Today I had a 15 mile bike ride on the schedule. I mapped out my route and had a few different options, all of them just shy of 15 or about 16/17 miles. So I just started riding, not really sure which turn I would take and playing it by ear seeing how I felt (and waiting to see what the ominous rain clouds were going to do). This was a great route because I have either ridden or driven all of it before. It is somewhat hilly in the beginning and flattens out at the end (good for when you're tired at the end of your ride!). Once I was at about mile 13, I was still feeling really good and decided to extend my ride a little bit more and do a full 20 miles. This was probably one of the best bike rides I've ever done- I felt amazing the whole time and was able to sustain an average pace of about 15.2 mph, which is the fastest pace I've ever been able to sustain, let alone for 20 miles! :)
I also played around with my nutrition a little differently than before. Well, I guess I've never really focused on it before for long rides. I had my usual breakfast of my favorite nut butter- peanut, cashew, and almond butter by Archer Farms at Target on a piece of whole wheat toast and a normal size cup of coffee. Usually that is all I eat before working out. Well, I decided to smash a banana down right before my ride because I was feeling a little hungry. I've been on rides before and have gotten hungry in the middle and it just kills me because then that is all I think about! I also tried taking a clif shot energy gel at the halfway point. This was my first time ever using anything like that. The taste/texture was not quite what I expected, but it was good! After figuring out how to get the stickiness of my hands and what to do with the wrapper (licked the stickiness off :/ ... folded the wrapper and managed to get it in my bike pack) I was good to go. I think making sure that my "gas tank wasn't empty" before and during the ride contributed to it being such a good ride.
You will also notice in the photo collage my cycling shoes! I got them along with clipless pedals (this was such a hard concept to understand at first because it's such an oxy-moron! Here is a great article that explains them...) a week ago and this was my third time using them. I have definitely noticed that I seem to have a little more speed with these. I especially notice it when going up hills...my speed doesn't fall as much or as quickly. The pedals I got are Shimano "look" pedals and the shoes are Specialized. The combo set me back about $160, but it was a great upgrade until I can afford a road bike. Even with my limited experience, I would highly recommend clipless pedals and shoes to anyone looking to upgrade their bike.
Sorry for such a long post! I am just excited that my ride was so great today. My plan is to really do all my workouts with high intensity this week, and then start tapering a little bit. I can't believe my triathlon is only a few weeks away!
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