I got sidetracked from my riding plans with a cold virus last week. That was a bit of a bummer. I only got in one ride. Today however, I got in almost two and a half hours of riding for a distance of 36.4 miles. Not fast, but at least I stayed on the bike the whole time without stopping for a break. I averaged 15.2mph with a little stronger wind in my face on the return trip than when I went out; The wind tends to pick up as the day goes on. All in all though it was a mild wind and a very good ride. I plan on using this ride as a base with which to judge my overall progress through my training.
So far, I have not done any really tough rides and don't really plan on that until late November or early December. At that time I hope to have built up a good base mileage and have gotten stronger at the same time. I will probably want to do some rides with a goodly amount of hill climbing by that time to build my strength even more.
I did notice that my left leg felt a little strained on the return trip and will probably have to take it easy and not push myself for the next few days. I believe it is the Vastus Medialis muscle, which is on the inner top of the lower thigh. Not sure, but I may have to adjust my clip on my shoes. It could also just be that I pushed it a little harder than I am really ready to ride.
Tomorrow morning I plan on riding an easy 20 miles or so and perhaps do a little running in the evening. Would really like to ride at least 20 miles a day this week and it looks like the weather will be perfect until next Monday when there is a 30% chance of rain. I may do a long ride on Saturday but will have to see how it goes.
