on my team! I mean seriously, one of my thighs is the size of both of theirs put together. How the hell can they power up those climbs? I guess that’s the point–they’re not powering up them. I power up things, they float up and over things. So I have to look at other racers who are in my boat–what do they do to win? They push the pace on the flats and drop all the climbers off their wheels. They don’t enter races which depend on your ability to climb for 40+ miles (not an option).
So…I guess we’ll see. I will never float over Dooley mountain, but maybe I can wrestle it into submission.
I had a similar epiphany after my half ironman tri in June. I realized that I trained as much as these other dorks that were passing me on the run. What was holding me back was my weight. I was sort of pissed. Goal is to lose 20 lbs and see where that gets me for cross this fall. I think that my weight had really held me back a bit for cross too. I am 2/3 the way there to the goal and I feel great. Even after losing the weight I will still have a body fat percentage around near 20% so it is not like I am super skinny or anything.
Anyway, I wouldn’t over do it on the weight thing. 130 doesn’t sound too nuts, but you’re kind of tall–don’t go too nuts. My wife dropped to 140 before getting pregnant. She is almost 5′10″ and that seemed like a pretty good weight for her, but then she doesn’t race a bunch. Just a few tri’s.
what is it you are trying to do? Win Cat 4? Move to Cat 3? Just moving up during group rides? Go pro?;)
I say, “Throw the damn scale away!”
When I was 18, I weighed in at 158#. I swam 3-4 hours a day with my high school team, ate a healthy and balanced vegetarian diet, lifted weights 2 x a week, slept a lot, drank my share of beer on the weekends, hiked the lovely Wasatch as often as possible, and was even known to throw in a little yoga.
I’m a calm, even tempered person. When the doctor told me she was concerned about my weight, that 158# was at the higher end of what a woman of my height should be, and I should think about losing a little weight, I lost it. I was all out of nice. I was in better shape than I will ever have time to be EVER again, and this woman was telling me I was FAT? Serious WTF. She got an earful. I doubt she ever made that mistake again.
The number on the scale means something, but not everything. 148# looks much different on various bodies, as does 102#, and 130#. Like I said before, “If we were supposed to look like 10 year old boys, thats what we would be.”
Be proud of your kick assness, your super strong and healthy body, your ability to roll over the most challenging shit on dirt and road. I could go on and on.
Happy August. Let’s get on those cross bikes together soon, yes?
Losing weight is all good but just remember you just might not be a climber. It’s no shame as there are tons of great “power” races in Oregon. Very few pure climber type races except the stage races…I get my ass handed to me on power courses but I can go up at an okay rate. Just like I know that I’m going to be crushed on a flat tri course which is why I picked Canada to play to my strengths which is what you should do. Pick races to play to your strengths but definitely it doesn’t hurt to train your weakness once a week. Hill sprints work great as do, “hill fartleks” for getting stronger…stay positive on what you’re good at.
“I was in better shape than I will ever have time to be EVER again, and this woman was telling me I was FAT? Serious WTF. She got an earful. I doubt she ever made that mistake again.”
HA! that’s awesome…it’s not that I feel bad about myself, its more like I want to see if losing a bit of weight improves my performance. I’m not going to go to any extreme lengths to lose it; if I have to eat lettuce and celery to get to 130, then screw it.
I certainly love going to the track and seeing all the different body types there!