This was a great week for results for me.
I'm down another 1.2 pounds, putting me at 183.8 pounds (down from 197.0 when I started, not to mention I've gone in two belt holes!).
In the gym, I was able to leg press 2 sets of 4 reps at 940 pounds. That's not a typo. Nine hundred and forty pounds. I've always had huge legs, ever since my speedskating days. I'm just reminding all that muscle how to work. It's hard to believe I've gone up 130 pounds in a week!
In the time trial this morning, I roared in at 21:11, down from 21:53 two weeks ago. I wish I could claim all that was fitness, but the new racing wheels (Zipp 808 with a Power Tap installed) were probably a huge help. From the Power Tap, I learned that my average power was 224 watts. It also helped me pace myself better, especially with a tail wind (when I was going too easy). I'm sure they will make quite a difference in the Blueberry Time Trial in a couple weeks.
Thanks to Joe Wentzell at Breakaway Bikes for getting the Zipps to me so fast!
After the time trial this morning, I did two more half-laps (for some reason I love doing hard efforts on the way back from the turnaround) in times of 9:53 (248 watts) and 10:05 (238 watts). I'm still a long way from my personal records, but I'm very happy with the speed I'm seeing.
I'd like to get my full-lap time down below 20:40 and my half-lap time down to 9:40 before the end of the year. With 5 weeks to go before the end of the season, I just might make it.
This week coming up will be a recovery week. I'll be in Cincinnati for work and I'm just aiming for easy, low-end aerobic workouts this week, probably no longer than 30 minutes and maybe one light weight workout. My body needs a break!
My training for the next month will be kind of funky. I need this recovery week, then I'm in Portland, OR for work the week after. I can't train too hard since the time trial is at the end of the week. I'll spend 6 hours on a plane then have to do a TT the next day. I'll have to spin a little on the trainer when I get home to work out the kinks.
After that, I have two weeks before my next blood lactate test at Breakaway Bikes, so I'll have about 10 days to train before I need to start resting up for that. I'm setting my weight loss goals a little lower this month, only aiming for 4 pounds instead of 5, which should put me at 179.8 pounds just in time for the next threshold test. That will put me back down to the weight I was in for most of Summer and Fall of 2007 and set me up for the last ~20 pounds to go to reach my ultimate goal of "below 160".
