The Daily Email From Training Peaks for Friday ... Join Today !

They Have really improved this email in the last week ... post your results or questions to comments please !

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Hello crank shield, Your Workouts for Friday Peter's Workout of the Week Type: Bike Planned duration: 1:00  Complete Peter's Workout of the Week Ride duration can be 30-120 min as fitness / motivation / lifestyle allows. Don't over do it today Your Workouts for Saturday Tempo Long Type: Bike Planned duration: 2:00  2 hrs WU: 30min include 5x2min @ 110-120 RPM, 1-2 gears easier ... 2-3 min comfy cadence, endurance effort b/w Main WO: 1) complete 25 - 35 min Steady Tempo 80-83% - Cadence should be 85-95 RPM - on rolling gravel road or double track trail that lets you push for duration with out excessive changes in pitch. CD: finish time endurance / remember to fuel during and after workout. To stop receiving this daily email click here You can alter your settings by logging into your account and clicking "User Settings".     Latest TrainingPeaks News: I Have a Marathon? In 2 Months?!?On the scale of Alarming Realizations, this one is right up there. How on earth does something this big sneak up on you? 3 Queens of the Road in NYC HalfAlso: Kara Goucher will do Chicago Half; the race that changed Barringer's life; USA Indoor meet moves to N.M.... Trail Heads"Another summer weekend," says Lisa, "another batch of endurance trail races happening across the country." Subscribe to this Feed
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To use Hydration Pack or Not ... that is the question from Email

Great Question today from one of our SNPD clients who is taking on the Crank

 

The Question:

 

Hey Steve and Peter

 

 - Did you use a camel back? I was thinking of using one but have never liked wearing them very much but can see how it would be advantageous in a Race like Crank the Shield.

 

 

The Answer

 

Great thought here and thanks for posing this as I am sure many people have thought of this (or should be thinking about it !)

 

If you look at any of the big mtb stage races you will see the top 10-20 teams not using hydration packs and carrying the bare minimum as far as equipment goes. There are many cases where they get burned and run out of fuel or need tools / clothes that should be ( are recommended to be) carried with each rider.

 

The top riders are typically out for 3-4.5 hrs and with 3 aid stations (every 30km approx) they can usually do quite well on 2 bottles and whatever bars/gels are in their pockets.

 

For riders who are going to be taking longer then an hour b/w aid stations it is likely that bottles may become an issue, especially for riders with only 1 cage as they need to carry spare tube/pump/hanger/jacket etc. to ensure they make it through the stage and jersey pockets can quickly start running low. Additionally consider this load of stuff in your pockets and the discomfort of such bulk in the pockets vs. the bulk of a well designed pack.

 

The security of having everything zippered away in a pack is also nice compared to always checking to see that your last mars bar hasn't ejected.

 

There are tons of packs out there ... I love the new Ergon packs and they are worth checking out due to their nicely designed harness system and airflow b/w pack and rider.

 

Thanks for the Question Please feel free to comment below with your strategy for packs vs. Bottles  OR POST ANY FEEDBACK YOU HAVE !!!

 

 

Day Off - Watch Nationals

How was your weekend ? Many of Canada's Best were at the National Championships in Quebec ... some nice Canadian Rock to be had as well !

Today on Your off day watch the Video (women's race also a great video at cyclingdirt.org)

Watch The Men's Race from Nationals ! It's Motivating !

Great Job Colt / Cycling Dirt !

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Pre- Workout Nutrition

Find Yourself less then energetic after riding for only a short while ???

 

Find yourself wondering what to eat and when ???

 

Try the following before EVERY workout so that you are ready come race day:

 

2-3 Hrs Prior to ride consume 200-400 kcals

 

 - Focus on complex carbs and a little protein

-  Avoid High Fiber, simple sugars and Fat in pre workout meal

 - Avoid eating in the 1-2 hrs prior to the workout ... if you must eat in this window try something like a gel (1-200kcal) within 5 min of workout start.

 

Ideas ?

 - Bowl of oatmeal / yogurt

 - fruit (ie. banana) and yogurt

 - Peanut butter / honey sandwich

 - skinless baked potatoe w/ yogurt

 - sport drink like Accelerade (aim for something with a bit of protein)

 

Post the meal that works for you Please

 

Steve and Peter

www.steveneal.ca

Weekend Race Sim ?

What did you do on the weekend to get ready for the big race ?

Many of our athletes were out doing race sims for Crank or other stage races.

This meant riding with their packs, similar fueling practices, pacing etc.

For those athletes racing in Bromont they got a good taste of dismounts and running !

Good experiences had by Jerome Samson, Matt Farquharson, Stuart Loney, Matt Farqharson, Holly Hamilton and Peter Glassford in the Mud and Rocks !

Great Job Guys

Steve and Peter

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So How did Week 1 of the Last 3 Months GO???

Love to hear some results of the Gravel Road TT from Wed (or whenever you did it) 

Here is my experience for the sake of sharing (Hope to get some return on this ! ) 

  - I did this as part of a tempo workout I had, my best 10km was 17.5 min on a stretch i did in just under 18 earlier in the year, wattage was slightly higher to match this as well, but actually felt way easier and was in a harder workout so can feel some improved fitness ... how was your test !?!?!?! -- 

Did everyone get signed up for their trainingpeaks.com account ? 

And did everyone get our Crank the Shield Plan added to their account ??? 

Please post questions / comments to the comments section of this entry !  (as always anonymous or nick-name is fine) 

Peter and Steve 

www.steveneal.ca

Next Block of Crank The Shield Training Courtesy Steve Neal Performance Development Now Available !!!

The first 3 months have flown by, we have had over 60 people sign up for our training plan and look forward to hearing from those participants as we enter into the critical 3 months prior to the event.

 

Feel free to join in now, even if you are on the fence as to whether you will be participating in the race this year, it may serve to provide some consistency and variety to your summer training ! 

 

 ... the first week is a testing week and will set you up to join in at your own level of ability as the program moves towards the race.

 

Look for Steve and Peter of www.steveneal.ca to continue the flow of ideas, tips and question/answers at the crank the shield training blog

(Remember to post your experiences/comments/questions to keep things exciting!)

 

How do you get involved ?

 

1) Set up your training account at www.trainingpeaks.com 

 

2) Go to https://home.trainingpeaks.com/training-and-nutrition-plans/purchase.aspx?p=10536  to get the plan (note that it is $0.00 )

 

3) Start Using your account and our Blog to log your training, ask questions and get in race shape for September 2009 !!!