Friday, May 30, 2008

Tapering for the BIG Event

Ok, you've got a BIG race coming up and you're wondering how much/how little training you should do with the remaining days. Train too much up until the event and your legs will be tired, train too little and you'll be stale. But, what is too much...or too little? To peak for the BIG event, you want to reduce your training volume the week before but maintain the intensity. So, if you've been averaging say 200 miles per week on the road, cut it down to less than half of that..around 75 miles per week. Continue doing interval training because that will help retain muscle enzymes that help you process lactate. This type of taper combines rest with intensity. It allows recovery but encourages speed. Fast riding will also allow your neuromuscular system to stay accustomed to going fast when you ask it to go fast during the event.

Say you have a 40k TT coming up. If so, do 5 min. intervals at race pace intensity (L4/L5). If you're doing a shorter TT or a Crit, do 3 min. intervals instead. Remember, you don't want to do too many of these intervals. You're just trying to give your legs a wake-up call without tiring them out.

Here's a sample pre-week interval workout for a 10 mi. TT I have coming up. Don't forget to warm-up for at least 15 minutes prior to the intervals:
Day 7- 5x3 at L4/L5
Day 6- 4x3 at L4/L5
Day 5- 3x3 at L4/L5
Day 4- 2x3 at L5
Day 3- 1x3 at L6
Day 2- 30-60 minutes of easy riding at L2/L3
Day 1- Race Day

Go Fast! Good Luck! Have Fun! Coach Rob

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Burning a Match

We all know what burning a match is...we did it as kids. Didn't we? At least I played with matches as a kid...hahaha. And, we all know what a matchbook is right? If you don't, that's the paper/carboard jacket that all of the matches are held in place with. And, there are a certain number of matches within this matchbook. There could be 3, 5 or even 20...but nobody has an infinite number. Sorry Lance, not even you.

So, what's this have to do with cycling? Well, every cyclist has a matchbook with a discrete number of matches in it. When you're done all your matches..you bonk...game over..end of race day...especially if you burn them prematurely. Question is: how do you know how many matches you have in your matchbook? Equally important question is: how do you know when you burned a match? I'll answer the initial question first: the best way of knowing how many matches are in your matchbook is through hard training and/or racing experience. The answer to the second question is: you can tell if you burned a match based on the following chart:

All you have to know is your FTP, and you can determine what a burned match is for different durations. Pretty nice/easy eh? For more information on, "What is a Match?" refer to Allen/Coggan, "Training and Racing with a Power Meter".

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Derby Ride- May 25th at 0900

Our next D-Town Derby Ride is this Sunday, May 25th at 0900 leaving from Cold Spring Elementary School. (See details on CB Velo Blog for more info) Hope to see you all there!

2008 Philadelphia Amateur Time Trial

Join me on Saturday, June 7th, 2008 in Philly for the "2008 Philadelphia Amateur Time Trial". You can register online with BikeReg.com The TT is a flat out/back course on West River Drive starting at the Philadelphia Art Museum. The distance is 8.4 miles and all categories included. Starting time is 0730. If the Category listing on their flyer is any indication of proposed starts it is: Men Cat 5, Cat 4, 40+, 50+/60+, Cat 3, Pro 1/2, Women then Juniors. Start times will be posted one week prior to the event at: www.tristatevelo.com

The event is hosted by Tri-State Velo Club and is a Commerce Bank Official Event. It's also a PA Cycling Association BAR Event.

Online registration will close at 11:45 pm on Wed, June 4. There is NO day of registration!!

Contact me if you're thinking of going, or already signed-up. mullerrj@comcast.net

Monday, May 19, 2008

Lake Placid Ironman Training Weekend

Just got back from a weekend training in Lake Placid. I'm not participating in Ironman Lake Placid in July, but I had an AWESOME time training with those that were. The weather was PERFECT, food/drink good, and the company even better. If you're interested in joining me and TWiley Sports next year, drop me an email and I'll tell you more about what we're planning...which will be bigger/better I'm sure. Here are some pics from this years weekend:
http://www.pbase.com/mullerrj/lake_placid