Back to the turbo trainer on Monday. Typically, I tend to do it like a time trial – trying to work hard and steadily throughout – but should I be a bit more ‘scientific’ to get the best out of it?
I think that means that at least some sessions should incorporate hills (in the absence of any resistance adjustability, I can try to replicate hills by knocking the bike up a couple of gears and pushing hard) and/or sprints.
On Monday I tried it with one minute hard efforts on 2 short hills and 3 short sprints. That made for a tough 45 minutes (@31kph – 19.4mph) as I probably aimed too high by keeping the ‘recovery’ bits at around 30kph – there was relatively little recovery going on.
On Tuesday I was back in the gym for an hour. Nearly one person has asked what I do there. More for my records that anything else, it’s: leg press, abductors, adductors, chest press, leg curl, leg extension, 200 sit-ups, 6 minutes of a plank regime, single leg calf rises (4×20 each leg) and some stretching to finish. Each of the machine exercises is at least 4 sets of 8 reps.
I’ve also started with the shoulder press machine – but I am so bad that the puny weight I lift is almost embarrassing. Perhaps that’s the best reason for sticking with it.
Two days off exercise on Wednesday and Thursday, partly as it felt that an easier week would be a good idea and partly because our older son and his girlfriend came to stay for a few days. Luckily they had been staying at the house in Bournemouth – if they’d been in London the visit would not have been permitted. We are also fortunate that we can keep appropriate social distances here and let them have necessary exclusive facilities.
Gym on Friday, followed by a run back from the garage after dropping off a car for its MOT (6.4km – 4 miles). I found a run straight after the gym quite hard but, to my surprise, I managed sub 6 minute kms.
I decided to take Saturday and Sunday off too. It felt odd not exercising but I stuck with my idea of taking an easier week – the easiest I’ve had for many months. I wonder if next week will see any benefit?
On a week with slim pickings, a short stocktake: body all seeming to work properly (for its age); resting pulse 48; weight about 66kg (146 lbs).
Finally, just as Ineos’ season was being written off after the (relative) failures of Bernal, Thomas and Froome, my congratulations to Tao Geoghegan Hart who won the Giro d’Italia in the final time trial – without ever having been in the leader’s Pink Jersey. The fifth (male) British Grand Tour winner (after Wiggins, Froome, Thomas and Simon Yates). Phenomenal.
Interesting stuff this week
1. African wise words: When you see the bird dancing know that someone is beating the drum
2. BBC News website: Luton Airport: Too many passengers at front of plane caused take-off issue
An Airbus A320 was replaced with an A321 ahead of a flight, but an email about the change was not passed on which meant the passenger seating plan was not adjusted to the bigger craft. When the aircraft did not respond twice to the pilot’s normal take-off commands, extra thrust was needed for it to depart safely.
Scary how fragile things can be, when even stuff of this importance falls through the cracks.
3. BBC News: Coronavirus: France puts 46 million under night curfew
The French government is imposing a curfew on two-thirds of the country – 46 million people – from Friday night for six weeks, after a record 41,622 new coronavirus infections in one day.
Wow – a huge infection rate and a huge response for a country of about 65million
4. Cat missing since 2018 found 60 miles away in Coventry
A cat that went missing two-and-a-half years ago has been reunited with its owner after being found about 60 miles away on an industrial estate. The delighted owner thinks the cat stowed away to the Midlands in a lorry.
Nothing like a ‘lost cat reunited with family’ story to lighten the gloom
5. A Nasa probe sent to collect rock from an asteroid several hundred million kilometres from Earth has grabbed so much that samples are spilling out.
I had a picture of a substantial rock pile – perhaps enough for me to make another wall – but the craft is believed to have collected some 400g (14oz) of fragments
(an Old Man in Lycra) 
So the poor cat was sent to Coventry…
I’ll get my coat!
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Excellent – but perhaps we shouldn’t be talking about that. Maybe it was put in pur-dah?
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Ouch. I’m going to need a little lie down after that!
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Regarding the aeroplane, was there not enough in the cheap seats to balance it off? I too have started the turbo, being a touring man I have no strict problem and just porter along for a boring half hour
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I was a bit confused but I’m guessing that if the original had, say, 28 rows, they simply put everyone in rows 1-28 of the new plane that had, say, 38 rows, without spreading them across the whole 38? I’d have been in the cheap seats.
I like to kid myself that the more boring the turbo is, the more benefit it must be.
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