I took it really easy over Christmas. So easy that I gained back 1.6 pounds. I guess laying around and eating cookies, chips, and dip will do that. I only took a break from my laying around to drink with a few friends. I closed the bars two nights that I was home, so my body clock is a little messed up.
When I got back, I found that I had a touch of a cold. When I got back on the trainer on Wednesday, I was out of breath at only 150 watts. My heart was racing and I felt like crap. Thursday wasn't much better. I was easily winded and felt like crap the whole time. I went to the RPM class this morning with pretty low expectations.
As I was warming up, I was happy. My heart wasn't racing like it was the other day, but I still didn't feel great.
The groups formed pretty quickly. There was a 4-man breakaway that formed in the first mile, with the others scattered around. The breakaway group was moving and had some really strong riders, including Todd, Nace, and Javier. In some respects, the middle hour was kind of boring. Just the four of us working together to really keep the pace up.
At the end, we finished pretty much together. I attacked at the finish and took it by a couple seconds, but I don't think the other guys really cared.
I couldn't believe my average power: 224 watts. I was really happy with that, considering I wasn't even sure that I'd crack 200.
In the coming weeks, I'll need to focus a little better. I need to be on the trainer consistently to get my sprint power back up and back in the gym to get my weight down. Right now, I'm seriously looking forward to my next crit, which will probably be the Philly 2-Day in early April.
My legs are killing me. I'm going to go soak them for a while in hot water.
