Four summer challenges to get fitter and faster at 42 (in 8-10 hrs per week).
Obsessed about exercise?
Early in 2019 someone close to me told me they thought I had become obsessed — with exercise! I was unsure how to take this. The way it was said left the statement open for interpretation. Maybe a compliment, perhaps a backhanded insult ? Was I not putting attention elsewhere… Either way this was someone close to me so I took it on board. Why might I have become like this…? In the last two years I have become a super keen cyclist, enthusiastic triathlete and I have got a whole load healthier than I was two years ago. I already outlined in an earlier post that I took on fitness challenges in 2018 to get in shape, shed weight (am 12 kg / 1.8 stone less than I was in 2017) and help me better manage an ongoing chronic health condition. For the most part it has worked. I rarely need to take the medication I was prescribed and am able to self manage. But that is just half of it. Feeling super fit has become somewhat addictive. Once I found the training a chore — now I look forward to it and need to be mindful not to get grouchy when I can’t train! Have I become an addicted exercise junky searching the next endorphin hit?! Not quite!
Broadly assessing my dependency via this self help manual — from credible academic research . I took the test opposite and scored on the safe side of the scale. So ‘what else is driving me to want to get faster, fitter, better on a bike, running on foot and windmilling in the water? (my front crawl technique really is not so elegant…
I think the answer is simple: Combining a desire to stay in shape, not wanting to pill pop for my condition and being aware I am moving to a twilight phase of fitness I decided to square up to a mix of endurance based challenges and personal goals in 2019 to build on 2018. How fit can I get on approximately 10hrs training per week is an interesting question to explore!
Four challenges over the 4 summer months is a motivation to get there. These are for myself but also for a greater cause: proud to be raising money for the Multiple Sclerosis Trust.
MS is something which affected my own family and now impacts my extended family. Thanks to the amazing people at MS Trust who have also given me a place in this year’s ride London event. Please do donate to them through me if you can:
The challenges line up as follows:
CHALLENGE 1: May 12th: Fred Whitton UK cycle sportive in the Lake District 114 miles (185km)/3490 metres of climbing.
Billed as the toughest one day UK amateur cycle event with obscenely steep climbs and the infamous Hardknott pass (apparently the majority of competitors walk this….) Goal: not to walk up any of the climbs! Hardknott peaks at 33% incline and averages about 18% across its entire 2km…This event is all about the steepness and brutal frequency of the climbs which will make for more technically challenging as well as lung busting riding… Thanks to Rob S for agreeing to do this too. It definitely helps with the motivation to know someone else is doing it with me.
CHALLENGE 2: Windsor Olympic Triathlon 16th June 2019, always wanted to do this one and heard the course here can be quite fast. Goal: Can I make it around in less than 2hrs 30min? This will be a tough goal as the quickest I have ever done an Olympic triathlon is way back at the spritely age of 28 (2hrs 37 mins!). Finding another 7 mins 14 years on will be tough :) Training for the wider disciplines (without getting injured) also a challenge.
CHALLENGE 3: L’Etape du tour 21st July 2019. This is the big one and for which real endurance and stamina will be needed. The video below shows the climbs are long and arduous and the descents fast and technical. It is one of the toughest stages of the 2019 Tour de France — the week before the pros do it themselves.
CHALLENGE 4: Ride London: 100 miles / 160km on closed roads 4th August finishing in the capital. Hopefully a lighter challenge to finish off the season and enjoy riding with one of the local Dad’s from SW19mamils Looking forward to some larger group riding and rotation with Evan S. Still some good climbing in and around Surrey Hills but more familiar home territory and hopefully after L’Etape a little more manageable!
Why 8-10 hrs a week?
Early morning training starts don’t kill family and work time. Four of these for 1.5–2.5hrs a week is going to need to be an imperative with an occasional longer ride around those. Fortunately I love the data, time and technology factors and now it is getting lighter again in the early mornings it is much easier to get up! Having an indoor cycle trainer is also a luxury I am fortunate to have to optimise the time available without the weather issues. I am super lucky to have a man/paincave at the end of the garden.
I log almost all my activity fairly in an online service called Strava which has some neat ways for me to track ongoing efforts (i know so far in 2019 am managing to fit in 8.5 hrs per week) but I do that again for the data and so I can track what I have done over time versus how I feel and so I can take on my own mini challenges. Strava allows you to time portions of your route (known as segments) and compete against others and yourself — all useful to the overall training motivation. The roaring forties? At 42 years of age I am arguably already on a physiological descent for achieving any peak cardiovascular level of fitness. At least this is what most research says although there is also a defensible view the early forties can be a great age for endurance activity!
“Obsessed is just a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated.”
-Russell Warren
Of course it is always an easy option to steal a quote to suit your agenda. The simple truth is I enjoy the training, working towards goals and pushing myself physically — whilst I still can! When my day job is largely a sedentary one this is a release and helps me stay healthier happier and hopefully a nicer person (am sure that will be contested :) So I stand by that explanation on why I have become ‘obsessed.’
