Yesterday’s ride was a tour across the Bavarian countryside. We started on the Roth course. At the base of the Solar Hill, we continued riding between villages and across rolling hills. We finished up in Regensburg.
Early in the ride, I made a wrong turn and ended up 10 km behind everyone. As a result, I was solo all day. I enjoyed my personal time so much, I wondered if my subconscious was doing me a favor.
It’s been hot the last few days but my heat prep has worked so well I don’t notice it. What I did notice was mild dehydration persisting for 18 hours after the ride finished.
My original plan was to ride 100-ish km tomorrow to Nuremberg. However, tomorrow’s forecast is the hottest of the week and I don’t want to risk another round of dehydration. So I’ll ride early, bang out a race-week main set and van shuttle with the camp.
Race Shape
I feel like I’m in the best shape of the last 20 years. Shape being defined as approaching my ultimate potential. There are increasing trade offs as we approach our maximum potential.1
Best shape since 2005 is an exaggeration as I know (but can’t remember) I was in great shape in my early 40s.
…and memory is an aspect of Race Shape. The chemical signatures are strong, and addictive. They linger and draw us back to them. Many ultra distance athletes have addictive personalities and the race-shape vibe is highly addictive.
What I’ve been experiencing is a return of Peak Form memories from 2003-2005. It’s fun to experience. Riding for hours in comfort, able to lift power whenever I want, feeling calm and rested immediately after the ride.
Rested after a 2,700 kJ ride is a new sensation. When I started this journey, a 1,200 kJ ride would leave me tired for a couple days. Many of the feelings we attribute to aging are a lack of metabolic fitness.
For vitality - the lessons of the last three years:
Train Long - because it will force you to slow down.
Race Short - because you’ll learn that fast doesn’t mean max.
Careful With Chronic Run Load - just stay healthy.
Watch Your Risk of Ruin.2
As an elite, I carried fatigue and soreness most days. Thanks to Oli’s body work, I’ve been able clear all my soreness from last week’s the Mega Run. Given the swim/bike training of the last few days, being sore for a week was a good trade. Well played by Coach Julie for the recommendation.
Another Julie tip:
Don’t F*** It Up
Meaning, unload to the point where you get full benefit from the three years I spent getting back in race shape. That’s been in the back of my mind since landing in Germany.
Race Shape:
Takes a long time to create.
Is fleeting.
Feels great.
Requires a lot of work.
And some luck.
At our meeting, Julie asked me what I was going to do with my fitness.
I’m going to put everything I’ve got into the final 90 minutes of the race…
…then let it go.
From the inside, it feels like I’ve haven’t truly applied myself for a long time.
Endurance Essentials eBook Page
Athletic Ruin: Bike crashes, busy roads, group rides, depletion training… an effective way to surface poor choices is to consider the likely outcome if you had to repeat the choice 1,000 days in a row.
Some folks take the mental game further… the question they ask is… What happens if I repeat the choice every day for the rest of my life? It helps identify the games that aren’t worth playing.
That last 90 minutes will be a lot of fun. It’s one of those things you can’t buy in life, other than by putting in the work you’ve done in the last 3 years
Welcome to Germany, it’s stinking hot but much worse in Spain 😉