Some training stuff! (Consistency, base miles, close setback!, weight)

Hey!

I just completed my 8th base week. To be honest, it is the most that I have ever completed straight without skipping a planned day. 

Actually there was one day I had to skip but it was due to family obligations. Luckily, it was the day of a 1-hour recovery workout...so it was a little easier on the mentality (err...ego) to let it slide. However, that wasn't without consequence!

What I did was purely a rookie and a self-coached athlete's typical decision-mistake. I added that single hour onto a 1.5hour aerobic ride--zone 2. Obviously, it doesn't seem like it would hurt but what I didn't realize was that the following workouts would suffer from that extra hour of zone 2. In other words, it would've been fine if it weren't for the way I scheduled the following workouts.

After that 2.5 hour ride...which was really supposed to be a 1.5 hour ride to keep the aerobic muscles active I did sprints, another 2hr aerobic ride, some threshold intervals in a 2.5hr time frame, a 1.5 recovery spin, and a 3.5hr aerobic ride. As you can see, I had almost no recovery and if you added everything up including the 2.5hr preceding all of the above, that would add up to 6 straight days of workouts worth 13 hours of about 85% moderate intensity.

I was actually already feeling the soreness and fatigue during the 2hr ride and the ride with ME intervals. Needless to say, I don't think my intervals were effective so I can't increase the workload when it comes to that workout next time. 

Anyways, I thought I'd be exhausted and lose fitness, but after taking Saturday off (which was scheduled and not spontaneous), my ride today (Sunday) felt much better especially toward the end, so I'm going to ride easy again tomorrow and hope that I can tackle old la honda, stage road, and Tunitas creek fresh on Tuesday on the team ride with SFSU triathlon and cycling.

Consistency

I'm really happy because I'm going into my final base mile week! I just love how my training plan coincided so well with my daily life...kind of. For instance, I didn't plan around the fact that I'd be doing the SBM hill climb, but a recovery week just happened to land on that week of Jan 1! Thus, I was quite fresh! I'm also on the last week of base miles AND the last week of my winter break which means next week will be the first week of school...which is quite hectic and does mess up my training schedule a bit, however it just so happens another recovery week lands on the week I need it a lot! Very cool.

With all that said, I'm entering the 9th week of my training season and I've been very consistent in terms of keeping myself on track with workouts and logging my miles and doing daily reflections! I'm hoping I can stay consistent when school comes around, but I shouldn't have to much trouble considering my school schedule allows plenty of time for training. 

Weight

I'm also getting the weight loss benefit of base miles...kind of. I weigh myself everyday 2-3 times. If I ride that day, I weigh myself after the ride and the other two times is after I wake up and after I eat dinner. Obviously, the post-dinner weight contains a lot of dead weight but I think it keeps me honest because at the end of the week my total weight is usually divided by 18-20 values to get the average so I think the data is well rounded and very well represents my body mass progress.

Anyways, along with training consistently I have also seen a consistent trend in my weight. It seems to be dropping on average at least 0.3-0.4 pounds a week. 8 weeks ago I was at 132.something and to-date my average has continued to fall now to 129.5 which is almost a 3-pound loss!

I don't really have much to lose but I think I can lose some fat and make it to 126 but I think I will focus on training this year and skip the detailed diet part until next year or if it really starts to make an impact on my performance.

The reason I'm being passive with my weight revolves around my PR at San Bruno. I raced that at 129-130 pounds but when I did it the other three years I was probably 118, 123, and 125 respectively and all got 18:30ish. So I definitely gained power but 16:43 yields a 10% increase in power to weight and I'm happy at that, so I don't want to lose focus on training because dieting requires a different mentality and lifestyle that also needs to be carefully planned and uhh executed.

Well I guess that's all I have for now!

Until the next rant,

- DB

“It's not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It's what we do consistently."

--- Anthony Robbins

2014 Training Preview

I am just so excited for 2014!!! I started the year with a good note from San Bruno Mountain's race AND I'm rolling in from my best and most productive season yet.

Another reason why I'm excited for 2014 is because I've consistently nearly finished my three periods of base miles, so I'm ready to do harder workouts. Why so early though? The main reason is because collegiate races occur early in the racing season and I want to be nearly fit for most of them. My first Collegiate race actually happens in the third week of my first build period, so I think I'll have some fitness for it!

Of course, psychologically, I need to treat those early races as workouts and I've noticed that I've become very good at that, so when I structure the training weeks that contains these collegiate race weekends, I will be very aware to wrap my workouts around the intensity of the race days.

I don't really want to give it straight up away, but in terms of my first peak, my training is currently revolving around a certain important race from the Collegiate Conference, a certain important race which I surprisingly did very well in last year, and a certain race that happens to fall within the same consecutive 3-weeks as the first two weeks. Ssssshhhhh......

After my first peak I'm planning on going base mile mode for a few weeks then starting over again to lead into a second peak for a late season race that I really love!

After that it'll be off-season and if everything goes right, I should have almost 85%-90% of my training hours complete and I'll be ready to increase it yet again. I definitely cannot wait!!!

Good luck to your 2014 riding/racing season!

--DB


“Not a visible enthusiasm but a hidden one, an excitement burning with a cold flame.” 
― Patrick Süskind, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Being HAPPY!!!

Some say it is not always good to think about your past. After all, the past already happened, and there is nothing that could change that.

However, I think that it is beneficial to reflect on our past--which is pretty much what this blog centers on whether it is race reports or year reports. How else do we learn to fix our mistakes and flaws? Well, part of that process involves knowing what worked in the past and what didn't, so that you know what will be most effective in the future.

So when I was reflecting on how 2013 was my best training season yet--despite still having a number of flaws like inconsistency--I was thinking even deeper about why & how it became my best season yet. So I dug back looking at my training hours...

Training Hours

2010: 383 hours

2011: 254 hours

2012: 229 hours

2013: 385 hours

As you can tell, 2010 and 2013 seem almost identical, except 2010 had no structure within those hours. However, 2011 and 2012 are embarrassingly lower, which is why I reflected a little more further. 

Since I am me and no one else isn't, I know that the major debt in training hours for 2011 was due to an injury as a result of a crash, and the debt for 2012 was a result of traveling out of town and from consistently getting sick. 

But when I think about it even more, something common appears to me. For both 2011 and 2012, most of my training hours were done in the first half of the year. For 2011, my injury happened in July and for 2012 my one-month trip to the Philippines began in July as well. After returning back in August (for both years) my off-season training time was terribly low.

Overtraining? I doubt it because I knew what was "too much" for me, and at my age with my energy, I doubt it's even possible to overtrain with 250 hours.

Burnout? Uhh...not really. Burnout would be a psychological result of too overtraining and if I didn't overtrain, I don't think burnout would come on its own after a crash or a trip to the Philippines.

With that said, I think the culprit was pure lack of motivation. But wouldn't lack of motivation be a result of something...like burnout? Again, I don't think so, and I'll explain why.

I think that the lack of motivation was a result of the lack of something simple that everyone needs but doesn't get enough of...oxygen? Nope.

Happiness. Yes, the lack of happiness was what destroyed my training hours in 2011 and 2012, but the surplus of happiness is what rebuilt my 2013 season and is what is continuing to build my 2014 season.

I'm not one to get depressed, but I can sure get unhappy! My crash in 2011 was one of my first semi-major crashes that left me off the bike for 2 months. Cycling was pretty much the only way I created joy and happiness, and as a result of not being able to do that, I had no other way to make myself as happy as I'd be if I were able to ride. In 2012, I was really happy to be with my family back home but after arriving back, I was somewhat in a confused state and I guess almost a depressed, but more unhappy, state because I realized that I missed out on a lot of family interaction and I never really had any growing up as the only family in the United States. My grandfather was also getting sick, and he passed away at the end of the year which further made me unhappy.

Getting It Back

In general, my motivation to work harder on the bike ironically came to my mind when I was in my grandfather's house a few days after his funeral. While I was still mourning his death, I knew that he was in a better place and that my family was starting a new chapter in our lives, almost like we have been renewed. This was right around New Year's Day 2013, and so I thought that it would be appropriate to renew myself as well, to transition into this new chapter in our lives.

Well what other way is there to renew myself than making myself stronger on the bike? Of course, this was fueled when I met up with my friend who said her boyfriend, aka Eric, was riding every day. I was definitely happy for him, but I thought about how behind I was and that bugged me a little when I realized we would be racing collegiate races this year.

When I came back home, I adjusted my training plan and grinded...sort of. But I knew that 2011 and 2012 were weak sauce seasons and I knew I had to do better than both of those years. I trained with hard workouts that were aimed at fixing my weaknesses, and I was getting tons of PR's a week. I knew that I was getting faster...faster than I was compared to 2011 and 2012, especially when I was finally able to break into the top 20, top 10, and top 5 spots in races...mainly criteriums.

Thus, I think that was the ultimately happiness-maker--which was to finally actually start training and to take it more serious. Improving my own work is what made me happy, and that was confirmed (of course) at the San Bruno Hill Climb with my new PR!

So if you ever find yourself unmotivated to train or get out there and ride, think about your happiness.  Don't forget that happiness begins with the self!

- DB

“Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.” 
― Dalai Lama XIV

2013 - Welcome (back) to cycling

Before I go over my expectations for 2014, I'd first like to go over how my 2013 training and racing season went:

The Bad:
- I crashed and got sick in April
- I had a pretty well-planned training plan but I was inconsistent/ didn't follow it.
- My diet was pretty good......for like the first three months of the year
- I still haven't upgraded to Cat 3
- I still don't have a power meter

The Good:
- I had a great experience with my first Collegiate Racing season and I learned a lot about myself and my team.
- I joined a new team--Leopard Sapporo--and my motivation and determination skyrocketed.
- My training hours, mileage, and elevation gain for the year are the highest I've ever done (my 2013 training hours were equal to the amount of riding hours in 2010 but intensity is greater for 2013).
- PR's everywhere
- Learned a lot about the mental aspect of competition in school and am integrating what I learned into my training and racing.
- I have been on top of my training (consistent) for a total of 9 weeks!!
- I have 2 points for a Cat 3 Upgrade =p

I remember I had a good feeling about this year, even though I didn't do the 2013 SBM Hill Climb. I also had to start training a little late because I had to go to the Philippines over Christmas and came back early January. My first race was the UC Santa Cruz Hill Repeat Challenge...err, I mean the UCSC Road Race. Prior to that race I did a 114 mile ride (the longest I have ever done) and I was definitely still recovering from that. Needless to say, I placed among the last 5 riders out of 25 total. Of course, I was being a little overconfident and decided to race in the B's (E3/4) and so I thought about it and decided to downgrade to C to work with my teammates/friends, and it was definitely a success! I only did a few races because my crash in April prevented me from doing two other race weekends but I remained positive through it.

Racing went quite well for me. My best results were at the Cat's Hill Classic and the Burlingame Criterium. I peaked...or at least tried to...for Burlingame and I ended up placing 5th! I was very surprised and happy with that result. After that, I took a few easy weeks and was ready for a second peak for the University Road Race but it got cancelled so my training lost its direction. I ended up doing a few crits and the Mt. Tam Hill Climb where I got a disappointing time, but moved on.

I did 16 races which is the most I've ever done in a year, and I know I took away a lot of information/experience away from them. I think that 2013 will serve as the first stepping stone toward the next great seasons to come. I'm thinking ahead, but as of now I'm not at my full potential or even capability to grind out 16-20 hour weeks.

In fact, I have the time and availability to do that, but I know that I need to progress my way toward the pinnacle of my training/racing and not just jump right into it. I'm feeling very optimistic about 2014 though, and that's because I had such a great season for 2013 despite having a crash and inconsistency. I know that if I address those mistakes for 2014, I can have the training/racing year I should've had back when I was 18 three years ago.

-- DB

2014 San Bruno Hill Climb E4

Preparation & Background

If you've seen my other race reports on the SBMHC, you'll see that this is race is important to me and has a lot of sentimental value to me. It's not just the fact I can see the mountain from my backyard, but because the race and the course was what brought me into the world of cycling and racing.

Now that I got that part over, I'll move on. I want to mention that I wasn't able to do this race last year because I had to go to my grandfather's funeral in the Philippines. Needless to say, I had a great season for 2013. However, my time at the Mt. Tamalpais Hill Climb questioned whether I was improving because my time was about 30 seconds slower than 2010 when I had no structured training or a decent race bike.

That really put me into a slump and made me rethink what I was doing? With three weeks completely off the bike, I was motivated again and set up proper training hours and pursued the one thing I lacked, which was consistency. 

Now, no one really trains for the San Bruno Hill Climb, but one can certainly prepare for it. The most I did was go up the course at tempo or at a low cadence but race efforts never happen until the actual day. So I pretty much go into this race with nothing but base miles and a few training hours at tempo. However, preparing for the 2014 race was different because I actually had two complete cycles of Base 1 and 2 which totaled over 90 hours of base training. Compared to 2011 and 2012, where I had almost no quality base miles for the race. One of the biggest changes I made during these two base periods was my pedaling technique, which was done with consistent leg drills each week--mostly during Base 1. I also got a new heart rate monitor so I've been able to effectively stay in Zone 2 for endurance rides. 

With all that said, I'd say the most important aspect of preparing for the climb was the mental aspect, which involves expecting the intensity and knowing what to do during certain sections of the climb. Additionally, it also includes removing negative thoughts and practicing mental imagery but I don't want to get to complex with such a subjective topic.

The Actual Race Report

It takes me forever to get ready...like pinning my number and building up my bike and dressing up. It had my trainer but knew it wouldn't be worth it to set up and warm up. I had about 30mins to warm up so luckily I know the roads at the base of the climb so I did a few steady and even fewer harder efforts but when I got to the staging area I felt about 87.86192% warmed up. The E4 started with the E5s so we were last to start but the time seemed to go by fast with the silly chatter in the group.

With 2 minutes to go at the official start line, I was getting excited and as the time counted down I realized that this countdown was taken more serious than the countdown to 2014 last midnight.

Go time was indicated by the countdown to 1 from 5 and a whistle. I had a spot in the very front, and blasted at out toward the very first grade. I expected people to go around me but stayed in the very top of the group. I believe a group of 4 or 5 blasted past me but some of them were Cat5's (I think 2 were Cat 4's) and I knew that if I joined that group, I'd get exhausted. Thus, I stayed steady just like a time trial effort.

I was very surprised at my performance at the moment. On my Garmin, I only displayed speed, cadence, and gradient because I knew my seeing my HR would limit me. Surprisingly, I was going faster than I expected and although it was a very hard effort it was still sustainable. I didn't even display elapsed time so that I'd surprise myself because being behind my ideal time would surely affect my pace. For most of the first part I kept my head down and really focused mentally on my form on my bike and my pedal strokes. I knew I couldn't depend on whatever fitness I had because like I said I don't physically train for this race. This was the best way of pacing myself on the climb. 

Once the false flat approach to the Carter stoplights started, I knew I could take it fast so I shifted two gears and smoothly increased the pace. I was being drafted by two guys and although it was bothering me, I knew that if I attacked or tried to open the gap, I'd be too exhausted for the second half on radio road. So I stayed steady and also seated because I know that standing will drop my cadence and even my speed. Before the flatter approach to Radio Road's entrance, two guys passed me and I didn't chase because I was loving my pace and I knew I could sustain it until the end. I was being very cautious with my pace because I knew that one surge would really destroy me.

I entered radio road surprised that out of the group of almost 50 guys I started with, only around 5 passed me. I never really heard anyone behind me either...but I didn't look back because it would affect my focus of the moment. I increased my pace on another "fast section" after the gates. I used that momentum to carry me up the first gradient where it actually starts getting a little hard. 

I passed so many people from previous categories. Did I lose count?--no--I was never counting in the first place. I focused on what I was doing to the bike, my cadence and pedaling technique. I know my weak spot of the climb is the steep switchback but I managed to get through it without standing. Like I said, I knew that standing would slow me down. I wasn't too tired either which was why I was able to stay seated.

This whole time I had sight of one guy who passed me earlier and I was closing the gap without making any major changes to my pace. Again, I paid attention to my pedaling technique and new that I didn't have to make changes because I was comfortable. Toward the last bend, a Squadra SF rider passed me. Since it was so close to the end I was debating if I should tag on to his wheel but I decided not to since I knew I was going to pass the guy ahead of me. The last bend to the summit, I finally stood and went hard but only managed an average of about 83rpm. It probably wouldn't have made a difference if I stayed seated, but I definitely felt like I wasn't going as hard as my maximal effort just because I was being cautious. (3rd place ended up only 5seconds ahead of me, but that's ok and you'll see why)

Despite that, I crossed the line thinking I was 3rd but I was actually 4th.

I changed my screen on my garmin and saw one of the best things in my life: a personal record!

It wasn't just a personal record though, it was the queen of all of my personal records, and it smashed my old one by 1 minute and 48 seconds!! That is almost a 10% improvement from 18:33 to 16:45 and strava has it at 16:43!!!

I kind of teared up joyfully upon seeing this because I didn't know that I was capable of even reaching this time. And even if weather conditions were right or if there was a tailwind (I know there was a headwind at some point on radio road) it is still a radical improvement. For instance, my ideal goal for the past 3 years was to do better than 17:20, but my realistic goal was to get a sub-18. I was definitely surprised to see a "16" on my Garmin. I can't even describe how surprised I was, so I won't even try to.

The best thing is, I think I could've gone harder at some points. In the past times I did this race, it felt like a sufferfest but today's race felt like a cautious time trial where I did my best to stay right at the threshold of my maximal effort. I really don't care about my placing because of my new personal record. 

I expected an 18 minute time because for the past 3 races that's all I got. So I'm really happy to see an improvement like this one and it really makes me look forward to the rest of the 2014 season.

I think that the best thing I executed about this race was my mental focus but that's all I'm going to say about that, for now.

Highlights:

E4, 4th place

Time: 16:45 (garmin) 16:43 (Strava)

- Personal record by -1:48

Foothill College Circuit Race E4

Racing in July is unusual for me because I've been forced to end my season after the Burlingame Criterium for two years in a row! That probably contributes to a whole bunch of reasons why I can't seem to get out of the Elite 4's.

Regardless of that, this was my first time racing this fun course. Overall, I had a great race with a not-so-great result. At least to me. Last two weeks I increased my volume significantly (by about 44%) to work on aerobic endurance for the late season road races. Well that tired me out by Tuesday when I worked on some threshold intervals. I realized I was on the verge of overtraining and took the next 3 days off (also because I was busy) and then on Saturday, when opening my legs with a few sprint efforts, I knew I had bad form. The 4-5 hours of sleep the night before this race didn't help either.

Our race started late so I warmed up for about 12 minutes. Oxygen debt and labored breathing came on quick but my legs weren't too bad. The race with 59 other guys started easy. I started in the back but at the hill I knew using my momentum would help conserve energy. Well, people really took it easy on the hill and I found that I passed over 50 guys and I was still under threshold. For the next two laps I stayed off the front but nobody worked and I might have lost some energy during the false flat.

My focus during the race was also out of whack. I knew that I needed to stay hydrated but I'd forget and just delay until the next lap or so which may have contributed to my poor performance. The race overall wasn't hard for me, I was just in bad positions throughout the race. I thought I could move up efficiently up the hill--although I WAS able to pass plenty of people on the hill, I'd always be out in the wind. I'd pass on the left side, but most guys were on the right side.

With 2 to go I moved up to the front and again was out in the wind, and I guess as a response, I allowed people to pass me so I could get a wheel. But it wasn't just one person who'd pass, it would be 3 or 4 guys. So on bell lap I knew I had to hold my position because I knew I could make something happen in the uphill finish. Getting around people and then having no wheel to protect me from the wind was what ultimately exhausted me. Again, most of the action was happening in the right side where the surge was smooth and efficient. I was on the left side where people were passing me.

On the finish I couldn't get around the people in front of me and played it safe. I was pretty disappointed because I knew this was my kind of course, but I was plagued with bad form, lack of sleep, and that ultimately led to poor concentration.

I don't know my exact result because the registration was so far from the parking lot that I didn't bother to check, but I'm expecting somewhere around the top 1/3 of the field.

2013 Burlingame Criterium E4

Oh man my 3rd year entering the Burlingame Criterium as a Cat 4. That totally says I need to upgrade, and two years of getting mid-pack results also shows I didn't train enough.

There's a long story with me and Burlingame and the criterium, but I'll just say that this is homeground to me, and the race that initially really pushed me into cycling. Thus, I always target this race as my season's focus in terms of criteriums. I'm more attached to the traditional course but this alternative course this year is literally a few hundred meters apart and uses some of the same roads so it was still my turf :)

This being my A-race, I can't really say I had a smooth peak because I lost almost seven total weeks from being ill and also my crash in April. But I knew I had a lot more fitness than the last two years so I was looking forward to having better results. My whole year was focused on placing well in this race--all the collegiate races and other Criteriums have prepared me well.

Preparation:
I got around 5 hours of sleep and woke up at 3:30AM...not too good. I had a good breakfast at 4:45AM which was a serving of Oatmeal with some honey and two pieces of toast with some de caffeinated coffee.

I got to the race at 6AM and registered and I knew I had no time to warm-up on a trainer so I just warmed up for 10 minutes on the road--which wasn't good either.

Alright, so having no sleep and no warm-up for my A-race. Not a good habit...

I forgot my chain lube and tire pump too. So I had crappy shifting (and I knew this race would require lots of shifting) but thankfully I borrowed a pump from my teammates :)

I also forgot my Gu which was a ritual before every race so I just ate Clif Bloks instead.

First Half of the Race:
Got to the start line and was in the 2nd row. I was racing with a few other teammates, about 4 or 5. I heard the whistle then clipped in well. Good grief the pack was going hard right away. I think I was dead last in the pack when we hit the hairpin for the first time. I looked at my speed--13MPH and I knew I could go faster because when I was doing hairpin drills I hit over 16.5mph.

My plan was to breakaway after the last prime but I threw that plan away after the first lap because we were going way too fast and I was already in oxygen debt. It was kind of strange because of all the Criteriums I did this year, this one was the hardest! I had the hardest time moving up and I stayed in the back (because I couldn't move up) hoping that the pace would slow down, but in the first 20 minutes I was hanging on for dear life.

There were plenty of attacks but none stuck. There were a lot of crashes in the hairpin. Yikes...this is why I did hairpin drills.

Second Half of the race:
With 20 minutes in, I noticed people were getting dropped. The field had actually split into to two separate fields with both strung out. We could see the second field when we exited the hairpin.

The pace had actually slowed down a bit but it was still fast and I was still at or over threshold. I found the easiest part to move up was either the stretch where the finish line was (also the easiest place to drink) or either the entrance or exit to the hairpin. Again, I will mention that doing hairpin drills really help. It almost felt somewhat wrong moving up in the hairpin. The chicane was where I lost places because I tried to avoid cracks which were at the apex and also the metal covers which were at the exit upon taking the apex. Pretty crazy.

I was feeling stronger as we came closer to the end of the race and with 5 or so to go I felt I should test whether my sprint training really worked. I moved up to the front with 3 to go and entered the hairpin first at full speed. Doing this, I thought I could secure a top ten position but I took a bad line in the chicane.

Last two laps:
The last two laps were a little more calm but still pretty fast. I moved up again in the hairpin going to the final lap. On the final lap itself, I stayed at the side and risked going into bad pavement at the cost of taking the outside of the hairpin fast in order to stay at the front. I was able to take a nice line through the hairpin, and was among the top ten ours of the final sweeping corner.

I think this is where I always make a mistake. For some reason, I hesitate during the final sprint, thinking I'd blow up before the finish line. Out of the sweeping corner, I waited long for the jump. I expected it to happen before the sweeping corner but in fact in happened after it.

But I took the inside line heading into the finish line and sprinted hard enough to take 5th place. I was disappointed because 1st place was only a few bike lengths away (it was a really close sprint). However I was happy to get some BAT points as well as another single upgrade point to Cat 3.

I mean, if I do this 18 more times, I can be a Cat3! No really, I need to start placing higher and start placing in road races. Although I will still be doing maybe 5 more Crits this season, I'm going to start focusing on climbing to become a better competitor in road races for next year.

Aside from that, I'm proud of myself for improving my performance in Criteriums which I knew was my weakness from the start of my cycling history.

Highlights:
- A-Race
- Good breakfast, no warm-up, dry chain (crappy shifting)
- First Half of race, hard as heck.
- 2nd half calmed down
- Moved up in hairpin
- Sprinted for 5th place