Cheers.
That was excellent.
It puts certain issues like strength work and recovery into perspective. I started at the very beginning of April with daily training on the Tac C - pretty quickly reaching an hour a day [24 km].
Adjusted the diet and kept it going non stop, but then started to find it physically difficult to sustain after about August - I thought it was a loss of motivation - but I felt absolutely knackered but thought it was me being slack - so I upped the sessions to 90 mins, then 120 mins. I couldnt understand why mind-over-matter wasnt sufficient to keep going.
There have definitely been benefits: I can get out the saddle and power up hills with far more confidence and last longer - but I keep getting overtaken by guys half my age on group rides!
It sounds contradictory - Ive never been a sprinter, but my average speed over longer distances has increased. I can rattle off the first 40 km without any problems, but its got much easier to get to 65/70 km before the energy tank needs a top up [a gel or a snickers].
Listening to the stats - I realised why it took me an hour longer to complete the GNR in 2017 than it did in 1989! I put it down to having done hardly any training. Makes me feel better though.
Tomorrow is a rest day.
Then its "give it some" on Tuesday.
Ta