Training blog - page 10

Day sixty: Wednesday 5 April 2006

Gym.  My legs felt very good today, so I took the unusual step of increasing the leg press weight load for the second consecutive visit, this time from 210kg to 225kg.  This new weight proved to be a struggle though; I found it quite difficault pressing this amount back up, but I'm sure it will get easier.  I settled for two sets of 10 reps and a further 3 reps.

As this was an extra visit in the same week, I did not do a full programme of exercises.  I did increase the leg extension weight from 65kg to 70kg and my legs felt very good during the three sets of 10 reps.  Another increase was achieved on outer thigh pushes; from 100lbs to 105lbs (two sets of 20 reps).  I am still progressing with pullovers; I am still using the 10kg dumbell but managed two sets of 20 reps today.  Other than that, all other exercises were unchanged.  I did not attempt calf raises, hip flexor raises or total hip kickbacks today.

On the next visit, I hope to recommence the upright rowing bar and consolidate on the increased leg press weight, being fully focused on pressing the full three sets of 10 reps for the next two or three visits before considering upping to 235kg.

Day sixty one: Thursday 6 April 2006

Rest day.

Day sixty two: Friday 7 April 2006

Gym.  Leg pressing a weight of 225kg continues to be a struggle, but this time I managed 2 sets of 10 plus 5 reps for the final set, so I'm just 5 reps short of a full workout on this exercise.  There was no change today on the following exercises: leg extensions, inner thigh squeezes, outer thigh pushes, leg curls, hip flexor raises, total hip kickbacks, torso twists or 'Superman' ball raises.  I am pleased to report that I have now reached the full three sets of 20 reps at pullovers (with a 10kg dumbell).  Calf raises were unchanged at 3 sets of 15 reps at 120kg.  Finally, the penultimate equipment used was the upright rowing bar, which I have not used for a little over a month.  I managed 3 sets of 10 reps raising just a 15 to 18kg bar. 

Considering my injuries, I am very pleased to be at the stage now where I have resumed all but two of the exercises listed under training methods.

On my next visit to Lakenham Sports and Leisure Centre, I plan on reaching the weight load target for leg extensions (75kg) as I feel my legs are a match for this new weight.  Also, I will increase the weight for inner thigh squeezes, by another 5lbs.  Total hip kickbacks will be upped to 59kg and from now on, I will be using a 15kg dumbell for pullovers.

Day sixty three: Saturday 8 April 2006

Yoga.  For this session, I wanted to focus mainly on viniyoga.  I warmed up with a standard corpse pose, which I held for two minutes then started exercising with a standing forward bend, which I repeated four times.  Upward legs and arm stretches followed, again this was repeated four times, as was the bridge pose and cobra pose.  The final viniyoga drill was five knee to chest poses.

I finished the session off with two Iyengar yoga poses; a mountain pose (Tadasana) and a warrior pose II (Virabhadrasana) and to close, another corpse pose.

Kundalini yoga should benefit me.  However, this involves locking various parts of the body, such as the diaphragm.  I would rather not attempt these unless a qualified yoga instructor is present.

Day sixty four: Sunday 9 April 2006

Bike.  I did a 3 hour and 16 minute solo ride today.  April showers?  This afternoon's weather was a bit more than a shower!  It rained for the first 33 miles, most of which was heavy, especially shortly after turning back for home.  By the end of the ride, my waterproof cycling gloves had been defeated by the elements as had the waterproof overshoes.  I cycled 50.41 miles at an average speed of 15.4mph.  I was very pleased with this as I still have only the one gear on my winter training bike.

Obviously, there is still a long way to go and a lot of hard work to do on the bike (including lactate, anaerobic and aerobic threshold) to do but the power I can now generate especially up gradients has improved immensely.  Having said that, there is not mountain ranges of 106 miles in Norwich. 

Tomorrow, I will be sending off my passport application form as I am looking into whether there are any good practice hills in northern France; the idea is that travel there should be a lot cheaper than Wales or Devon, given my very limited income.

I have also reviewed my evening cycling training.  I've decided to ride with my cycling club VC Norwich on Sundays only and not on Tuesday and Thursday evening training rides, as I have done in previous years.  The main reason for this is to stay focused on my own aims and goals for the mountains; if I cycled with several others who have different targets, it would be very difficault to keep to my own plan and preparations.

Day sixty five: Monday 10 April 2006

Gym.  Today, a nurse at my Doctor's surgery removed the two traditional stitches from my elbow.

At the gym, I managed to leg press the full three sets of 10 reps at 225kg; the first two sets were relatively easy and the final set was a little harder but I felt I could press another set of 10 if required.  This time next week I should be able to press 235kg.  I have now reached the June target of 75kg for leg extensions; managing three sets of 10 reps at this new weight.  Calf raises were unchanged.  Next, I did three sets of 15 reps with the upright rowing bar, which weighs approximately 16kg.  Again, there was no change to torso twists.  Another increase followed, this time on inner thigh squeezes, with the resistance now at 140lbs, 5lbs better than before.  Outer thigh pushes were unchanged, as were 'Superman' ball raises.  Both hip exercises were increased, with hip flexor raises now at 40kg and total hip kickbacks at 59kg.

Good news in regards to pullovers.  I was hoping to use a 15kg dumbell to do the three sets of 20 reps.  However, my elbows were not quite ready for a 33% weight increase.  I did use a 12.5kg dumbell instead of 10kg though.

My instructor today informed me that the weight load for leg curls was in fact set at 50kg, not the 45kg I thought my hamstrings were lifting.  On this apparatus, the weight control/stop covers the figures on weight bars and whatever figure is covered is the amount the user lifts, different to many other apparatus.  Therefore, I have already reached another target and have discovered that I met the target for leg curls many weeks ago!  In addition, I would describe today's leg curls as the easiest I have done since starting at the gym in January.

Finally, I recommenced full sit ups today and managed to do the full two sets of 20 reps.

Day sixty six: Tuesday 11 April 2006

Bike.  Another ride today.  Quite similar weather conditions to Sunday; a very cold and strong gusty wind with rain which was heavy at times.  On the bike, it still feels like winter with the cold rain splattering my face pretty hard.  Today I cycled 55.39 miles at an average speed of 14.7mph.  On the outward journey, the wind was blowing across me from my left hand side to form an unhelpful cross-wind. 

I am very much looking forward to using more than one gear; either the weather will improve, in which case I can use the Specialized bike or if things stay the same, I will buy some new jockey wheels for the winter training bike on Friday 14 April.

At the halfway point in the ride I stopped, locked the bike up and did some fundraising for approximately two hours before embarking on the return journey home.  This was a longer route.  By the time I had finished fundraising, the wind had calmed down considerably and the rain had stopped.

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