Indoor Ride Cycling Studio

We had fun last week checking out Lila's new business -- Indoor Ride -- with Amy, Jen and Chip! The new indoor cycling studio will add another cycling option to my workouts this winter, and between both P2 and Indoor Ride, I have another reason to cancel our membership at the YMCA. (The boys haven't been using the Y facilities for a while, and I only hung on to the membership for spin classes.) The studio is terrific and tons of fun -- and my feelings weren't too hurt when Chip DUSTED me in our pseudo-workout. (Really, I just went along to chat with everyone. It wasn't a race, Chip!)

Sending tons of luck to Lila and Justin on their exciting new venture!

Monday NIght Ride

The Monday night group rides out of B&S started tonight. It was a fun ride, though I did have some trouble with left-hand signals, (left turn, slowing, stopping...). I should probably ride at the back next time. We headed out in an easy pace from Salem to Devereaux Beach, and then rode a loop of Marblehead neck together -- with me pulling off a little early to head back to Swampscott in time to grab Chip from lacrosse at 7. Good to see some folks riding!

Sufferfest Saturday Haiku

Saturday morning

Homework with the gang, lights out

Not enough wattage

(With Melanie, Jen, Alison, Lisa, Shayne, Lila, and Nick) 

Vacation Week in the Frozen Tundra

Brrrr... we're still in the deep freeze...

I'm obsessed with the frozen harbors in Marblehead and Salem. It looks and feels like we're living in ALASKA.

It's school vacation week, and Will's lifeguard certification test on Wednesday kept me from getting to my regular P2 class on time -- so my P2 workout pushed to Thursday this week instead. I missed my Wednesday gang, but got to ride with Jen (El-Sharif) on Thursday which was fun, (despite coach Jen M. being annoyed. I don't think she liked us chatting.) Jen has coached Will in swimming, and they keep in touch, so it was good to talk to her about some of the latest drama we've had to contend with from our charming 16 year old. (Like removing biohazardous materials from the school science lab to work on his experiments at home... OMG. What was he thinking? Jen's immediate response, "He's not. He's 16.") Will has managed to raise my anxiety level to an all-time high with some of his boneheaded actions, so it was good to ride and talk it out with Jen and get her perspective -- and though I didn't put in my strongest effort in the workout, and lacked energy from not eating enough, (and got called out for that) -- it was the kind of workout I needed. There are times when I just need to ride and chat with a friend... and with 9 feet of snow on the ground, I've been unable to really do that. (Plus no one wants to ride with me in 20 degree temps.)

Saturday morning (P2) homework club got busy with another long Sufferfest. (Two hours!) I came home from my workout this morning unprepared to help Mike chip away at ice dams on the roof. I'm trying to muster some energy.

 Twenty-seven days until Spring.

Day 30: 30 Days of Biking, P2

We had a long week of cold, wet weather and my final day of 30 Days of Biking fell on the same day the Fall session of P2, (the training program Shayne runs at B&S Fitness), begins. I considered heading out in the rain for a quick ride, but knew I had some testing to do at P2, so decided my 30th ride of September would be that hour+ time spent on the trainer.

OK... so P2 is never fun... (ouch)... but I had a sweet surprise as I was wheeling my bike to the back of the fitness facilities. I noticed my bar tape was new!! The dirty white loose bar tape I've had all summer was brilliant black, tight and so pro. OMG!! And, as I set my bike up on the trainer, I noticed my bike was shiny!! AND MY CHAIN AND CASSETTE were CLEAN!!!

Wow. Thank you, Zane Free!! My bike felt ahhh-maaaa-zing and it was such a lovely, sweet gesture for you to take care of it like that. I was totally surprised.

(I later learned that Zane, (who is the mechanic on the VKCX team staying with us),  also fixed a bent derraileur hanger and replaced my worn brake pads. He's such a sweetheart!!!)

So, despite a week of grayness that put me in a crappy mood, Zane's thoughtfulness just warmed my heart, and I had fun at P2. (If you can ever call it "fun".) There is a terrific new coach running the Thursday night program -- Jen McCarthy -- who I think is fabulous, and I'm kinda-sorta looking forward to a fresh start. P2 is on!

Day 24: 30 Days of Biking, VKCX

Another short ride today as I had some last minute house prep to do before the Vanderkitten pro team arrived. (Excuses, excuses... I know). It's been hard getting in miles lately, and I've resigned myself to knowing that September is a low mileage month -- but at least I'm still riding! P2 (or Pure Power Cycling, the indoor training program at B&S Fitness) starts next week, (alas, without Shayne), so I'll kick it up a notch and get a head start on a winter training plan.

Mondo kudos go out to #30DaysOfBiking (and Strava) pal John Phillips, who completed 365 Days of Biking tonight. So amazing. Congrats, John!

And welcome to the VKCX gang!! We're so excited you're here!

Day 16: 30 Days of Biking, Inside/Outside

Today I had a "double" session of riding, starting with a P2 indoor course ride (on the computrainers) with the Wednesday Rec Riders -- Ruth, Mary, Lisa, Kristen, Lila, half of Brandi and me. Together we tackled the USAT Nationals St. Joe's course, 24.46 miles -- although only Lila completed the full course today. (I cut my ride short at 16.5.)

We woke to snow, ice, and brisk winds -- sapping my enthusiam to ride outside -- but I didn't want to lose a day of my 30 day outdoor challenge! So, after completing the course ride at P2, I rode an 8 mile random pattern along the edges of Salem and Marblehead to make up the miles that I cut short from the indoor course -- making a quick stop to grab a cup of coffee from the Salem Diner before they closed.

#30daysofbiking

March is No Lamb

It's been a mixed week with a few workouts but not a whole lot of riding going on. P2 wrapped up on Wednesday with a final "test", and less-than-stellar results on my end, but I'll take it. I may not be faster this Spring, but Shayne and P2 got me through this brutally endless winter, so I'm o.k. with that. (Kudos to Lila for crushing P2 this winter.) I was a lot stronger a year ago at this time, but I haven't gone too far off the rails, so all is not totally lost. I know what I need to do to pull it together.

Today I ended up in Nancy's spin class after getting a text late last night from The Queen, asking if I was interested in spinning in the morning. (Uh... no... but... yes... o.k.) I quickly logged into the reservation system and snagged the last two spots that were open and we had a great workout early today. When spin ended, The Queen joined the Total Abs workout that followed, while I ditched it... hahaha. I'll do better next week. Abs?? No need to rush things. Summer isn't coming anytime soon.

P2. This Ain't No Spin Class

Justin gets it done.

No goal was ever met without a little sweat. 

Shamrock Ride Postponed

Our Third Annual Shamrock Ride was postponed this morning when I woke up at 7 and saw it was raining. It's always hard to get the Cyclopaths out on the road in March -- and the snow we had Tuesday and Thursday didn't help matters -- but I was still hoping a few would ride. Sadly, despite the promise of warmer temps today, I just couldn't convince anyone to head out for a ride, and a light rain at 7 a.m. was the final blow. I'm starting to wonder if my Cyclopath days are numbered... though it's sad to think about it right now.

With a shower passing through, I headed over to B&S where I knew some of the Spiders were getting their weekly P2 homework done indoors. It wasn't the ride I wanted to do, but I knew it was better than spending the morning at home, or riding in the rain alone. The hour was tough, and my muscles are complaining right now, but it was good to see Justin, Lila, Lisa and Alison this morning and my mood totally turned around. Justin lead a tough workout, cutting through some of the chatter from us girls, and kept us on track. Thanks Justin!

After my workout, I checked my phone and saw several messages and texts from Cyclopaths offering to meet me for breakfast -- to wherever my ride ended up taking me. Nice... but too late. (Maybe next time.)

P2 Test Day

I'm now at the point where I can't tell if the queasiness in my stomach is from the bug I've been fighting -- or hunger from not eating much food the last few days. (Hard to tell.) Since I wasn't sure I'd keep anything down, I skipped breakfast this morning, pulled my hair into a ponytail, swiped on some lip balm (because my lips are cracked), and off to P2 I went. It's testing day!

Wouldn't you know it, Lila teased me about wearing lipstick to class. (Burt's Bees tinted lip balm, Lila!) I still had my earrings on from last Friday, too, because the truth is, I'm super lazy about taking my jewelry off and I tend to wear those things for days on end... so there you go. Not exactly glamorous but I suffered in style.

My P2 test was fair. No improvement, but I wasn't expecting too much. At least I looked better than I felt!

Snow is coming (!)... and I'm in with some kittens for STRAVA's Stravalentine's Day Challenge on Friday. Bwahahaha... we'll see if I actually have any roads to travel on.

Weekend Workout -- P2 Homework

Post-Workout breakfast
Warm applesauce dates & walnuts

Another Saturday session of P2 homework is complete -- my last trainer workout before our mid-point P2 testing on Wednesday. Today's homework club included Alison, Lisa, Jen and myself, (with Shayne getting in his own workout on a bike behind us.) I have no idea what we did -- a bunch of LT and VO2 Max for 8 minutes each -- and then anaerobic intervals (8 of them) for 1 minute each with a 20 seconds rest in between. Ugh. Twenty seconds is not enough rest! I don't think 30 seconds is enough. So not fun.

I left B&S Fitness feeling totally beat, and passed hubby Mike running merrily along with another member of the Wicked Running Club. He looked far too cheerful for someone who was supposed to be working out... but he also looked cute, so he gets a pass. (Way to go, honey!) I beat him home by ten minutes and made myself a bowl of warm applesauce and walnuts and chopped dates for a post-workout breakfast. It's coooold out, and the apples hit the spot.

For the remainder of the weekend, I have Nancy's spin class lined up for tomorrow, and a workout with Keli on Monday night. The big storm predicted earlier in the week is going to miss us by a few hundred miles, and we'll only see a few light flurries here and there. Nothing that should impact us too much. Good weather news!

Snow Day

Yesterday we had a classic New England winter storm... no school... nearly a foot of snow... and our lives slowed down a little.

Julie H. and I exchanged a few emails in the morning, asking each other about the status of our P2 cycling class, which went something like this:

"Are you going to P2?",
"I don't know. Are you going?"
"I don't know. I'm still in my pjs, leaning towards No."
"Also in my pjs, leaning the same way."

A posting on Facebook indicated that classes were canceled -- but an email from coach Shayne said otherwise -- so Julie and I connected by phone and talked each other into braving the snow. My driveway still needed to be shoveled, but having an all-wheel drive with snow mode meant I could just blast over the moguls and deal with the shoveling later. (Ha!) I picked Julie up and made the slow trek through Salem, on yet-to-be-plowed streets. We ended up being late for class. (Sorry coach!)

The workout was tough -- and the rest of the Wednesday gang didn't make it -- but fellow spider John M. joined us, and the three of us gutted it out. (By the middle of the workout, I regretted not staying home in my pjs... but when all was said and done, I was glad I did it. Week 5, done.)

Of course I had a second workout in store for me when I got home -- and had to clear those moguls in the driveway. Will eventually woke from his snow-day coma to give me a hand, and went to work on the 2 foot high snowbank that blocked the end of the driveway. He managed to get a good section of it clear, when a snowplow came by and buried the end of the driveway again. I thought Will was going to have a breakdown. He stood there, in total shock, and I watched as a half dozen emotions crossed his face in a ten-second span. Disbelief, hurt, frustration, anger, despair, resignation... I tried to suppress my laugh as he stood there with the shovel in his hand, looking dejected. "Yes", I told him. "Snowplows do that". He's such a rookie.

P2 Week 4 - Getting Stronger

I'm starting to like, (? if that's possible), my P2 trainer workouts on Saturday mornings... although in the moment, I'm actually counting the minutes until it's over. Today, the P2 homework gang included Lila, Lisa and Jen (riding behind me, keeping the momentum going). It was fun, and tough, and my quads were still burning a few hours later... but it was good to feel that burn and know I pushed myself a little. Week 4 homework, done. Yay!

P2 - Saturday morning "homework"

P2 workout at B&S Fitness
 Front row: Lisa and Lila and Kristen (running)
Back row: Brandi, Shayne, and Jen, 

Nice to get my P2 homework done this week.

Each week, I have a coached workout with Shayne in his Wednesday morning P2 class -- where I'm working (struggling) to improve my speed. I'm not entering any races any time soon, but the P2 endurance class was full, and, well, who doesn't want to get faster? Every Sunday night, Shayne emails the week's homework to be done during the week, and it takes me ten minutes to translate it. (...8 mins LT, 3 mins rest. 4x3 mins VO2, 3 mins rest. 8x40sec anaerobic w/20 sec rest in between...) I wish there was an app to decipher it all.

During the first session of P2, I did the homework on my own... and I admit I didn't push it very hard. Getting the work done with some of the other Spiders makes it easier. And it's great to have Lila translating the workout and leading the way. More fun. Thanks, girl!

Wintery Weekend

Photo by Alison Egan

It's been a while since we've had a frostbite ride, as rain (and then snow) pushed my rides indoors again this weekend. Is it really only the middle of January? Winter sure is dragging, and it feels like it should be March.

On Saturday morning, I joined Lila for some P2 homework, (with coach Shayne getting in his own ride on the computrainer, and chiming in every now and then behind us. "C'mon ladies, pick up that pace.") I have to admit that I didn't put much effort into the homework during my first session of P2. It fell right after my EOD Ride, and I just needed a break after the long season. (I've had my break now -- and it's time to get back in action!) Lila and I had a great session and both agreed that we got more out of the workout doing it together -- so I think we'll make it a regular Saturday morning gig.

Sunday was another wet, snowy, crusty day. I passed a few runners as I headed to the Y for Nancy's spin class this morning. (Dedicated runners!) The snow was light, but the roads were slick and crunchy with ice -- and I was content to just head to the gym.

This gorgeous photo of the snow was taken by spider Alison E. in the Blue Hills today. So pretty! This is a trail I wouldn't mind riding on. (Great photo, Alison!)

Pure Power Cycling (P2) Winds Down

The first session of Coach Shayne's Pure Power Cycling Program (aka P2) ends next week with a final test coming up on Wednesday. Since I haven't been riding daily, my weekly workouts with Shayne, (and a half-assed attempt at the homework), plus a few spin classes each week, have been the most riding I've been doing lately. I'm actually not sure if my power and speed has improved, but we'll see... It really feels like I've gone backwards.

I was too late to sign up for the P2 Endurance class on Saturdays, so I'll be back at it on Wednesday mornings next session, starting in January. I've been riding with fellow Spiders Lila and Kristen, and we have a ton of fun. Lila has dubbed it the Wednesday Rec Ride, which Shayne will say is "So not pro." Hahaha... too funny. (If anyone wants to join us, the website for info is http://www.bnssportscience.com/pure-power-cycling.)

Falling Behind on my Tri Challenge

So Not Pro

Shayne was absent for today's P2 workout, so coach Brandi Dion stepped in as our sub. It was actually a really tough workout, but a lot of fun too, and I gave it my full effort. (It helped that I ate breakfast beforehand.)

I've been watching the numbers creep upwards on the scale since I stopped actively training in mid October, so I've been trying to cut back on calories, (I'm just not burning through them like I used to) -- but I've also learned my lesson on what happens when I don't fuel my workouts -- it's just a waste of time. Today I grabbed a banana and an apricot energy bar before heading out the door. It definitely helped.

I've had an active week so far with muscle conditioning and getting some running done towards my tri. I'll probably finish my bike portion of the challenge by the end of the day Friday, three weeks early... but the running is killing me... and I still have a ton of rowing to do. It's not looking good!

Lesson Number One. Always Eat Something Before P2.

Where are we riding to today?

I've not done well at P2 the last few weeks. It actually feels like I'm moving backwards, not forwards -- but that's entirely my own fault. I jumped back into my workout routine last week without easing into it, and last Wednesday my muscles were just too exhausted.

This week, I skipped breakfast before P2 -- not a wise decision -- I had no energy. Nothing. I haven't been riding every day, and I'm not burning the calories I used to, so I've been trying to cut back... but it was definitely not a good idea to skip breakfast. Nope. (Sorry, Coach!)

Almost there...

Well, it's easier to say I'm getting back on track than it is to actually get there. This week, I returned to my fitness routine a little too quickly, with spin on Monday (followed by P2 homework), Christine's conditioning class on Tuesday, (where she really laid on the cardio), and coach Shayne's Pure Power Cycling workout, (P2), on Wednesday, which was soooo much harder than I expected. I can barely walk today. Yesterday, my calf muscles kept seizing up and I was dying. It feels like someone took a sledge hammer to the back of my calves. Painful.

The numbers on the scale have been creeping up since I stopped riding every day. Total bummer. I'm hoping my muscles recover in time for tomorrow's frostbite ride out of Salem. (Temps are expected to start in the lower 30's). Last year at this time, I pushed through the cold and was riding more... I don't know why I'm having a harder time getting motivated this month.