Cadence Training

So after reading up on how to improve my performance, it appears that Cadence is the key. So I splashed out on an upgrade GPS with Cadence sensor. Boy did that make a difference, I certainly suffered more.

It seemed to slow me down a little, but we'll see if it brings about the improvement over time. It certainly helped with managing my heart rate.

Reap the Wild Wind

Spring may have finally sprung but it's brought with it some ridiculous winds, been looking at the long range forecast since Saturday and it doesn't drop below 40-50mph gusts until Wednesday.

I may be investing in a turbo trainer this week as the wind has been seriously hampering my training over the last couple of months.

It stalled, but I'm back in the saddle.

I managed  just over 6 weeks and almost 4 of those on the new "road" bike, the Saracen Hack 2 which made a big difference to my average & maximum speeds ( not so sure it had a huge impact on my slower sections). Then the whole training regime stalled, it just fell flat as I got bogged down in work stuff again. However, I've turned a corner, got on top of things again (shame the weather hasn't still very wintery in North Wales for April), but in the space of a week I've managed  70 miles and held up a reasonable average on the mph considering my 6 week lay-off.

With my aim being to raise £1,000 each for McMillan, Cancer Research UK, and the Alaw Ward at Ysbyty Gwynedd. With the route being 300 miles, if I can get 1,000 people to sponsor me just a penny per mile then I can hit my goal.

Watch this space for more updates & to track my progress.

Thanks for looking,
Pete

One month later....

So a month on from deciding on this challenge, I've managed to get some training in since the beginning of January, but the last week has been tricky since the snow arrived. Just got to keep the motivation and try not to suffer too much when I can eventually get back on the road.

In other news, I've managed to lose 4 pounds since I started training (not dieting, just exercising more).

Looking forward to switching to a road bike, I've done OK on the mountain bike with the 2" knobbly tyres but hope that a different gear ratio on the roadie and the reduced rolling resistance might help to increase my average MPH.

One of our suppliers, Madison, have done me a special deal on one of these, the Saracen Hack 2, and I'm really looking forward to getting on the road with it. I chose this over an out & out road bike because of the state of some of the back roads that I'm training on round here and felt this might be that bit more robust for the combination of my weight and the mileage that I'm going to be doing on it during training. I'll update soon and let you know how I get on with it.