Roy's Weblog

TSS 191.3 IF 0.761 CCCC 100K Group Ride

2011-08-20T15:34:00.000+01:00

Great ride with CCCC. A few more new faces joined in for today's ride. I had a great talk with a guy called Phil (a triathlete) who was cycling on a fixie. Man I'm hooked, I'm seriously going to see if I can pick up a second one. The beauty about a fixie, you have to work, no matter if you are trying to stay with the group or even on the climbs, you HAVE to work. An excellent bike for commuting, and has all the advantages of little or no maintenance! How COOL is that.
Last fifteen minutes we opened up our legs and power was ON! Who said intervals can't be FUN!!
Metrics
Duration 3:21:05 / Work 1906 kJ / NPWr 195 watts / Variable Index 1.23 / Decoupling 3.68% / Distance 101.1 km / Elevation Gain 1301 ft / Power Max 696 watts, Avg 158 watts / Heart Rate Max 181 bpm, Avg 133 bpm / Cadence Avg 96 rpm / Speed Max 32mph, Avg 18.7mph / Temperature Avg 17.4C

TSS 171.5 IF 0.757 SST + 2 x 20's Low End Tempo

2011-08-19T22:40:00.000+01:00

Metrics
Duration 3:00:39 / Work 1936 kJ / TSS 171.5, IF 0.757 / NPwr 194w / Variable Index 1.08 / Power Max 467, APwr 179 watts / HR Max 164, Avg 145 bpm / Temperature 23.1C

MFRA Cork County Cycling Club 30K Leisure Rides

2011-08-18T22:25:00.000+01:00

"Pace was higher tonight lads", well lets see.
It certainly was. A big well done to the new members this evening for keeping it up. 15 minutes quicker! APwr last Thursday was 87 watts, this evenings we averaged 127 watts.
ASpeed 13.2 v 16.1 mph.
Well done again to all this evening, nice ride, and good company!
See you all SOON!

QA I / 3 sets of 8 Ints 45 sec 137% AT On 90 sec Off / TSS 98.6, IF 0.861

2011-08-18T00:44:00.000+01:00

Metrics
Duration 1:20:23 / Work 820 kJ / TSS 98.6, IF 0.861 / NPwr 220 watts / Variable Index 1.29 / Decoupling 4.38% / Power Max 7.8 w/kg / HR Max 168, Avg 137 bpm / Temperature 22.0C

2011-08-18T00:27:00.000+01:00

Metrics
Duration 1:27:58 / Work 1061 kJ / TSS 105.4, IF 0.851 / NPwr 218 / Variable Index 1.08 / Decoupling 8.99% / Power Max 5.2 w/kg, Avg 2.9 w/kg / HR Max 172, Avg 151 bpm / Cadence Avg 96 rpm / Temperature 22.1C

Cork County Cycling Club 120k Route Cork to Macroom TSS 153.5 / IF 0.836

2011-08-13T23:25:00.000+01:00

With my Achilles feeling near 100%, I was unsure what to do today. I was going to chance some SST, but with the weather been dry (unusual!) I decided I'd ride a portion of Cork County Cycling Club's 120k upcoming cycle, and hold off from doing any intervals till Monday, depending of course how I felt after today's ride.
I've rode this route from time to time (as far as Coachford) where I turn off left and head through Farnanes, but this route continues onto Macroom, which is where I turned back, as I was short on time, evenings are getting shorter and shorter, so I had to be mindful of that.
I rode to Macroom nice and steady, mainly top end of Endurance and my Achilles was feeling fine, nothing at all. With the local authorities short on cash, road resurfacing is low on their agenda, so there are places to be watchful as the surface is pretty poor, but overall I was surprised to find it was very rideable all the way to Macroom.
Passing through the Lee Valley into Dripsey, Coachford has to be one of the most scenic areas Cork city has to offer. One of these days I will stop at that cottage type restaurant that displays a woman holding a pie, it looks delicious!!
I had a lot more fun on the way back, I decided to up the pace, and power back in Tempo, this time I headed back the main road.
Towards the end of the ride a local farmer pulled up next to me with his tractor and long trailer. Aah I said to myself, time to bang out some intervals. What FUN!! When I'd overtake the trailer & tractor cars slowed down and even the farmer was giving the thumbs up and jumping up and down in his seat indicating that he was flooring it.
I'd pull ahead maxing out, and recover by pulling to the inside and leave him overtake me again.
I'd then draft in behind and pull my Heart Rate down and then Power ON again and do the same thing 3 times over.
I can tell you I was struggling to remain just in front of him on the last interval.
I then recovered cycling home frothing at the mouth!
That's the way to finish a nice ride.
Recover with one of my favorite smoothies, blend 1/2 mango, banana, bio-live yogurt, honey, ice and add 1/4-1/2 of pineapple juice with the rind on! DELICIOUS!

Here's today's Metrics
Duration 2:13:48 / Work 1472 kJ / TSS 153.5, IF 0.836 / Variable Index 1.17 (Pacing), Decoupling -6.54% / Distance 69.46 Km / Elev. Gain 1102 ft / Power Max 968, Avg 183 / HR Max 182 , Avg 142 bpm / Temp 17.3 Celsius

Cork County Cycling Club Leisure Cycle

2011-08-12T00:04:00.000+01:00

Duration 1:31:53 / Work 479 kJ / TSS 52.4 / IF 0.591 / NPwr 151 / Variable Index 1.74 / Elev Gain 531 ft / Power Max 663 watts; Avg 87 watts / HR Max 171; Avg 107 bpm / Cadence 84 / Temp Avg 19C

TrainingPeaks Blog - Posts - How to Nail Down a Fueling Strategy

2011-07-26T22:30:00.000+01:00

TrainingPeaks Blog - Posts - How to Nail Down a Fueling Strategy

Total Protection - Pika Packworks & A Condom

2011-07-26T00:01:00.000+01:00

This Thursday I will ride from Cork City to The Giant Causeway in County Antrim. A total of 540km.

There will be 3 stages. 1st Stage Cork to Portlaoise, 2nd Stage Portlaoise to Dundalk, 3rd Stage Dundalk to The Giant Causeway.

The final night I'll be staying in Jurys Inn in Belfast and instead of coming back in the van with the rest of crew on Monday, I'll get the train from Belfast to Dublin and to home to Cork on Sunday.

This suits me a lot better, for a number reasons, primarily family and also I'm a bad traveller, and I would dread the long spin in a transit.

So for me to travel on my own I'll need to carry my bike too, and thats where this amazing bag comes in. Its the Pika Packworks. Pika Packworks is a one man show. Mark an ex pro cyclist was fed up having to pay to excessive airline charges for his bike when he'd be traveling. There had to be an easier way, and he designed and created the bag from start to finish all be himself. The bag is so successful that many pros use it. The bike bag could essentially pass for a set of golf clubs.

Now you could spend $1,000 on heavy duty solid cases. The weight alone of these cases are crazy and there are so cumbersome, they just don't do it, more trouble than they are worth. Though the single advantage a solid case has over a soft shell is that your bike is totally protective. But with that said I think a soft shell has more going for it than a solid one, albeit it has to be of good quality.

Today it took me a long 22 minutes to pack my bag from start to finish. If I was to do it again, I would hazard a guess of around 15 minutes max.

If your looking a quality bike bag that will last for years and will keep your baby safe and sound look no further than the Pika.

Oh if your wondering why I put condom into the title, if you look at one of the photos you'll see a chain cover, aka a chain condom.

So now I can carry my bike over my shoulder, get a taxi, a bus, train, heck maybe even a crosser!!

3 sets of 8 Ints 45 sec 137% AT On 90 sec Off

2011-07-20T02:30:00.000+01:00

The Smart Blood Pressure Monitor, by Withings

2011-05-03T22:14:00.000+01:00

Well it finally arrived. Alongside Racer-mate One, which is due for release real soon (advertised Fall 2010), I've also been waiting on the sidelines for most of this year for the sale of the Blood Pressure Monitor by Withings.

Why the excitement you may ask? Well for one I also have the Withings' Wifi Body Scale and I've been weighing myself nearly each day since November 2010.

I bet each and everyone of you 'DREAD' the scales. It is probably one of the most important tools that anyone should have especially if you're trying to loose weight, active in sports etc. Yet stepping on a Withings' scale does bring a smile on my face even if I gain a pound or two.

The reason why is simple, after it monitors your weight it sends your metrics to your Withing's account online where you can track your progress over time, really cool. It also (if you permit) post your results to social network sites like Facebook and Twitter, and I think thats a real cool feature.

Your so called 'friends' can then leave a remark, a 'Like', or even a slagging if you gained a pound or two. So for the scales you just stand and the metrics are recorded automatically for you, no micro SD cards to remove and transfer to your computer and then upload to your account like the Zeo does.

Sorry Zeo, an amazing tool but one that lacks wifi.

Time is really short these days and we need more devices to be wireless, so all the mundane tasks can be automated. Its called Time Management!

Right back to Withings' Smart Blood Pressure Monitor.

Here are some pictures

So there it is boxed and unboxed.

It works by connecting it to any iOS device, like an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch and transmit the stored results to your Withing's account and you can also send the results as an email.

The email function I like a lot as I can post my results to my blog automatically without having to login into my account and transmit the details.

I'll be using this each morning after waking up and primarily focused on my RHR to see if there's any fluctuations. This can all be done in under a minute.

When I was training for running the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu marathon back in 2008, each morning after waking I would go into a spare bedroom, lay down on the bed with my Polar HR monitor strap on and setup my watch to take my RHR. This could take up to 5 minutes or more to do, attach the strap, squeal with it been so cold going on, start the watch to search for a reading and then lay back and start the monitoring.

Under a minute (in single mode) from start to finish the Withing's blood pressure monitor can do all that and send the metrics to your online account and email to your blog, doctor or whoever you have it configured to send the results to.

Inside the cylinder tube are 4 AAA alkaline batteries used to pump the cuff when attached to your arm.

Correct posture is to rest your arm on a table and relax your arm.
Correct cuff placement is to put the cuff around your arm with the cylinder tube positioned on the inner side of your arm, around 2cm above the elbow and then wrap the cuff snugly.
Correct level is to make sure the cuff is at the same level of your heart, if not just place it on a cushion. I'll be doing this lying down on a bed each morning, just to keep it at the same position for each and every reading.

Connecting it to your iOS device

Unlock your device
Plug the monitor connector to the device
The Withings application will automatically start and a quick start instruction will start (you can uncheck this to not start for future readings) note if you are using iOS 3 you will have to launch the application manually
Now just press the start button. The metric values will be stored in the memory of the device.

There are two modes, Single & Auto

Single

After pressing the start button on the measurement screen the cuff starts to inflate automatically. As its inflating the monitor automatically determines your ideal inflation level. It detects your pulse during inflation. You need to remain still throughout for an accurate reading.

You can of course stop the reading any time by pressing the Stop button and it will begin to deflate immediately

As the cuff deflates the heartbeat symbol flashes with every heart beat, and when measurement is complete the cuff completely deflates. Blood pressure and pulse rate are displayed.

You can then press ok to see your results in advance mode and rotate your iOS device for it to display your graphs./

Auto

The auto mode takes three measurements separated by an interval time in order to calculate a precise average of your blood pressure.

Interval times are 30, 60, 90 & 120 seconds

I will post later to give an exact time for all three readings.

UPDATE - Total time 3 minutes 03 seconds, with 30 second intervals set.

Cleaning

To clean the device just use a soft dry cloth, and the cuff can be cleaned by a moisten cloth with soap. If its going to be idle for sometime like any battery operated device it is advised to remove the four alkaline batteries.

Pictures of application and progress in auto mode. Interval set at 30 seconds. Total duration 3 minutes 03 seconds

So there you have it. Another excellent product by Withings, and one that I believe alongside with my scales will prove to be an invaluable tool for well into the future.

Oh and I nearly forgot, price is €129 for the scales and for the monitor.

My blood pressure

2011-05-03T14:36:00.000+01:00

Here are my blood pressure data:

Date: 2011-05-03 02:33:18
SYS/DIA: 122/75
BPM: 55

Sent from my iPad

MFRA WKO+

2011-04-16T00:14:00.001+01:00

This week was unusual to say the least. Much more about that at the end of the week, but one thing that I really learned this week is that Sleep / Rest plays a pivotal role in recovery.
I've been tracking my sleep all week, and it has been shocking to say the least.
My highest ZQ was 58, again more on that towards the end of the week, and the reason/s why.
Today I want to make a quick note on MFRA a feature built into WKO+ software. It stands for Multi File / Range Analysis. What it does, it allows you to compare a set of ranges eg intervals from within a ride or compare a number of different rides.
All this week, my legs have felt heavy, there was days where it was a struggle just to turn the crank, yes just to turn the pedals at the start of the ride felt like a huge effort.
On Wednesday I decided to do some SST (Sweet Spot Training) 89-92% AT, which were 2 x 20's @ 92% AT, but I knew from the get go I was going to struggle.
I felt I was coming down with something, not a cold, but all my left side ached and I found it difficult to do anything with my left hand, very strange indeed, so I was putting it down to some virus. I can now say that it seems to have all cleared up and no aching whatsoever.

Now back to MFRA. I loaded up a previous SST that I did, which was last Sunday albeit it was a 3 x 20's, but that doesn't really matter I wanted to focus on those first two intervals and compare with Wednesday's ride. Looking at the picture, the first row shows my Power, second row show my Heart Rate and the third is my cadence.
I'm only interested in the Heart Rate row. Power & Cadence are constant as you see.
Now look at my Heart Rate, wow a huge difference. The first intervals' shows an Avg difference of 8 bpm throughout, and the second intervals' show a difference of 10 bpm, and I'm sure if I had done a third interval the difference would have been greater again maybe even by 14 bpm.
With that I said I had to take Thursday off and recover, more sleep, more vegetable juices (nutrition).
So today I rode a 2 hour ride @ IF 0.815, a good Tempo pace and I felt good through out. No aching from my left side, just felt both physically and mentally much much better.
With that I have another 20's SST planned for Monday and I'll recheck and compare again.
Anyway thats just a glimpse and one of the benefits of using MFRA from within WKO+.

Mango Go Go Gooo!!

2011-04-12T13:12:00.001+01:00

Juice 1/4 Pineapple
Blend the following....
1/2 Mango
1 Banana
150g Bio Live Natural Yoghurt
Ice
Pour in Pineapple Juice

Makes 1.5 litres
Great for a breakfast & recovery drink

1:56:03 Tempo (Z3) Ride TSS 129.6 IF 0.82

2011-01-15T17:39:00.000Z

Duration 1:56:03 / Work 1520 kJ / TSS 129.6 IF 0.82 / NPwr 227 watts / APwr 218 watts / Variable Index 1.04 / Decoupling 6.34% / Power Max 453 watts / Power Avg 218 watts / Heart Rate Max 159 bpm / Heart Rate Avg 146 bpm

Story So Far Week 4

2011-01-14T00:38:00.000Z

1:30:20 69.3% Tempo Z3 Ride TSS 101 IF 0.821

2011-01-04T00:02:00.000Z

Duration 1:30:20 / Work 1207 kJ / TSS 101 IF 0.821 / NPwr 227 watts / Variable Index 1.02 / Decoupling 7.43% / Distance 37.997 miles / MaxPwr 438 watts; AvgPwr 223 watts / MaxHr 157 watts; AvgHr 145 bpm

1:33:10 4 x 9's @ 100% FTP TSS 101.7 IF 0.811

2011-01-03T00:12:00.000Z

Duration 1:33:10 / Work 1104 kJ / Nrm Pwr 225 watts / MaxPwr 334 watts; AvgPwr 198 watts / HRMax 173 bpm; HRAvg 146 bpm / Decoupling -18.47% / Variable Index 1.14 / Distance 38.215 miles

Story so far - Week 2

2011-01-02T23:34:00.000Z

ZQ 64 / 55:45 4 x 9's Intervals @ 95% FTP TSS 67 IF 0.853

2010-12-28T23:02:00.000Z

ZQ 64 / Weight 151.9 lbs / Duration 55:45 / Work 719 kJ / TSS 67 IF 0.853 / Normalized Power 236 watts / Variable Index 1.1 / decoupling 4.74% / Distance 22.107 miles / Power Max 325 watts, Avg 215 watts / Heart Rate Max 169 bpm, Avg 149 bpm / Cadence Avg 88 rpm

ZQ 83 / 1:02:48 Low End Tempo Ride TSS 61.4 IF 0.769

2010-12-28T02:16:00.000Z

Had a good sleep. I didn't wake once, which was great. Having uninterrupted sleep is a godsend when you have 3 young babies in the house.

18% Deep Sleep is pretty good for recovery.

I certainly felt some tiredness in my legs today.

I need to work on getting to bed much earlier, have a more organised day.

So the area of focus at the moment is to get more sleep!

Low End Tempo Rides will always be done at least once or twice a week, usually after a lot of TSS.
Even though most of my time is spent in my Endurance Zone (Z2) (47.5%) it certainly does not feel like that.
Its certainly the right type of ride after a heavy days training, I just could not mentally do anything greater than 60% of Zone 2 ride indoors. Mentally I just wouldn't hack it.

Duration 1:02:48 / Work 782 kJ / TSS 61.4 IF 0.769 / Normalized Power 213 watts / Variable Index 1.03 / Decoupling 0.41% / Distance 26.276 miles / Power Max 344 watts, Avg 208 watts / Heart Rate Max 166, Avg 146 bpm

151.2 lbs / 1:15:33 Steady Tempo Climb TSS 79.5 IF 0.797

2010-12-04T22:45:00.000Z

Weight 151.2 lbs
Duration 1:15:33 / Work 965 kJ / TSS 79.5; IF 0.797 / Norm Power 221 watts / Variable Index 1.04 / Decoupling -1.18% / Distance 30.37 miles / Power 387 watts Max; 213 watts Avg / Heart Rate 168 bpm Max; 153 bpm Avg

ZQ 69 / 1:15:30 Aerobic Endurance Ride TSS 62.1 IF 0.705

2010-12-01T23:02:00.000Z

Duration 1:15:30 / Work 814 kJ / TSS 62.1 IF 0.705 / Normalized Power 195 watts / Variable Index 1.09 / Decoupling 4.77% / Distance 26.984 miles / Power Max 367 watts; Avg 180 watts / Heart Rate Max 173 bpm; Avg 137 bpm / Cadence Avg 80 rpm

ZQ 56 / 1:15:29 Mostly Tempo (Z3) TSS 84.7 IF 0.823

2010-11-30T21:28:00.000Z

ZQ 56 / Weight 153.4 / Duration 1:15:29 / Work 970 kJ / TSS 84.7; IF 0.823 / Norm Power 228 watts / Variable Index 1.06 / Decoupling 6.79% / Distance 29.668 miles / Power 445 watts Max; 214 watts Avg / Heart Rate 173 bpm Max; 147 bpm Avg

58:32 Tempo (Zone 3) 4 x 9's with 3 min recoveries @ 85% AT TSS 55.6 IF 0.758

2010-11-29T22:40:00.000Z

Duration 58:32:49 / Work 662 kJ / TSS 55.6 IF 0.758 / Norm Power 210 watts / Variable Index 1.11 / Decoupling 5.17% / Distance 21.939 miles / Power 303 Max; 189 Avg / Heart Rate 163 Max; 142 Avg