...through the eyes and youth of Annika Loaring...and from the wings, strength, courage, and spirit of Elena Loaring:
The fastest marathon on Canadian soil was run this morning in perfect conditions at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
Kenneth Mungara, of Kenya, ran 2:07:58, the fastest marathon ever run on Canadian soil. Speed River's Reid Coolaet ran 6" under the Canadian Olympic A standard...a huge PB of 2:11:23...the 5th fastest marathon run by a Canadian, and the fastest marathon run by a Canadian in 24 years. Speed River's Eric Gillis also set a huge PB, stopping the clock at 2:12:08. Sharon Cherop, of Kenya, won the women’s event in a very fast time of 2:22:42….almost 6’ faster than any women has run a marathon on Canadian soil.
Congrats to LPC's Helen Robertson for completing her first marathon…and under her goal time. And it was another inspiring performance by Margaret Wojtowicz in the half mary.
I had a blast capturing footage ‘on the fly’ from my GoPro camera that was mounted on the handlebar of my road bike. Mike Hay and I had an amazing 50k bike ride….riding almost the entire course. Here is some awesome footage of the men’s race…focusing on Guelph’s Reid Coolsaet and Eric Gillis:
5 reps up col de watson…off to the jungle…
and edited Audrey Meadows by Ian Donald:
RTC August 5th Bike at Audrew Meadows (1k sub-division loop). Unedited footage of "meat" portions of main set.
Warning: no soundtrack and might be very boring for many…perhaps Ian Donald…a man of many talents…will edit this into a spectacular piece?
The Squad: AH, AQ, ID, RP, TB, TL.
Coach: JL (filling in for CT while he is in Europe coaching the Nat Team)
The session: WU: 30' ez. PS: 5 loops of paceline and cornering. MS: 1 loop hard, 1 ez, 2 hard, 2 ez, 3 hard, 3 ez. CD: 30' ez.
The pace was “On” during the “hard”…a “harder” pace than intended..which usually ends up being the case when you put a bunch of motivated young guns on a 1k crit course. All in all, a good session after a solid 5k swim, short session with some “meat’, that will help simulate the gong show first couple k in Kelowna. More meat tomorrow :)
A looooong time ago…before I became a passionate tri-geek, I was a passionate football (soccer) player. Not surprisingly, I closely follow the World Cup. Here are my arm-chair predictions:
Paraguay and Spain will win today’s matches. This afternoon’s match is worthy of a final…if Portugal topples Spain…then they are worthy of going the distance. But Spain’s depth is too good for Portugal on this day.
Quarters:
Uruguay over Ghana (sorry Africa…say it ain’t so…I am rooting along with you even though I refuse to blow into a vuvuzela)
Brazil over Netherlands in a must-see match. Two very good teams! Netherlands has always been my favourite team…and this one could go either way. Whoever wins this match will make it (but lose) in the final.
Germany over Argentina in a thriller (The Germans upset and get the job done…and Maradona explodes)
Spain steamrolls over Paraguay (with a dazzling display of midfielding prowess)
Semis:
Brazil trumps Uruguay…the Cinderella story comes to an end :(
Spain over Germany…unless it enters a shoot-out..in which case Germany prevails. But my crystal ball says it won’t go into OT…the Spaniards have too much firepower.
Final:
Brazil versus Spain: The Might Spaniards become the 2010 World Cup Champions!
Chances are extremely high that I am way off…but it will be fun to see how this unfolds…
http://www.citywindsor.ca/000810.asp?id=4799
ICG Committee announced that in a unanimous decision Windsor Essex has been awarded the 2013 Summer Games.
A friendly war will take place over the battlefields of Guelph Lake Conservation Area this Sunday. Grand Poo-Bah Barrie Shepley has challenged Team Allied Force to a friendly competition at the Guelph Olympic Triathlon. After much negotiation, the criteria has been set:
Each team can name up to 7 athletes.
First 4 athletes on each team count for scoring.
Lowest cumulative time of scoring athletes wins.
Both teams have a few athletes not racing on Sunday…so both teams will not be firing on all cylinders. Barrie and I will be the crazy coaches on the sidelines blowing our vuvuzelas (of which we don’t have) and cheering everyone on. Me racing was contingent on Barrie racing…so I won’t be racing. Barrie things I am a huge wuss for not racing…and he is probably right. But it will be tons of fun watching!
Team Allied Force (coaches Mike Hay and James Loaring):
Mike Hay
Mark Linseman
Tyler Lord
Jonathon McMillan
Ryan Power
Melissa French
Jeff Medd
Team C3 (coach Barrie Shepley):
Sean Bechtel
David Sharratt
Andrew Woegerer
Gary Hutchinson
Hans Porten
Claudia Johnson
Andrew Yorke
I think it will be a very close contest….and might come down to seconds between both teams after a cumulative time of over 8 hours.
The losing team will have to wear the other team’s uniform and pay homage during a team photo.
Both teams are encouraged to donate and help support two great causes:
Download and print the 2010 Loaring Triathlon Registration and Pledge Form
Pledge Incentive Levels:
$150 = Free entry
$350 = Free entry + 1hr massage at Loaring Physiotherapy
$750 = Free entry + 1hr massage + New Balance running shoes
$1500 = Free entry + 1hr massage + Full head to toe New Balance apparel/shoes from The Running Factory
All donations received will be doubled by the Provincial Government. Tax receipts will be mailed for pledges over $20.
Thank-you for your support in helping raise funds for the Elena Loaring Memorial Fund
Once again the Loaring Triathlon will have all proceeds go towards breast cancer research. The Provincial Government will match dollar for dollar all monies raised.
Online registration has begun. Have a look at the updated website for all info. There are a few changes from the last event, including a new run course, and new sprint distance format.
Thank-you for your help in supporting our cause, and for spreading the word of this wonderful event.
The Windsor Star and Media Street Productions visited Loaring Physio a couple of weeks ago, and then put together this short video that was shown (right before Charlotte accepted her award) at the 2010 Windsor-Essex Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards.
Margaret with Sister Madonna Buder after yesterday’s Ironman 70.3 New Orleans awards ceremony. Both won their respective age-categories. They are both Champions not merely because of their new shiny gold medals, but largely because they possess a Gold Medal attitude and smile with everything they set their minds to. They both embody the Olympic motto: "The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well." And they both have a heck of a lot of fun throughout the entire process of accomplishing this primary objective.
Margaret has drawn much inspiration from Sister Madonna as she progressed from her first triathlon, to first Oly tri, to first 70.3, to first Ironman and marathon. Margaret is likely too humble to be fully aware of the fact--that many of us continue to draw inspiration from her.
Busy times…which is an ok excuse for the lack of blog posts that contain any meaningful content. And the busyness will continue—which means less blogging, and more random tweets on twitter, and more occasional updates on the LPC Facebook page.
A few pics from a couple of big events this past weekend:
Kyle Gregoire and Sheri Darlison modelled the LPC clothing line at Athletica Fashionista. All had a blast at this inaugural event, which will surely be an annual bash. The event took place at the Ciociaro Club…in the exact same room that Bre and I had our wedding reception!
Charlotte and Pete were the MC’s and did a fantastic job with all of the pre-planning for what was an amazing evening. Just about every cyclist and triathlete in Essex County was in attendance.
Tom and I were having a serious talk about Spartan helmets, and Skeletor had to be told to stay put as he really wanted to go for a ride along the catwalk.
From one event to another: here is Char shortly after receiving the ATHENA award at the 2010 Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards. The ground floor room at 1 Riverside Drive was packed (a sold-out event of 700 strong) and Char had many of her closest friends and family in attendance to share this special evening.
Annika can’t wait to start swim lessons tomorrow at Victor Davis Pool. Good times to be had…..onwards and upwards we go………
By Dave Hall, The Windsor Star, April 12, 2010
Winning this year's Athena Award is giving Charlotte Loaring a chance to represent the family, friends and associates who have supported her throughout her life.
"I'm just the representative of an entire team of inspiring people who have helped me along life's path," said Loaring. "It's truly an honour and as motivated by this as I am personally, I'm so proud there's an organization in Windsor which takes the time to recognize people with an award such as this."
Loaring, owner of the Loaring Physiotherapy and Health Centre, will receive her award Wednesday during the annual Windsor Regional Chamber of Commerce business excellence awards.
"It's a huge honour and does nothing but motivate me to continue what I'm doing," said Loaring, who was nominated by Mary Brannagan, a fellow physiotherapist who works at her clinic.
"When I look at the list of previous winners, many of them are people who have inspired me throughout my business and personal life. It's very special and it has left me speechless, which is pretty rare."
Professionally, Loaring presides over a clinic which opened in 2005 with just three employees in a 3,000-square-foot building. It now boasts 14 employees and has expanded to 5,400 square feet.
It has the largest multi-disciplinary professional rehabilitation team under one roof in the area and is recognized as a designated service provider for national, Olympic and paralympic athletes.
The highly anticipated Athletica Fashionista takes place Friday night at the Windsor Ciociaro Club. Tickets must be secured in advance as they will not be available at the door. I’m looking forward to Friday night!
A wonderful week has come and gone, but the great memories will last a lifetime. Great times were had by all. Congrats to the campers on a fantastic week. Their positive energy and attitude was inspiring. A big thanks to Coach Jeff, Coach Rob, and Physio Char, for passionately offering their ‘pearls of wisdom’ throughout the week. A big thanks to the LPC Support Crew, whose behind the scenes work was instrumental in helping to make the 2010 Camp a smashing success.
Enjoy the video above that was just produced by Coach Jeff Cowan. See you next year for the 2011 Camp…same time…same place…more great times to be had by all!
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
At the 2’ mark of this interview, the question was:
“What do you want to say about overcoming hurdles, to get where you are today?”
Tessa provided the nicest testimonial that a physiotherapist could ever ask:
“It was a tough season last year, I’m just so thankful that I had the team around me that I did. Mary Brannagan, my physiotherapist, is the reason I’m here, so it was so great to share this moment with her. It was all worth it, all of our dedication and hard work has paid off”.
Tessa is a client at Loaring Physiotherapy and Health Centre. Mary has been working with her since 2005..using her “magical hands” to help build a champion. Tessa is a another great example of an athlete overcoming adversity. Her injuries were extensive and Mary Brannagan did an amazing job in helping her prepare mentally and physically for a golden performance in Vancouver. Physiotherapists are always working incredibly hard behind the scenes. It is nice see Mary get the credit that is so well deserved.
I really enjoyed watching Tessa and Scott skate brilliantly, but I am even more impressed with how they handle themselves off the ice. They are amazing role models, and have a very bright future ahead.
By Bob Duff, The Windsor StarFebruary 22, 2010
Mary Brannagan, who makes her living rubbing people the right way, rubbed her genie’s lamp and called the outcome of Monday’s Olympic ice dancing final before it began.
“You heard it here first,” Brannagan boldly predicted over the telephone from Vancouver. “They’re going to win gold.”
They would be the Canadian tandem of Scott Moir and University of Windsor student Tessa Virtue.
“I’ve been saying that for months,” Brannagan added.
Later in the evening, we'll see if Brannagan’s soothsaying proved accurate.
Moir and Virtue were indeed favoured to be gold medallists and Brannagan had a hand in the outcome.
Both hands, actually.
Brannagan, of Tecumseh’s Loaring Physiotherapy & Health Centre, has been Virtue’s personal physiotherapist since 2005.
In Virtue’s opinion, Brannagan has been so integral to her success that she arranged to have her at her side in Vancouver, even though Brannagan didn’t possess official Olympic accreditation.
“They asked me what I wanted and one of the things I asked for was to have Mary travel with me,” Virtue said in an interview last October.
“She knows my body, she knows what needs to be done to keep me right on top of my game.”
The final Loaring Goup Training Day of the season takes place Sunday morning at Loaring Physio.
It is going to be a gong show full of Olympic Spirit.
I’m looking forward to smashing back a catered Koolini’s brunch after a solid morning of training.
Details: http://www.loaringphysio.com/news.htm#trainingdays
Please RSVP if you (and a guest) would like to attend the brunch…so that we don’t run out of food…that would be tragic.
Each day I live
I want to be
A day to give
The best of me
I'm only one
But not alone
My finest day
Is yet unknown
I broke my heart
Fought every gain
To taste the sweet
I face the pain
I rise and fall
Yet through it all
This much remains
I want one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity
I've lived to be
The very best
I want it all
No time for less
I've laid the plans
Now lay the chance
Here in my hands
Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity
You're a winner for a lifetime
If you seize that one moment in time
Make it shine
Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will be
I will be
I will be free
I will be
I will be free
"We Are More" by Shane Koyczan
When defining Canada
you might list some statistics
you might mention our tallest building
or biggest lake
you might shake a tree in the fall
and call a red leaf Canada
you might rattle off some celebrities
might mention Buffy Sainte-Marie
might even mention the fact that we've got a few
Barenaked Ladies
or that we made these crazy things
like zippers
electric cars
and washing machines
when defining Canada
it seems the world's anthem has been
" been there done that"
and maybe that's where we used to be at
it's true
we've done and we've been
we've seen
all the great themes get swallowed up by the machine
and turned into theme parks
but when defining Canada
don't forget to mention that we have set sparks
we are not just fishing stories
about the one that got away
we do more than sit around and say "eh?"
and yes
we are the home of the Rocket and the Great One
who inspired little number nines
and little number ninety-nines
but we're more than just hockey and fishing lines
off of the rocky coast of the Maritimes
and some say what defines us
is something as simple as please and thank you
and as for you're welcome
well we say that too
but we are more
than genteel or civilized
we are an idea in the process
of being realized
we are young
we are cultures strung together
then woven into a tapestry
and the design
is what makes us more
than the sum total of our history
we are an experiment going right for a change
with influences that range from a to zed
and yes we say zed instead of zee
we are the colours of Chinatown and the coffee of Little Italy
we dream so big that there are those
who would call our ambition an industry
because we are more than sticky maple syrup and clean snow
we do more than grow wheat and brew beer
we are vineyards of good year after good year
we reforest what we clear
because we believe in generations beyond our own
knowing now that so many of us
have grown past what used to be
we can stand here today
filled with all the hope people have
when they say things like "someday"
someday we'll be great
someday we'll be this
or that
someday we'll be at a point
when someday was yesterday
and all of our aspirations will pay the way
for those who on that day
look towards tomorrow
and still they say someday
we will reach the goals we set
and we will get interest on our inspiration
because we are more than a nation of whale watchers and lumberjacks
more than backpacks and hiking trails
we are hammers and nails building bridges
towards those who are willing to walk across
we are the lost-and-found for all those who might find themselves at a loss
we are not the see-through gloss or glamour
of those who clamour for the failings of others
we are fathers brothers sisters and mothers
uncles and nephews aunts and nieces
we are cousins
we are found missing puzzle pieces
we are families with room at the table for newcomers
we are more than summers and winters
more than on and off seasons
we are the reasons people have for wanting to stay
because we are more than what we say or do
we live to get past what we go through
and learn who we are
we are students
students who study the studiousness of studying
so we know what as well as why
we don't have all the answers
but we try
and the effort is what makes us more
we don't all know what it is in life we're looking for
so keep exploring
go far and wide
or go inside but go deep
go deep
as if James Cameron was filming a sequel to The Abyss
and suddenly there was this location scout
trying to figure some way out
to get inside you
because you've been through hell and high water
and you went deep
keep exploring
because we are more
than a laundry list of things to do and places to see
we are more than hills to ski
or countryside ponds to skate
we are the abandoned hesitation of all those who can't wait
we are first-rate greasy-spoon diners and healthy-living cafes
a country that is all the ways you choose to live
a land that can give you variety
because we are choices
we are millions upon millions of voices shouting
" keep exploring... we are more"
we are the surprise the world has in store for you
it's true
Canada is the "what" in "what's new?"
so don't say "been there done that"
unless you've sat on the sidewalk
while chalk artists draw still lifes
on the concrete of a kid in the street
beatboxing to Neil Young for fun
don't say you've been there done that
unless you've been here doing it
let this country be your first-aid kit
for all the times you get sick of the same old same old
let us be the story told to your friends
and when that story ends
leave chapters for the next time you'll come back
next time pack for all the things
you didn't pack for the first time
but don't let your luggage define your travels
each life unravels differently
and experiences are what make up
the colours of our tapestry
we are the true north
strong and free
and what's more
is that we didn't just say it
we made it be.
As shown in today’s online Windsor Star:
The team at Loaring Physiotherapy celebrates Hat Day for WHR and wears Canada gear in a send-off for our local Olympic athletes. Shown are, front row (John Loaring, Charlotte Loaring, Erin MacNeil, Erin Seguin, Ms Bones, Steven Georges); Back row (Kathleen White, Alexandra Bou-Mansour, Fran Saby, Mary Brannagan, Laura Lanoue)
I was busy having a ball while these pics were taken. I ran on the tready in a tiny room for 70 minutes as part of an experiment (run by Keiran Ruck at the University of Guelph) that will aim to draw implications concerning: exercising with compression socks, cardiac drift, hydration strategy, and pacing strategy in hot conditions. Part 1 of the experiment took place last Friday--a tready V02max ramp test to help provide data on what speed to set the tready for parts 2 to 4. Today was part 2, which called for a 1h tready run at 65% of VO2max, followed immediately by a 3k tready time trial. What made it tough was it took place in this tiny room with no fan or air circulation, with a thermostat set at 30 degrees Celcius. After running outside all winter, that felt Damn Hot…notice the capital D, capital H. Part 2 was just the practice trial, and parts 3 and 4 are the real deal for data collection. 4 of us from Allied Force (Mike Hay, Ryan Smith, and Mark Linseman being the other 3) are taking part, so it will be fun to see how everyone does. Our incentive to perform well in the 3k TT (in parts 3 and 4) is massive—the participant with the fastest 3k TT will win a pair of compression socks haha. The things we do for science…
I am finally posting the second instalment of Techy Tuesday. If anyone recalls the first post from long ago, it mentioned that I would compare gps data of three runners from the 2009 Canadian Masters Cross Country Champs. Well that race occurred an eternity ago! The entire day of racing was very exciting, and warrants some discussion on Techy Tuesday….but since the event was so long ago (6 weeks ago), I have decided to keep the data in the archives, and will do a pre-race post before the 2010 Canadian Cross Country Champs, which take place on the same course on at the end of November.
Today’s post takes a closer look at a typical Loaring Group Training Day bike workout. Depending on the season, we typically ride for 1h30’ to 2h. Sunday’s Training Day called for a 1h45’ ride for most who took part. The Training Day always has a wonderful mix of levels and abilities, with athletes in different phases of their macro training cycle….so the ride is “easier” and shorter for some…and longer and “harder” for others.
How easy is “easy” and how hard is “hard”?
The LPC effort scale in it’s simplest form is:
Ez = easy (1to 2)
Mod = moderate (2 to 3)
Steady = (3 to 3.5)
Tempo = (3.5 to 4)
Hard = ~FTP = (4 to 5)
Very Hard = VO2max (5 to 6)
Fast = (6 to 6.5)
Blast = (6.5 to 7)
The numbers correspond to the “level” of pace and/or power, or the “zone” of heart rate. FTP is short for Functional Threshold Power (or Pace), which can be loosely defined as one’s average power for a 1h bike time trial, average pace for a 45’ to 1h run time trial, and average pace for a 30’ swim time trial. Ideally this time trial takes place on a flat and fast course for the bike and run, and pool swim in your own lane.
I will have to expand on this scale in a future post, and attempt to define my meaning of “threshold” which is intentionally omitted from the “simple scale” above…because “threshold” seems to have ~ a dozen varying definitions. So this is the scale in it’s simplest form….and I find it is best to almost always keep things simple and say “go ez, or go mod, or go steady to tempo….”.
Now that we have established the effort scale…
The Jan 10th Loaring Group Training Day Bike Wokout was:
Loaring Group Training Day
January 10th, 2010
Bike=1h45' on trainer as:
WU: 15' ez build to mod.
DS1=12': 3x(30" single leg, 30” both at
NC+5, 30" single leg, 30" both at NC+5, 30” standing climb, 30" at NC+5), 3'ez.
MS1=13': 5x(1' seated climb dec1-5 from mod to hard, 1' very ez at NC), 3’ez.
PS=10': 5x(20" pick-up, 40" ez), 5’ ez.
MS2=40': 4x10' as (3’ steady on flats, 2’ steady seated climb, 2’ tempo on flats, 1’ tempo standing climb, 2' very ez).
DS2=10': 4' ez, 3' mod at NC+10, 2' mod at NC+15, 1' mod at NC+20.
CD: 5' ez.
If it is your first time seeing a LPC structured bike session, then the above might look like something from your days of high school algebra. So let’s take a closer look by breaking each segment of the workout down, in order to explain what the heck this short-form code means, and explain the method of my madness of why I have several triathletes/cyclists do this on a Sunday morning.
The workout incorporates a little bit of everything. We take advantage of a group atmosphere in an environment where nobody gets dropped…so the workout is an alphabet soup of drills and structure….but with purpose. It might look complicated on paper (or in graph form), but really, it is delivered in a simple fashion, and the constant variety helps to alleviate any boredom. The end result is a good workout and lots of fun…for all.
As an example, I have included Training Peaks data from LPC athlete Thierry Guertin. Clicking the image below will open up this interactive graph.
Thierry used his Computrainer to collect data for:
rpm (his cadence, or revolutions per minute. The orange line)
bpm (his heart rate. The red line)
watts (his absolute power. The pink line)
kph (his speed, or velocity in kilometers per hour. The blue line).
Let’s (finally) break down each segment of the workout into it’s individual sets:
Bike=1h45' on trainer as:
In looking at the graph, you can see that Thierry rode for 1h40’. Some actually rode as long as 2h, while others maxed at 1h30’.
Warm-up:
WU: 15' ez build to mod.
WU is short for “warm-up”. And in looking at the graph, Thierry did a good job in keeping the effort nice and easy.
Note: It always takes at least 10’ for the Computrainer to properly calibrate, so I usually only look at heart rate data (red line), and rpm data (orange line) when looking at one’s WU. You can see that Thierry kept his heart rate low during the entire WU—so that is good to see.
First Drill Set:
DS1=12': 3x(30" single leg, 30” both at
NC+5, 30" single leg, 30" both at NC+5, 30” standing climb, 30" at NC+5), 3'ez.
The first drill set (12’ in length), focused on Isolateral Leg Training (ILT). We just call it “single leg drills” because that is what they are, and saying ILT in it’s long form is just plain techy. Athletes that have any knee pain remain spinning with both legs. Those that are given two thumbs up, are instructed to ride at an easy to moderate gear, at moderate effort, and at an rpm that is ~ 10rpm lower than their NC.
NC is short for “average natural cadence”. NC is one’s self-selected cadence given the terrain. I find that most triathletes have a NC on flat land of between 85rpm and 100rpm. Those that have a slower cadence are sometimes referred to as “mashers”. Those with a higher cadence are sometimes referred to as “spinners”. There is no magic number for cadence. Each athlete has their own NC that they feel comfortable with, and this number might change slightly (but only very slightly) over time as conditioning improves.
Therefore, “NC+5” means a cadence that is 5rpm faster than your natural cadence.
I used to write workouts with a prescribed cadence, but then quickly realized how silly that was in group situations where the natural cadence of the group greatly differed. And I have never been in a group ride where it did not differ. So now we all identify what our natural “self-selected” cadence is, and deviate from that point. Their has been much recent talk about the value of high cadence spinning, or low cadence “big gear” work. I find that their is merit in high cadence spinning, especially during the off-season on the trainer…so we always incorporate some in our Training Day bike sessions.
This first drill set asked for 3 sets of: 30” of single leg, 30” of both legs at 5rpm higher than NC, 30” of the other leg, 30” of both legs at 5rpm higher than NC, 30” of moderate standing climbing, and finally 30” of both legs at 5rpm higher than NC.
First Main Set:MS1 (first main set) is a short one (total of 13’) that called for 5 sets of a 1’ seated climb, followed by 1’ very easy spinning at one’s natural cadence. The seated climb reps descended effort (or power) so the first rep was “mod”, the middle “tempo”, and the last rep “hard”.
Looking at the 0:25 to 0:34 segment of the graph, you can see that Thierry did and excellent job in descending each seated climb rep. His watts (pink line) had a good progression from reps 1 to 5. I am most concerned with his power output for each rep. The reps were short, and heart rate lags effort, so I usually don’t look too closely at heat rate data for these reps. But you can also see that the bpm (red line) had a very similar progression to the watts (pink line). And you can also see that the HR lagged a bit, which is expected
Activation Set:
PS=10': 5x(20" pick-up, 40" ez), 5’ ez.
“PS” is short for a mini pre main set that calls for some neuromuscular activation.
This 10’ set asked for 5 sets of a 20” pick-up, followed by 40” of ez spinning. A future post will be devoted to the what exactly a pick-up is, and why it is beneficial for endurance athletes, but for now, a pick-up is simply a strong and controlled spike in effort for a short period of time. it is not sprinting, and their should be no straining. Each set called for a slightly faster and faster pick-up (dec 1-5).
Looking at the 0:38 to 0:42 segment of the graph, you can see once again that Thierry nailed his pacing. His power increased each rep, and you can see a big spike in power in the final two reps. It was a strong effort, but by no means a 30” sprint. He could have produced a much higher power on the 5th rep, but that would have deviated from the purpose of this activation set.
By now, everyone was warmed up, “activated”, and ready to rock and roll into the main set.
The Main Set:
MS2=40': 4x10' as (3’ steady on flats, 2’ steady seated climb, 2’ tempo on flats, 1’ tempo standing climb, 2' very ez).
The 40’ main set called for 4 sets of 8’ of “steady to tempo”, with 2’ of ez spinning recovery. In an effort to simulate undulating terrain, the 8’ of ‘meat’ was broken as 3’ of steady riding on the flats in the aero position, then a 2’ gradual climb remaining seated, then back on the flats for 2’ but at a slightly higher “tempo” effort, then finally a 1’ steep climb remaining standing at an effort slightly harder than the seated climb.
In looking at the graph (time period from 0:46 to 1:25), Thierry paced well within each set, and kept consistent from set to set. His power spiked a bit during the climbs (but not too much). He also kept his power consistent within each segment of each set. Good stuff!
Cool-down Drill Set:
DS2=10': 4' ez, 3' mod at NC+10, 2' mod at NC+15, 1' mod at NC+20.
By now, everyone had worked up a good sweat. It was by no means a killer workout, since very little time was spent above FTP…but it was a solid session for January…and the “hard yards” are on the horizon.
But before we cooled down with ez spinning at NC, we first did one final drill set. It asked for 4’ of ez spinning at NC, then 3’ of moderate spinning at a cadence 10rpm higher than NC, then 2’ mod at NC+15, then finally 1’ at NC+20. In order to spin at NC+20, and remain at a moderate effort, a very easy gear (or low wattage) is used. If the athlete is uncomfortable spinning at NC+20, or their pedalling form falls apart, or their hips start jumping out of the saddle….then they drop the rpm a tad so they can maintain good form.
Cool-Down:
CD: 5' ez.
Finally, 5’ of easy spinning, and magically, the time has flown by!
So there you go. 1h45’ on the trainer…done and done. If you actually read this entire post, and spent some time tinkering with the Training Peaks interactive graph….then I salute you!
After this bike, we allowed 10’ to completely dry off, and bundle up to face the chilly temps outside. A couple ran on the tready, a couple on the elliptical, and the rest of us headed outside. We ran 2.5k to Blue Heron Hill, which will be the subject of yet another future post, did a couple of “tempo” hill reps, and then ran back.
After arriving back at Loaring Physio, Charlotte ran us through 30’ of injury prevention motor control exercises and stretches.
Finally, and the part of the Training Day that we all look most forward to, is smashing back a smorgasbord of healthy, and optional not-so-healthy, good eats.
Good times were had by all!
See you at the next Training Day on January 24th!
The third Loaring Group Training Day of the season takes place this Sunday.
Upcoming Loaring Group Training Days at Loaring Physio:
Sunday, Jan 10, 2010
Sunday, Jan 24, 2010
Sunday, Feb 21, 2010
Sunday Jan 10 Timeline:
8:00am: Doors open (register and set-up begins)
8:20am: Bike (indoors on trainer for up to 1h45')
10:15am: Run with drills (outside for up to 50' minutes)
11:15am: Core Exercises & Stretches
11:45am: Potluck Brunch (onsite at Loaring Physio)
Training Days are open to everyone, and you are welcome to join for the entire morning…or come out to a particular session.
We look forward to helping you put to work your 2010 health and fitness goals!
More details HERE
