Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links…

 

Giving My Gravel Bike a Break

And just like that, I think I’m done with riding gravel until the spring. My last two gravel rides haven’t been enjoyable and I ride my bikes to have fun. It’s harder to control the brakes and change gears when my fingers are stiff from wearing double gloves or numb from the cold. Gravel riding – at least on the hilly roads we ride – requires a lot of moving up and down the gears as the terrain changes and even with electronic shifters, it’s harder to find the the tiny buttons with fat fingers. Additionally, being able to brake with precision is essential for avoiding skidding on loose gravel, another thing hard to do with numb or stiff fingers.

So for now, my gravel bike has been washed (thanks to my hubby) and is hanging on the wall waiting for spring…

 

Overview of the Week

Before discussing each day’s workouts, here’s an overview of my workouts from this past week. Scroll down for daily details…

 

Sunday

Cycling: 35 miles
• Average speed: 12.0 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: mostly gravel
• Elevation gain: 2,575 feet
• Start time: 9:58 AM
• Location: western Loudoun County
• Weather: 42° and overcast, climbing to 53°
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, arm warmers, jacket, neck gaiter, ear warmer headband, winter gloves over light gloves, and shoe toe covers

I’m not going to lie, this ride was tough! Perhaps I was under-fueled; although, I didn’t feel like it until near the end, and well, I was close to finishing the ride so I didn’t eat anything at that point. Or perhaps I was bored – I rode slightly behind and alone most of the time without a chatting buddy. Whatever the case, I was happy when this ride was over.

 

Monday

Strength Training: 1 hour of total body

Walking: 1.5 miles
• Average pace: didn’t record
• Start time: 8:19 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 34° and sunny
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, nylon shell, down jacket, gloves with mittens on top

I took Pablo out for a walk after wrapping up my first two client sessions. I didn’t think we’d go far so I didn’t wear my Garmin (affiliate link); however, Pablo was in a spunky mood and even though he stopped to sniff and pee a few times, he seemed eager for a longer speedy walk, breaking into the occasional run.

 

Tuesday

Running: 5K
• Average pace: 8:56
• Start time: 6:57 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 32° with light snow flurries (feels like 28°)
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, shell jacket, mittens over gloves, ear warmer headband

Cycling: 35 miles
• Average speed: 16.3 MPH
• Bike: Life Fitness Lifecycle Spin
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 8 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 64°
• What I wore: bike shorts and jog bra

Foam rolling: 10 minutes

Stretching: 10 minutes

I was pumped to see snow flurries during my run which kept me entertained. Once home, I hopped on my spin bike (affiliate link) wishing I was riding outside. I do have to admit, though, spin miles go by much faster than treadmill miles.

 

Wednesday

Strength training : 1 hour of total body

 

Thursday

Cycling: 36 miles
• Average speed: 16.4 MPH
• Bike: Life Fitness Lifecycle Spin
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 6:30 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 63°
• What I wore: bike shorts and jog bra

Walking: 1 mile
• Average pace: didn’t record
• Start time: 9:03 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 47° (feels like 43°) and overcast
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s shirt, nylon shell, velour jacket, gloves with mittens on top

Pablo and I went for another slightly longer than normal walk. He’s funny, some days and nights he’s all about a long walk and other times he wants to stay close to home.

 

Friday

Running: 5K
• Average pace: 8:42
• Start time: 5:40 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 43° (feels like 40°)
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, shell jacket, mittens, ear warmer headband

 

Strength training : 1 hour of total body

Foam rolling: 10 minutes

Stretching: 15 minutes

 

Saturday

Cycling: 38 miles
• Average speed: 10.2 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: mostly gravel
• Elevation gain: 3,189
• Start time: 10:43 AM
• Location: Middleburg, VA
• Weather: 47° and sunny, climbing to 55°
• What I wore: long bike pants, sleeveless base layer, s/s jersey, arm warmers, jacket, neck gaiter, ear warmer headband, winter gloves over light gloves, and shoe toe covers (removed winter gloves and neck gaiter at mile 15)

 

This was another difficult ride, but with almost 3,200 feet of elevation gain in 38 miles of mostly gravel roads, it had every reason to be tough. The roads were dry and dusty, and with the blessing of the hounds, a Christmas parade, and a hunt all going on in Middleburg, traffic was heavy on the normally quiet roads on the outskirts of town.

At one point, truck after truck with each pulling a horse trailer met us as we made our way down the gravel road. Each truck kicked up more dust leaving a haze of brown through which to navigate. As one truck approached, I moved toward the side of the road and got caught up in thick loose gravel and lost control of my bike, going into a fishtail. Luckily, I was able to get to the grass on the side of the road and come to a stop without crashing. I was out of control enough that my Garmin (affiliate link) detected an incident and sounded the alarm. Whenever this happens, I have 30 seconds to cancel it or my Garmin sends a message to Bill letting him know something has happened.

 

Last Week’s Blog Posts

In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past  week, here’s what you missed…

 

 Questions:
  • • Do you have any holiday themed runs or rides planned? ~ I will miss two holiday themed races and two organized Christmas lights night-time rides due to being out of town twice during December visiting my mom.
  • • Do you ever need a break from one of your normally favorite things?
  • • Did you run in a race this weekend?

 

And that’s my rundown… Have a great week!

 

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I’m linking up with Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Kim from Running on the Fly for their Weekly Run Down. Be sure to check out not only the hosts’ posts, but those of the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!

 

Disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on the blue product link and then make a purchase, I will receive a small commission for referring you. You will pay no more or less for the product; however, Amazon will show their gratitude for my referral by paying me.