WU

Zwift Racing League - Race 6 (B) Whole Lotta Lava (VOL KOM X3!)
233 AVG Watts/ 265 NP

I got dropped halfway up the first VOL KOM. Clearly not recovered from my Basecamp/ half vEverest on Saturday. I did recover nicely and staying in another group wasn't hard at all.

This Run was absolutely brutal. Felt like mile 19 of an Ironman Marathon. Lots of core pain -- which I rarely have. Legs aren't too bad, its my lower core that feels like a boxer took practice on.

Frozen Lake Run
Z1 - Active Recovery
103 BPM

I slept in this morning.  Fell sound asleep at 11PM and didn't wake till 11AM.  Guess I needed it!  I stepped on the scale and it read 170.00 exact. I was like "Wow".  Stepped on it again to make sure and yep... 170.00.  No doubt this is a proverbial fork in the road.  My Dream Goal is straight ahead, or I can do an about-face and go backwards.  

I need to keep down the path of discipline and smart choices because I know I'm on the cusp of a personal breakthrough if I do.  Lent starts Wednesday.  I am going to commit to giving up chocolate and junk food.  I'll allow my self clif shot blocks and similar sugary stuff while in the midst of hour-plus training... but that's it.  

The Dream Goal is to get my weight down to the 72/73/74 KG's and get my FTP up to 300 so I'm around 4.0 w/kg.  Due to my frame size I don't know what my lowest/ healthiest weight is.  But I'd love to find out!  As long as I have a handful of fat to grab on my waist, I KNOW there's more to lose!  

Zone 1. Actually legs didn't feel too bad. I was surprised.

Basecamp with Dale (and late join Rusty!)
14,560 FT Elev gain - 4.3X up Alpe du Zwift @ 100% Trainer Difficulty
11/34 casette on brand new Kickr Core
183W Avg/ NP 209

The 3rd time up I was feeling so good, I decided to try and go sub 1 hour on 4th and final time up the Alpe for the first time. I started on the first segment up and I was hammering!! I was definitely going too hard and I felt it as my hips and upper quads started to cramp. And I never felt that part of my body start to cramp! So I texted Dale and Rusty and I was like "I'm abandoning the sub hour attempt on the 4th time up the Alpe. What a stupid idea." But then I felt a caffeine gel and a Monster Energy drink I just cracked open start to kick in. And I though 'well let's at least go for a personal best'. I ratcheted down the power and just kept an honest effort. And to my surprise I was still keeping the watts around 250 to 260 -- which is the minimum needed for a Sub 1 hour. So immediately I texted Dale and Rusty back and I was like "Naw, I'm stlll going for it!"

I blasted my music, Dale sent me lots of encouraging one-liner messages, and before I knew it I was into the single digits of segments left. The whole time my HR was Zone 3 so it hurt (a lot) but it was tolerable. With the final segment to go I couldn't believe I was about to do it. Almost 3 years and 30-something attempts, I was actually going to go Sub 1 hour for the first time. I actually got really choked up and had a moment.

In the end I finished 57:40 ... still :02 seconds behind Doc Dale's PR!!

Basecamp Brick Run
117 BPM

I guess I fueled properly because I had consistent energy this whole Run, and actually could've easily kept going. I think I'm at or near the fittest I've ever been. But it's also cold out which I Love. This would've been much tougher in the heat.

Run #90!

vEverest Basecamp Prep

Got a brand new Kickr Core trainer! And put an 11-34 cassette on it for climbing Alpe du Zwift. Just making sure everything is working, and calibrating the new trainer.

4 X 500's

First pool swim in a year!! I did swim in the Long Island Sound a bit during the summer/fall ... but boy did I miss the pool! Amazingly my stroke was pretty decent, or at least the same as it's been. I was surprised to swim my average time right off the bat. The aerobic engine I built from cycling and running transferred nicely to the pool. Yay!

The Swim Goal for 2021 is to refine my stroke, increase turn-over, and reduce my times to 1:30's so I can nail a sub 30 at EAGLEMAN.

I keep bouncing between 171 and 174 pounds -- water weight fluctuations I'm sure.  But being stuck at plus 170 is making it clear to me I have to really, REALLY dial in my calories if I'm going to keep dropping.  Meaning, lowering portion sizes; being stricter with deserts; and focusing more on eating with a purpose.  And that purpose being fueling pre-workout, during, and post workout (Recovery.). And if a meal doesn't fall into that category it's gotta be a low calorie/ high nutrient density food -- whole fruit or veggie basically.