Endurance Path Monthly Report – June 2015
Welcome to my June 2015 Endurance Path Monthly Report!
My report this month is a bit shorter than the last. I spent most of the month riding and was able to get out to a few new trails that I had never ridden before. It was a very mountain bike focused month as I finished the month with the Lutsen 99er race. As always, any feedback is greatly appreciated. If there is something specific you would like to see or do not want to see in these monthly updates, please leave a comment or send me an e-mail through my Contact Me page.
My intention is to share quick highlights of any endurance racing, training, nutrition, health and any other fun endurance sport related activities that I experienced this month.
Racing
I only had 1 race this month, but it was a big one. I spent most of the month training and preparing for the Lutsen 99er.
Total Races: 1
Mountain Bike: 1
Lutsen 99er – Lutsen, Minnesota
Results:
81 of 462 Overall Finishers
77 of 477 Male Finishers
27 of 92 Male 30 – 39 Year Old Finishers
I had a great race, even though I was fighting a cold. I finished more than 2 hours faster than last year and was really happy with how I did overall. Each race I do, I seem to be improving in good strides.
You can read my full race report here: 2015 Lutsen 99er Race Report And Results
Upcoming Races
July 22nd: Farm Dog Time Trial #6
August 1st: Maah Daah Hey 100
Training
All races are included in the mileage and session counts. I count a warm up and race as only 1 session, so if you are following me on Strava, the session count on Strava will be higher than this monthly report.
Total Miles: 503
Mountain Bike: 322 miles
Road Bike: 181 miles
Total Sessions: 21
Mountain Bike: 17
Road Bike: 4
I put a lot of focus this month on trail miles. We took 2 family trips where I was able to really focus on my mountain biking. We spent 4 days at Cuyuna Lakes Recreation Area and then about a week in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula where I was able to ride Maasto Hihto / Churning Rapids, Swedetown, Copper Harbor and Marquette. Those were some fantastic training days. I utilized my Fat Bike for some heavy trail miles that provided for great workouts. My fitness levels seemed to sky rocket between Cuyuna and the UP. I did wear myself down quite a bit and was on the verge of over training. I did end up catching myself a pretty bad cold that I am just now getting over.
I plan to do another time trial in July. I do think the short time trials are great little threshold training sessions. During my race and my heavy trail training days, I noticed that I could just push and push and my lungs never ran out of air. I attribute this to the criterium and time trial racing that I was getting into. They were great above threshold training sessions that taught my body how to push to the max and then quickly recover. I will definitely continue that type of racing next spring.
My big focus right now is training for the Maah Daah Hey 100 on August 1st.
Nutrition
My nutrition has been good overall. I tend to stay fairly consistent. I did slip a bit while traveling in Michigan as we were staying with relatives and I didn’t have my home or camper kitchen with me. That being said, I managed it ok. The key for me, is the right foods before and after workouts. On heavy training days, I try to have a bit of protein before bed. Usually in the form of 1 or 2 eggs, depending on how full or empty my stomach feels.
I have started substituting Sun Flower Butter for cheese on burgers and sandwiches. I’ll even add an egg to a burger sometimes for a little extra protein stack. Mid day, I have been having a cold turkey sandwich on whole grain bread. I’ll spread a bit of Sun Butter on each slice of toast and then layer it with diced up broccoli before adding a fried egg and turkey. It’s a good sandwich with a good mix of carbs, proteins and fats for a mid day meal.
Health and Fitness
Weight: 155 lbs
My overall fitness is fantastic and the best it has ever been. I was a pretty good wrestler back in high school, but I feel like I could kick the crap out of my 18 year old self. I am exactly twice that age now. As I train more and get stronger, I am starting to see how and why endurance racing is being dominated by the middle aged guys. There is a mental toughness that builds up in you as you age. I am looking forward to seeing the kind of shape I am in a few years down he road when I turn 40.
With 5 weeks between the Lutsen 99er and Maah Daah Hey 100, I believe that I have the opportunity to recover a bit and then build my fitness level a bit more before tapering back down for the Maah Daah Hey.
Summary
This was a great month of increasing my fitness levels and climbing abilities. I no longer feel like climbing is one of my weaknesses. Soon, I can see climbing being one of my strengths. I will stay focused on it for sure and continue to build leg strength.
I hope you found this update useful, whether it be insightful or inspiring. I am thinking about switching this to a monthly Newsletter via e-mail vs a blog posting. If you have any thoughts on that idea, I would appreciate your feedback. As I mentioned above, please leave a comment below or or send me an e-mail through my Contact Me page if you have any questions or comments.