Sunday: Bike 21 miles, yoga
So I finally got to crack open the much-anticipated training plan. 'Bout stinking time. Now if anyone asks, I can say I'm training for an Ironman and not feel like I'm lying.
("I'm training for an Ironman." See? See?)
Today I was supposed to do an 80-minute ride that included some single-leg and cadence drills. Sounded easy enough. But then I discovered a few itsy-bitsy flaws in my cycling technique:
Flaw 1. You know how a pedal stroke is ideally supposed to be some kind of a circle? Well, the single-leg drill revealed that mine is apparently a shape with somewhat straighter edges. (And I'm not talking dodecagon here. More like pentagon. Or triangle.) Plus, there's a point just before the top of the pedal stroke where the whole thing sometimes comes to a complete stop, even if I make little "uh, uh" noises.
Flaw 2. I know pedaling fast is good in theory, but the cadence drill seemed to indicate that I haven't exactly internalized that concept. I was supposed to pedal at three speeds: 80-85 rpm, 90-95 rpm, and 105+ rpm. I'm not sure what my comfortable, normal, happy pedaling speed is, but today I learned that 80 rpm is faster than that. 90 is possible. But 105 was not going to happen, and whatever top cadence I did manage had me bouncing all over the place, which is a) stupid, b) embarrassing, and c) painful.
Glad I had yoga afterward because I rock at that.
Both will come w/practice. When I started out I could barely do 80rpm. Within a couple of months I could get up to 130rpm. So be patient w/yourself and realize that any new skill takes time and persistence. Remember THE key to IM training is consistency.
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