Long Grind

    One aspect of training that I have begun implementing is one long, hard session in each discipline every week. Yesterday was swimming, today was cycling. Today was the Long Grind workout; slower cadence grinding a big gear to build muscle endurance. This is where I need to put in some serious time with my cycling. I can keep a high cadence in a lower gear, that is something I have worked hard on, high cadence. Now that I can keep a high cadence for a long time, I need to work on power. Hence, the Long Grind workout. This will be a once a week addition to my training regimen. Today was a solid 2 hours, I will build that to 3 hours soon enough, then four, then, well, you get the idea. Once again, "Power is work over time." I will say, my legs felt great. One beauty of the crappy weather we enjoy here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest is that there is no shame to indoor workouts. I have made great use of my roller stand all winter long, this has trained my legs to spin for long periods with very little pause. Hopefully this will translate to being able to spin long and hard once I am actually out on the roads again. Very soon I want to get out and do a 50 mile ride, I know I can do it easily enough, but I want to really push myself, and  mix up some fast easy spinning with some good, hard grinding. There are several cycling groups that do regular rides out this way, and I may try to hook up with them now and then, but I prefer to go solo. Solo, I have better control over how far and how fast I ride. In a group I am likely to let myself get too competitive and I don't think that is optimal at this point in the game. Neither is having to slow down for others, or be distracted by idle chit chat, or others needing to stop and pee. I will likely start with the same ride I did a number of times last summer: Silverton to Salem to Woodburn to Mount Angel to Silverton. It is a nice loop that is about 50 miles. There is also a bike route from Champoeg Park to Willamette Mission Park that I believe is about 50 miles. Those will be my short rides soon enough, as I start aiming to do Century rides every few weeks.
    As I look ahead at the time and distance I will be having to commit to, instead of feeling dread, I am feeling elation. One thing that is certain, I love training. I have never found anything I am so thrilled to commit time and energy to, except for when I was raising my children. This is how it should be, I am enjoying the journey. The outcome is not nearly as important to me as is the pure pleasure of the journey itself.