7/29 Page Mill redux

Started the day feeling kind of sluggish (wondering if I really wanted to go up Page Mill), and had major problems clipping in and out of my new pedals, so I spent ten minutes fiddling with the pedals. (It's now fixed; I can clip in and out easily, thank goodness.) But the climb was much, much easier than I'd expected; it's a LOT easier to climb it when it isn't a zillion degrees out. I barely had to rest at all and all but the really steep portions were relatively easy--I think I'm actually getting into shape!

I had also built Page Mill in my mind up into a huge, difficult climb, which I think now was a mistake: it made it intimidating, rather than simply another goal to reach. (Of course, the fact that everyone, as soon as you mention Page Mill, looks awestruck and says "Wow!" doesn't help much.) I think now that I've been up it a couple of times, I'm much less intimidated than I was. Once it starts getting easy, I'm going to move on and tackle what my coach suggested: Mt. Diablo.

Mt. Diablo is supposed to be a near-perfect match for Monitor Pass, which is one of the mountain passes of the Markleeville Death Ride. So, one can judge likely performance in Markleeville by looking at performance on Mt. Diablo. This is really important because Markleeville isn't just a long ride, it's also a race against time: they close the roads for the event and reopen them to cars at specified times, so if you don't reach each checkpoint before closing time, you don't finish the ride. So I look forward to practicing on Mt. Diablo and getting an idea of how much faster I need to get.

Page Mill stats:

From Arastradero Road to Skyline Blvd:
1:13 on bike, 1:33 total time

38.75 miles, avg. speed 11.9 mph

Just spoke to the gym and got a new trainer

I felt a bit bad about not giving this guy more of a chance, but I applied the very simple test of "Would I pay $75/session for what I think he can do for me?" and the answer was no, so I called up Gold's Gym and asked for a trainer with sports-specific training experience instead. I'm going to interview/consult with her next Tuesday, and it sounds much more promising--she coaches rowing and teaches spinning classes, so she's used to working with athletes and probably has a stronger background than the guy I talked to this morning.

I'm feeling pretty good about myself for having had the guts to go in and change something that didn't feel right to me, rather than meekly accepting the trainer I was given.

Meanwhile, Mike has introduced me to a cool site on weight training for women!

Not very impressed with my personal trainer (so far)...

He seemed kind of slow on the uptake and was trying to "sell" me on a more generalized workout. He also wanted me to do one session a week focusing on specific body parts rather than doing a full, general workout each time...I'm not sure what to think about that. All the other trainers I've worked with, and the books I've read, suggest doing a full-body workout or at least working out each area three times a week. I'll have to do some more research on the Web.

I'm debating asking for a different personal trainer, but will wait a session and see what he comes up with w/r/t a workout schedule.

Planning to go up Page Mill Road again on Saturday, and Congress Springs Road on Sunday. I've been told that Markleeville is actually not as hard as Page Mill Road--it's a sustained 7% grade or so, and Page Mill gets up to 17% grade in spots--so it'll be good to train on slightly shallower grades as well.

My coach, though, told me that I only really need to train starting in September-October...I could laze around the rest of the summer and only go on one or two rides per week if I felt like it. I don't feel like it; I want to maintain my fitness level and lose weight, and the quickest way to do that is to do long rides on weekends.

I was particularly disappointed in that the personal trainer didn't have any suggestions on weight loss regimens, besides "eat 1200-1500 calories/day". I was expecting better than that; 24 Hour Fitness gave me more concrete suggestions and measured my basal metabolism for me.

So, so far I'm not impressed by the personal trainers, and I wouldn't pay $75/session for this one; but we'll see how it goes.

Starting a training diary for Markleeville...

So, I haven't signed up for the Markleeville Death Ride yet, because registration isn't open, but I'm determined to do it. I have a cycling coach lined up for the ride already (Curtis Cramblett), and I'm starting to prep now. I just switched my gym membership from 24 Hour Fitness to Gold's Gym, because Gold's is closer to work and easier to get to. My objectives for the next twelve months (cribbed from the sheet I'm giving my new personal trainer this morning) are:

1. Complete the Markleeville Death Ride, a cycling event in July 2007. It is 127 miles long, has 15,000 feet of climbing, and traverses 5 mountain passes.
2. Ride and complete AIDS Lifecycle, a 7-day, 585-mile cycling event in June 2007. (This will be my fourth AIDS Lifecycle, so I'm confident I can do it.)
3. Bring left leg up to 100% strength compared to right leg. (Reconstructive knee surgery has left it—three years later—with only about 80-90% of the strength of the right leg. Knee stabilizer muscles also need work.)

Interim goals:

• Lose 10-15 lbs of fat (to improve hill climbing speed)
• Build strength in lower body, especially quads/hamstrings
• Build cardio fitness
• Learn good form in lifting with free weights.

Objective for four personal training sessions:

• Set a basic plan for weight loss over the next 3 months
• Lay out a weightlifting lower and upper body workout plan for the next 3-6 months
• Learn proper form for free weight exercises such as squats, deadlifts, and other exercises for which proper form is vital
• Get some references for independent learning afterwards

Timeline:

• July – September: Lose weight, maintain cardio conditioning, maybe gain a little muscle
• September – December: Put on as much lower-body muscle as possible; start working on cardio fitness
• December-March: Taper off gym workouts and spinning classes in favor of road cycling, build strong cardio base
• March – June: Advanced cycling workouts focusing on speed, hill-climbing, and endurance.
• June-July: AIDS Lifecycle and Markleeville Death Ride

So that's my rough calendar...this blog will track how I'm doing along the way.