Goals Set on Garmin Connect

As I stated previously, my cycling goal for 2013 is to do 3000 miles.  So this morning I went on Garmin Connect and played with their Goal Setting Tool, and created an annual goal of 3000 miles.  This is fine for a long term goal, but wanted to break it down finer into smaller chunks of Monthly Goals.  Therefore, I decided to create midterm monthly goals of 250 miles.  That will be tougher to do in the Winter Training Months, but do-able.  Example, January totals as of today, 1-26 with 5 days left, I have 50 miles to go to reach my monthly goal of 250.As this week is the Tour of Sufferlandia, I should have no problems.
I am hoping that monthly goals will motivate me enough to ride longer with less intensity, but if I see my number drop, I may have to break it down to weekly goals. I hope not, but onward and upward as they say...
Today - HHNF or Hell Hath No Fury!  20 miles more..

First FTP Test Results of 2013...

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/261152158#.UPGkPeX2dWo.gmail




OK bit the bullet and tried Training Roads getting ready for the Sufferfest Tour at the end of the month. Great program, and you get one month with money back offer and can cancel at anytime. I thought that since we did not get to do the Threshold Test at CC that I would try to determine my FTP using Training Roads, and did their 20 minute FTP Test. By the way, it is exactly like the Spineval version without coach Troy cheering you on, so I just use iTunes. 20 minutes is a long time without distractions.

Well, if you have an ant+ stick,which Nick and I do because we have the FR60 Garmin Watches, you can connect your speed and cadence, HR, and ever Ant+ power meter. So I made the mistake of connecting my PowerCal and it did not register during the test so I got no Power Data, not even the Estimated Power that Training Roads uses....Darn IT!

Thank Goodness for Garmin and Connect because their power data automatically calculates your best 20 minute Power Output that then can become your FTP. So according to Garmin my FTP is 187, not great but a start. I am going to do it again with Training Roads Monday using their 8 minute FTH Test and disconnect my PowerCal, and see what their Estimated Power with the Kinetic Trainer Gives me.

T

End of the year report

Well another cycling year gone by, another one only a day away, so it is time for my end of the year report. 
Well total miles for the year was - 2,665.94 mi.  Not 3000 like I had planned but this was a tough summer for injury, as my knee and hip were acting up.  Last week I think I found the culprit to my delima, and this upcoming year should be a better one.  I am also going to temper my expectations a bit by riding smarter, and not riding a long, but riding more often. 
My borher does not count indoor miles, but any mile I do in the saddle counts for me, so although I look at them, I do not think they are any less valuable.  He hates riding indoors and does not do it as often, but I ride indoor on the trainer often and hard.  I will therefore count them here and always.
With my knee and hip pain curbed I have ridden all week each day, but instead of an hour, I have done 30 - 40 minutes and my legs are thanking me.  My plan for indoors is to ride each day with short 30-40 minute workouts, except for Wednesday when at CC where I will ride longer than an hour most nights.  To do this I think I will need to ride before work most days, so waking up and 1/2 hour earlier, and riding is a must.  Wish me luck.

Indoor Winter Training Plan

Here is my Winter Indoor Training plan:

Riding
Sunday:  Indoors at Home for between 30-60 minutes with Mat Workout*
Monday:  Rest
Tuesday: At Glastonbury or Newington 1 Hour + and Mat Workout at school.
Wednesday: At CC in Rocky Hill 1 hour +
Thursday: Home or Newington 30-60 minutes + Mat Workout
Friday: REST
Saturday: Home or Nick's indoors/Outdoors 1 Hour + and Mat Workout

Mat Workout:

Yoga:

Mountain to Bent over to extended Mountain > Repeat 3X
Extended Mountain to Hands On Mat to Right Leg Kick out to Plank to Down Dog back to Plank to Leg Through to Lunge to Bent Over Finish in Mountain > Repeat on Left > Repeat 2X
Stretching Upper Body: Bear Hug, Over head arm stretch, Chest Stretch
Surfer into Warior 1 into Warior 2 into Star Gazer > Repeat Left Side > Repeat 2X
Lower Body Stretch: Kneeling on Two Knees > Double Hip Flexor Stretch > 1 Knee Hip Flexor Rt & Lft

Core Workout:

Abs:
Ab Crunches 50 X
Double Leg Lifts 20 X
Ab Cross with Bicycle Kick 30 X
Double Arm Double Leg Ab Crunch 10 X
Bridge 15 X
Single Leg Extended Arm and Leg Toe Touch Curls 20 X
Double Arm and Double Leg Extended 10 X
Ab Cross with bicycle kick 20 X
Bridge 10 X
Back:
The Swim 20 X
Double Arm Double Leg Superman 10 X
Kneeling Opposite Arm and Leg Extensions 10 X
Repeat 2 X

Strength Bank Circuit:

Chest Press 15 X
Triceps Extension 10 X RT & LT
Biceps Curl 10 X RT & LT
Shoulder Press 10X RT & LT
Chest Pull Out 10 X
Swats 10 X
Repeat 2 X

There is my plan for now.  I plan to add more detail about indoor rides and and type of riding in the near future, as I add this to my calendar. Wish me luck. 
_________________


Did this today and yesterday, here is is what it looks like:
Road indoors after a Yoga - Ab - Strength Band workout to Sufferfests: A Very Dark Place:



The ride was short as I just wanted to get my HR up and break a sweat. I am trying to workout 4-5 days a week without the overuse injuries I suffered from last winter into this summer. Keeping my indoor workout under an hour should help quite a bit as long as I do my stretching, core and strength training with it.

2012-13 1st Indoor Training Ride...Ouch!

Today was my first indoor training ride of the 2012=13 season.  I have set up the R3 as my winter bike this year, as last year my Tomasso gave me hip problems near the end.  As I know the R3 and R5 are set-up correctly, I will simple use the R3 instead.  Every mile I get out of the R3 is a bonus, so no real loss if the frame gets damaged in the trainer. 

Another reason for riding indoors today was to sample the new sufferfest video; "There is no Try!"  Longer progressive intervals with short rest periods were the norm with both flat sections at 100 rpm and hill climbs at 75 rpm, left my legs hurting a might.  Although, this might have been due to the lack of riding over the last 2 weeks to a month. 

Last week I stopped smoking cigars totally, and between that and Thanksgiving I have put on quite a bit of weight.  I really need to eat less and ride more over the next 12 weeks before spring, as I am not sure I will make it over even a knoll. 

I think I need to set up a schedule for my training, as I did not do that since last indoor season and it showed in my performance, and lack of progress.

Here is my ride today:

2000 Road Miles in the Books!

After yesterday's ride with my brother Nick and my nieces on the Marlborough - East Hampton Rail Trail, I past the 2000 mile mark for road miles, which does not include the 20 I did today riding home from work.  This does not include indoor miles, as my brother does not count them...I DO!  I count all miles on my old legs, especially those suffering on the turbo trainer.  It was a beautiful day, the views were spectacular, and leaves were awesome.  I am at about 2400 miles total for the year, a few hundred off where I would like to be, but there is still time left in before I call it quits.
With my R3 back on the road with a triple, Don and I renamed it "Le Boom" as I have been hit on it twice.  I plan to ride until the snow flies, and maybe even after that.  Then there are early days indoor in December.  So I may yet get to my 3000 mark set last January.  Wish me luck! 

Cycleops PowerCal Review and 1st Ride...

PowerCal's 1st Ride by scott_t_ct at Garmin Connect - Details

Above is the link to my Garmin file which was recorded on my Garmin 800. 

Yesterday I finally received my Cycleops PowerCal that is a Power Meter HR Strap with Ant+ compatibility. I was originally attracted to the PowerCal as it was an inexpensive way of getting into power, as I am a data geek  I have trained with HR for 30 years or so, therefore I felt it time to more up in the world.  Originally I tried a CycleOps Power Trainer at Newington Bike during one of their indoor winter training sessions.  The Cycleops Rep was there who showed me the demo PowerCal, which was not in production yet.  I quickly ordered 2, one for me and one for my bother Nick.  Well after over 6 months of waiting, I finally got them.
PowerCal is Ant+ and it easily connects to the Garmin just like any other Ant+ device, and worked first Go.  The strap itself is very compact  and extremely comfortable with snaps on the main unit instead of clips.  I hardly noticed it was on, as compared to my standard Garmin Strap that is bulky and feels like a heavy weight on your chest.
During my first ride with the PowerCal the constant reading of power from the device onto the Garmin head unit had a lag was evident but not more than speed, cadence or any other unit of measure on the device, it seemed like between 1-3 seconds but was probably less than 1 second.  I tried to see if it was tied in a linear fashion to heart rate, but could not find a direct correlation while riding.  Actually it appeared to me that when I was riding the Power was directly related to pedal pressure, but this could have been me wishing it were so.  I have not trained with a PowerTap before, so I have no comparison to go by, other than a single ride on a Cycleops Power Trainer.  Cycling Concepts has offered to let me test their PowerTap wheel, and I may take them up on it next week, so I can get a better feel for the difference.
The Graph and Data Points on Garmin Connect were cool, but I had to look up what they meant.  Having the PowerCal on made me ride a bit harder in spurts than I wanted to on a recovery/rest day, but it was only a 12 mile ride, so no harm done.

I understand Average Power, Max Power, but I had to look up Normalized Power, Intensity Factor and Training Stress Scores.  I found a great article on Training Peaks: http://home.trainingpeaks.com/articles/cycling/normalized-power,-intensity-factor,-training-stress-score.aspx  .  Basically Normalized Power is a calculated way at looking at Average Power. Intensity Factor looks at your rides Intensity, a good breakdown is given on Training Peaks.  My ride was a recovery ride according to the data of .756 .  Finally, Training Stress Score is an indicated of the amount your ride may produce fatigue or possible need for rest.  My score of 52.2 is extremely low, as it should be on a recovery day.  Again a good breakdown of the relative soreness can be found on Training Peaks. 
I love the data, but I am not sure I love what the data is telling me at this point.  I need a more longitudinal data analysis to accurately determine whether it will help me.  Anyway, it gives me one more graph to look at and a lot more data points!  Fun is...
To check out the Cycleops PowerCal you may look here.