It was four long months after the LEJOGLE ride that I would consider my body to have fully recovered from what I put it through back in August. So it was only late January when I felt ‘refreshed’. In that time I had grown lazy and highly inactive, hardly venturing out on my bike at all – not something that I was very happy about. So with the turn of February the wheels appeared once more and proper training has started again. The most challenging aspect with this re-start of training is the acceptance that I have become unfit. I remember the class difficulty after school holidays, of returning to work and ‘forgetting’ how to write! Well at the moment it feels as though my body has forgotten how to cycle. Immediately upon getting up any pace or intensity my body begins to hurt, my chest grows tight and I feel as though I have to stop. This is nothing to do with being fatigued from the last ride (as I allowed myself to think for too long), this is purely a lack of fitness.
So right now I feel as though I am starting all over again. Which is not a wonderful feeling, but a very motivating one at least. I have agreed to ride in the Blazing Saddles RCC colours at the Amstel Gold Sportive in Maastricht at the start of April, and for that I have 250km looming ahead of me. I have blended the rollers with some road miles and while the mileage and speed is not a patch on that of last year, I am at least seeing some progress.
There has been much speculation and suggestion about what event will be coming next. To answer that, I know that Maastricht will be my next ride. The main focus, however, is on getting the Round the World ride planned and well trained for. There will, however, be several events in the interim forming a well crafted build up to this. My non-cycling endurance aims are also to complete the PhD!
