Thursday, September 13, 2007

Evening Ride; Morning Swim and Steam

Bike solo - Al to CC to FH - 15.2mi
Total Time: 50:57
Avg mph: 17.9

Was off work a bit early so I was able to get in 15 miles before it got too dark. I have a feeling that post-work rides are coming to an end until next April. It was a good ride but my chain was making a bit of noise and I had trouble shifting in one of the gears (RD) - not sure what is causing it but I am going to try to get it in the shop today or tomorrow to get it fixed before my long ride this weekend. I also focused on being one with the bike and tried to think of the pedals as an extension of my body instead of something that I am pushing on to move the bike. I kept thinking there is no me and the bike - when I am riding I am the bike and the bike is me. This also helped me relax my upper back and shoulders - not sure why, maybe it was just because I was more relaxed in general.

Morning Swim - 750m
Total Time: 14:26

Up early for a swim - I wasn't as quick to get out of bed as usual, maybe because my "sleeping in" day, (up at 6am instead of 5) which was supposed to be yesterday, turned into a running day. Once I was in the water I woke up a bit but my legs did feel heavy. About halfway through I really focused on keeping a long body and that helped me feel more streamlined in the water instead of feeling like my lower back was sinking. I think part of this was a lack of buoy pushing on my part as well. I ended at 750 and headed into the steam room (which was filling up with steam right as I walked in) for a few minutes of stretching and warmth.

1 comment:

jen said...

Great job on the ride and the swim! I love your mental imagery with the "there is no me and the bike.." thing. That's the kind of thing that gives you an advantage over other athletes that are only strong cyclists. You can only do so much with your body, at some point it becomes a mental game, and you've already started working on that.