Training for My Next Century
The Reston Century is three weeks from today. I rode 100 miles on June 21, so the distance doesn’t concern me. The 5,705 feet of elevation gain; however, does – I know I can do it, it just might not be pretty. Prior to last year’s Reston Century we went on a practice ride climbing the two steepest and longest hills. Both are 1.3 miles long, one has a 6.1% average grade (17.7% at the steepest point) and the other has a 5.4% average grade (13.3% at the steepest). The other two notable climbs during the century are on hills I ride somewhat regularly.
My hill training currently consists of at least once a week climbing Thomas Mill Road, a 1.6-mile climb with 370 feet of ascent and one section that’s got a 13% grade. Until after the century, I plan to keep my runs to just once a week to allow more time in the saddle. Strength training will remain a mainstay with a cutback the week prior to the ride.
Overview of the Week
Before discussing each day’s workouts, here’s an overview of my workouts from this past week. Scroll beyond the infographic for daily details…
Sunday
Cycling: 10K
• Average speed: 9.6 MPH
• Bike: Beach Cruiser Lux
• Surface: gravel
• Elevation gain: 144 feet
• Start time: 9:40 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 84° (feels like 90°) and sunny
• What I wore: shorts and tank top
After being down and out with a cold the previous week and not spending any time on my bike, a short easy ride on my new beach cruiser seemed like a reasonable plan. Let me just say that riding a 36 pound bike (versus 18 pounds for my road and gravel bikes) and with only 3 gears is hard work!
Oh, and yes, the bike and outfit color coordination was planned.
Monday
Strength training: 1 hour of full body
Tuesday
Cycling: 40 miles
• Average speed: 14.2 MPH
• Bike: Specialized Roubaix Comp
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 1,358 feet
• Start time: 7:59 AM
• Location: W&OD Trail with some side country roads
• Weather: 73° and overcast, climbing to 78°
• What I wore: bike shorts and s/s jersey
I joined my friend Chuck for a ride and it felt great to be back out on the trail.
Wednesday
Strength training: 1 hour of full body
Walking: 1 mile
• Average pace: 14:52
• Start time: 5:43 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 69°, humid, and overcast
• What I wore: shorts and tank
Running: 2 miles
• Average pace: 9:43
• Start time: 6:02 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 69°, humid, and overcast
• What I wore: shorts and tank
I beat the heat with an early morning warm-up walk followed by a 2-mile run. It felt fabulous to go on my first true run since I ran at the farm in early June. More importantly, everything felt great afterward. It had been so long since I’d run that I forgot to stretch or roll afterward. Oops!
Thursday
Cycling: 38 miles
• Average speed: 13.6 MPH
• Bike: Specialized Roubaix Comp
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 1,745 feet
• Start time: 8:28 AM
• Location: W&OD Trail with some side roads including climbing Thomas Mill
• Weather: 77° (feels like 79°) and sunny, climbing to 86° (feels line 97°) and partly cloudy
• What I wore: bike bibs and s/s jersey
Having failed to text any friends to see who could ride, I headed out by myself for my favorite solo route. After years of riding past these skeletons on my climb up Thomas Mill, I decided it was high time to stop and say hello, but they gave me the cold shoulder. 😉 The homeowner recently joined our gravel cycling group and let us know he’d put water out in a cooler for us to grab when we need it, so I felt comfortable stopping in their front lawn for a selfie.
Friday
Strength training: 1 hour of full body
Balance and stretching: 45 minutes
Saturday
Cycling: 42 miles
• Average speed: 14.7 MPH
• Bike: Specialized Roubaix Comp
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 1,519 feet
• Start time: 7:56 AM
• Location: W&OD Trail Hamilton loop with some side roads
• Weather: 71° and sunny, climbing to 81°
• What I wore: bike shorts and s/s jersey
After a hot and muggy week, the weather was delightful and I took advantage of getting outside. I didn’t want to push as hard as I’d need to on a group gravel ride so I did my own thing on my road bike.
Last Week’s Blog Posts
In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past week, here’s what you missed…
Questions:
- • When you train for an event, do you follow a strict schedule, wing it, or do something in between? ~ Interestingly, I carefully follow running plans for races; however, I’m much more laid back with cycling.
- • What was your favorite workout of the week?
- • Did you run in a race this weekend?
And that’s my rundown… Have a great week!
*********************************************************************
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!
I take my training seriously for the big races (full marathons, and the two ultras I’ve done), but I do allow plenty of wiggle room. Life’s too short for such micro-managing, LOL. Besides, it’s not like I’m an Olympian with a career on the line. Isn’t it crazy how much work it is on a heavier bike? I didn’t realize how much “girth” Gustavas had until I started riding on Fritz (who’s now gone) and Krystal. Those lighter bikes really have us spoiled!
Back in the day, I did enjoy following a training schedule, but now that I only run the occasional 5K I don’t follow a plan, just run enough to stay fit.
Yes, carbon bikes have spoiled us!
I love that you match your bike! And you do! How nice of the other biker to leave out cool drinks for you.
Sounds like you had a really good week of training this week, Deb.
I usually do follow a plan, but have also been known to wing it.
Thanks, Judy!
If anyone is ready for that century ride it’s you! You totally got this. Lately, I have been following more of a training plan bc it worked so well for me in the spring. However, this summer weather has me altering it a bit
Thanks, Deborah! Once the cooler temps hit in the fall, you’re going to be rocking your runs after all of the hard work you’re putting in during this summer heat.
I am not a stickler about following a plan, I do my best, but am flexible. One of my old runner friends was SO particular and she said no to so many fund activities; I don’t want to do that ALL the time. And running here has been a bit more exploratory than conducive to workouts, so I’m just rolling with it.
Good luck on your century! How nice to have the cool drinks 🙂
Yes, I can imagine you need to have a little flexibility in your training plan right now with the move and getting to know a new city. I hope you and the pups adjust quickly and can get into a regular routine.
I try to get my long runs in but otherwise I wing it.
I used to be a lot stricter.
Glad to hear your cold is gone.
Good luck training for your century.
I’ve been skipping races. Yes me. Do have a 5k in 2 weeks though.
Thanks, and yes my cold is gone, but I gave it to my husband. 🙁
I can’t believe you’ve been skipping races!
I’m glad to hear you had a good run! But, I can see how cycling must dominate for now. Love the color coordinated bike/outfit!
Let’s see… I’ve never actually trained for a bike race unless you count triathlons. I definitely didn’t follow a specific training plan for those, other than trying to get in a bunch of brick workouts. For running, I’ve done it both ways- followed a training plan strictly, and been much looser about things. Nowadays I feel like I never know what issues might pop up, so I’m definitely on the looser side.
Thanks, Jenny! You had to train for the bike portion of your tri so I’d think that would count. I was much more careful following a plan for running races than I am for cycling events. With biking, I just try to get in lots of miles in the saddle and significant hill training if the course requires a lot of climbing.
I love how much you’ve embraced cycling over the past couple of years! I have no doubt that you will crush your century ride. Is it a race or a ride? To answer your question, at this point in my life, yes, I train for a long distance race but I don’t take it as seriously as I used to. With my trail running, I feel like I’ve become a stronger runner but I’m definitely slower. I don’t mind that as much as I used to. Am I mellowing? LOL
The majority of the cycling events we do are considered rides or tours, not races; however, I’m competitive with myself so I push to beat previous times, MPH averages, etc.
Love that you matched your outfit to your bike 🙂
I haven’t officially “trained” for a race since the 2019 Chicago Marathon. For half marathons and marathons I definitely follow a training plan, but not for shorter distance races. At this point I don’t think I am going to get any faster so I don’t really train to race for time.
Thanks, Kim!
Nice week of training for you! Those inclines are no joke. If I’m serious about a race, I’ll stick closely to my training plan. If I’m running for fun, my training becomes more flexible.
Thanks, Marcia!
Glad you’re feeling better and you look so cute with your beach cruiser! Love the outfit coordination!
I usually have a hybrid schedule. I stick to training days, but not necessarily strict content.
Jenn recently posted…week 83: civic duties
Thanks, Jenn!
It looks like you are ready to nail the next century ride. Great biking workouts this week. I usually follow a plan for my marathons, but pretty much just wing it for other stuff. Funny that a half marathon just feels like another race to me at this point. Now if it were to be a bike race, I’d definitely need a plan since I don’t ride much.
Thanks, Michele! When I was running longer distances I got the same way… running a half was no big deal.