Have finally bought a set of scales – cheap ones from Ikea – to see where I’m up to with my training regime. Once I got the blighted thing set up properly and it stopped telling me that I have put on 8kg I was quite happy.
Being told you have gone up to 84kg from 77kg after nearly 3 months of training and racing comes as a shock and disappointment. Being told you are down to somewhere between 72 and 74kg is far more exciting news. Last year I got down to between 71 and 73kg before the Etape so I’m well ahead of schedule now.
Dare I hope to get under 70kg this year or would that. as if there is such a thing, be too light? Obviously the lighter you tip in at, the less weight to carry up the hills. The result is an increase in the all-important power to weight ratio. I’d imagine that with consistent training it’s hardly likely you aregoing to reach a point where you lose power as a result of weight loss but I suppose I’d better check.
The last few weeks I’ve been moving house and doing a bit of racing so I’ve been off the longer rides and doing a lot more of the short sharp stuff which builds up my thresholds and gets me used to riding fast and hard. I think it’s valuable to mix up your training for the Etape as doing the same long rides over and over can get a bit wearing.
While they do build up that all important endurance over distance it’s useful to remember that each of the climbs is going to require consistent power over at least an hour or three. The best way to train for that is by doing time trials and efforts which require you to be constantly pushing and riding hard, like criterium races.