dreadedmonkeygod . net

I've been using Joe Friel's The Cyclist's Training Bible as a guide, I've put together a general plan for the training year.

Most training plans assume I have 8 or more hours a week to train. Even Charmichael's Time-Crunched Cyclist requires 8 or more hours of training each week. That doesn't seem very time-crunched to me. Strava's training plans start at 10 or more hours a week. I simply don't have that kind of time.

Now, to be fair: part of why I can make progress in just four one-hour workouts a week is because I am not terribly fit, by badass cycling standards. I am fat, weak, and slow; any kind of plan will make me less so.

Still, it's nice that there's a serious training guide out there that will help me make the absolute best use of the little time I have to improve the little fitness I have.

Training Bible allows for my schedule. I typically train around 200-300 hours a year, 3-4 hours a week, with the occasional spike to 6 hr/wk. Training Bible works with that: the 200 hr/yr guidelines fall nicely within what I can realistically do.

The other thing I love: Friel incorporates barbell training into the plan, and counts it toward weekly training hours.

So, last week I started the "Prep 1" phase of my training year. The basic idea is to lay the groundwork on which I can build strength and endurance.

I tweaked Friel's recommended workout a little to suit what tools I have available, and I do the workout as a circuit so that I get some aerobic benefit as well as building muscle.

3 rounds:

• squat x 20 @ 55#
• bench row x 20 @ 20#
• Romanian dead lift x 20 @ 55#
• dumbbell chest press x 20 @ 20#
• standing row x 12 @ 55#
• Russian triangle x 20 @ 25#

Ideally, I'd be doing 20 reps of each exercise. However, I'm still figuring out how to do that in a circuit with a single barbell.

I did this workout the first time on Friday, and it took me until today to fully recover. I did the second workout this afternoon, and I'm feeling much better this time around.

I'm still figuring out what to do about my cracked frame. I'm going to see if it's covered under the warranty. If that doesn't happen, I'll have some decisions to make, and likely have to wait a few months before I'm back on a mountain bike. In the meantime I've got my barbells and kettlebells and a road bike, a pair of running shoes, and even my old inline skates. I won't starve for training options.

I can't wait to see where this next year takes me.