150 Days of Training - How Far Did I Go?

So with the ride only a day or so away, I've now officially finished my training.

I started my training on the 1st January 2016, which was 150 days before we departed from London and ride the 145 miles to Amsterdam, all for the fantastic Prostate Cancer UK charity.

So how many miles and hours have I trained?

• January - 218 miles 19hrs
• February - 139 miles 15hrs
• March - 145 miles 15hrs
• April - 273 miles 18hrs
• May - 252 miles 17hrs

So a total of 1,027 miles and 84 hours. Across 42 training rides. 

Plus I ran the Adidas Silverstone half-marathon and the Hendy Ford Eastleigh 10K events!

Equivalent of riding from my home town of Wimborne to Dundee city centre in Scotland and then back again!

Training Summary For The Month of May

So with less than 4 weeks until I depart on the Football to Amsterdam 2016 ride for Prostate Cancer UK, the month of May was an important training month for two reasons. 
Firstly I needed to ensure I was fit enough to ride the 145 miles, so I needed to put the training miles in. 
But secondly I needed to ensure that I didn't over-train and cause either an injury or be to exhausted to ride the 145 miles!
My training stats for May are as follows...

• Longest ride was 42.6 miles
• Total miles ridden was 252 miles
• With 17 hours in the saddle across 9 rides

Seven out the 9 training rides were over 20 miles, with four of these being over 30 miles and the longest ride being 42.6 miles.

Overall I am really pleased with how my training has gone and I feel fit and prepared for the depart at the Olympic Park on the morning of Friday 3rd June 2016.

You can view my training rides via my Strava profile by clicking the link below..

https://www.strava.com/athletes/7585619

War of Miles Update - Week 4

So the final week of the brilliant 'War of Miles' challenge with the AFC Bournemouth has now been completed.
I only managed two training rides in the final week of the challenge, between Monday 25th and Saturday 30th April 2016. This was due to work and family commitments!
My total training miles were....

• 24.5 miles or 39.4 kilometers 

AFC Bournemouth played away at Everton. Never an easy place to play with a very young and talented squad of international players.

A very close game that ended in a 2-1 home win for Everton, who scored first through Tom Cleverley before a Marc Pugh equaliser in the first half.

The second half was a tight encounter, with the winning goal from Leighton Baines coming in the 64th minute. Late chances from AFC Bournemouth weren't converted, in an entertainingly close game.

You can read the full match report via the BBC Sport website here

I've emailed my week 4 mileage to the Media & Comms team at AFC Bournemouth, so I am intrigued to learn how I compared to the midfield players "in-game" miles throughout this brilliant challenge. 

You can read how I did in Week 3 here

To read more about 'War Of Miles', please click here or follow the link below to the official AFC Bournemouth website.

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

War of Miles Update - Week 3

So we are over halfway through the brilliant 'War of Miles' challenge with AFC Bournemouth for the month of April.

I managed three training rides in week 3, between 18th to 24th April 2016, with my total training miles being....

• 66 miles or 106.2 km

AFC Bournemouth played a home game against reigning Premier League champions Chelsea on Saturday 23rd April 2016.

A real tough run of fixtures in April has seen AFC Bournemouth play teams from the top-half of the Premier League with games against Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.

The game ended in a home defeat, with Chelsea winning 1-4. 

A scoreline that doesn't fairly reflect the game as a whole, as the away team scored with all four of the shots on target and the home side created many chances and dominated possession for long spells during the game. 

You can read the full match report from the BBC Sport website here

I've emailed my week 3 mileage to the Media & Comms team at AFC Bournemouth, so I am intrigued to learn how I'm comparing to the midfield players "in-game" miles.

You can read how I did in Week 2 here

To read more about War Of Miles, please click here or follow the link below to the official AFC Bournemouth website.

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

War of Miles - AFC Bournemouth Top The Distance Charts

So as the #WarOfMiles challenge with the AFC Bournemouth continues throughout April, I read a great article on the Sky Sports website yesterday.

The article was entitled "Eddie Howe and Bournemouth deserve more credit for Premier League survival"

Within the article was a section about how AFC Bournemouth continue to lead the statistics for most distance covered in Premier League games during the 2015/16 season.
As the images below shows, the team averages 117.2Km per game, with the midfield players running the most distance each game. Providing extremely impressive individual results were Dan Gosling and Andrew Surman, with Matt Ritchie, Junior Stanislas and Harry Arter not far behind.

Now I knew that AFC Bournemouth rated highly in the 'Distances Covered' charts and that a couple of players always ranked very highly in the individual tables when I took on the #WarOfMiles challenge during April.

So with five home games for AFC Bournemouth I must ensure I keep my training miles high to be in with a chance of competing with these perpetual running machines!

The team could run over 586km's in the five games in April. Luckily for me I am only competing against the midfield! 

Read more about the #WarOfMiles challenge here or follow the link below...

http://www.afcb.co.uk/news/article/afc-bournemouth-prostate-cancer-uk-gary-trudgett-matt-ritchie-3031881.aspx

To read the Sky Sports article click here or follow the link below...

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/32625/10242403/eddie-howe-and-bournemouth-deserve-more-credit-for-premier-league-survival

My Training Summary for January, February and March 2016

So I have looked at my Strava statistics and compared how many training miles I've managed in January, February and March.

My training stats are:

• January - 218 miles 
• February - 139 miles
• March - 145 miles

So a total of 502 miles. The equivalent of me riding from my home in Wimborne Dorset to Perth in Scotland!

Time in the saddle or pounding the roads running total:

• January - 19hrs
• February - 15hrs
• March - 15hrs

So a total of 49hrs of training!

I then found this great training motto to help with motivation!

Learning To Ride In A Group

So being a fairly inexperienced road cyclist, I need to learn or experience what it is like to ride in a group of cyclists both I depart for Amsterdam on the 3rd June 2016.
So as part of my training plan I have entered my first sportive. The Wiggle New Forest Sportive on Sunday 10th April 2016.
I believe there will be circa 1,000 riders taking part in this sportive. Claimed to be the most popular event in the UK Cycling Events calendar, this two day event will ensure I learn how to ride with other riders in small and large groups.

You can read more about the event here or by clicking the link below:

http://www.ukcyclingevents.co.uk/events/wiggle-new-forest-spring-sportive/

Or watch the video from last years event below

I've entered the Standard route which is 67 miles, as I felt the Epic route of 84 miles was a little intense! The course around the national park that is the New Forest is pictured below:

UK Cycling Events describe the event as follows:

Starting just outside the National Park, near Ringwood, you’ll begin the ride in the south-west corner of the Forest and head east first of all, completing an anti-clockwise loop of the woodland area on the day on unspoilt and quiet back lanes with picturesque views.

As you ride and take in the views in the rolling scenery, there will be a number of hills to challenge your legs – plus a test to come near the end – with short and sharp climbs popping up every now and again to keep you on your toes. Beautiful New Forest villages of Sway, Beaulieu and Lepe are passed through before you head north and back into the centre of the district.

Quickly in and out of central point Lyndhurst, you’ll soon cross the M27 and take on the events major climb of the day, just outside Nomansland. It’s steep, but fairly short, so you should be able to dispose of this quickly and continue on your way. From here, it’s downhill all the way – with one spiky hill exception around Stuckton and the final feed stop – as you roll back around the edges of the Forest, towards Ringwood, and claim your medal, t-shirt and Powerbar recovery product at the finish line.

Somerley House and Gardens are not usually open to the public; however as an added bonus, riders of the Wiggle New Forest Spring Sportive and supporters will have the chance to view some of the State rooms within the House and access to the Gardens on the event day.

Off Bike Training - Hendy Ford Eastleigh 10K Run

As part of my training plan, I ran the Hendy Ford Eastleigh 10K race on Sunday. This is the 2nd year I have run this 10K event. It is very popular and run on closed roads. 
Starting at 9:00am on Sunday morning, the field of 3,000 runners set off following the timing car and a really nice bright red Ford Mustang, thanks to the sponsors of the race Hendy Ford.

Late last year I set myself three running targets...

1. Run 5K in under 29 minutes
2. Run 10K in under 60 minutes
3. Run a half-marathon in under 2hrs and 30mins

Happily and proudly I achieved both the 5K and half-marathon targets...

• Best 5K @ 28 mins and 24 secs
• Best Half Marathon @ 2 hours and 22 mins

Leaving the last remaining target to be achieved as the 10K at sub 60 mins.

Frustratingly I clocked 1 hr and 8 secs!! So close!!!

But happy nonetheless 

Which brings to end my running endeavours for the short term, whilst I now focus on riding my bike more, now that the weather is improving and the evenings getting lighter.

You can read more about the Eastleigh 10k race on the Running Mania website 

http://www.runningmania.co.uk/hendy-ford-10k/ 

Completed My First Half Marathon!

So after a bout of the dreaded flu, I managed to complete my first half marathon on Sunday!
To say I am pleased is an understatement! The Adidas Silverstone half marathon is an amazing event, with 7,000 runners taking on the 13.2 miles around the iconic Silverstone race circuit.

Having missed my last 10 days of training, due to flu, I wasn't feeling that confident as I lined up at the start line on racing circuits starting grid. 
But 2 hours and 22 mins later I jubilantly crossed the finish line. Ecstatic that I completed the 13.2 miles in under 2.5 hours (which was my target time).
The support from all the other runners and the large crowds of spectators really helped me.
A great event that I am proud to say that I completed. Plus it all helps with my training for Football to Amsterdam bike ride in June. I'm sure that running 13.2 miles will feel a lot easier than cycling the 145 miles from London to Amsterdam!

Man Down With The Flu

Last week became a complete write off for everything after I caught the flu!
I've not felt so sick and unwell, like this, for many many years. Felt the first symptoms last Sunday evening and thought it was just maybe a cold or feeling a bit under the weather. By Tuesday I had the full range of the 'flu'!!

So three days in bed. Off work, no training, no energy, feeling very low!!

Now I understand that we all get unwell at times and I am kind of glad that if I had to get the flu I got it now, some three months before I depart on the London to Amsterdam bike ride.
But this coming Sunday I am running my first half marathon. So my final weeks training plans were totally disrupted and abandoned. I'll have to see how I feel this week and hopefully just try and get around the 13 miles next Sunday.

Small Injury Impacting Training Rides

Aside from training for the Prostate Cancer UK Football to Amsterdam bike ride in June, I also training for my first half marathon.
Now I'd entered the Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon late last year, before I got my place on the London to Amsterdam bike ride. Hence why I have been balancing my training miles both on and off of my bike.
My running training has gone well, with a training plan where I have been increasing my mileage gradually over the last few weeks.
With the event itself taking place on Sunday 13th March, I completed my longest training run so far of 10.2 miles on Saturday. 

It was a little tougher than I had imagined, but I completed it at a good pace and within my target time of just under 2 hours.
But the training run came at a cost, as my achilles became a little swollen and very tight throughout that afternoon and evening. So when I awoke on Sunday to go and do a 35 mile training ride on my bike, I had to quickly rethink and sadly cancel my training ride, as I couldn't take the chance of making the injury worse.
I took some advice from a friend, who advised a couple of days rest.
So my training diary looks a little lean this week. But hopefully I should be running tomorrow and then back on my bike at the weekend.

To read more about the Adidas Half Marathon around the famous racing circuit that is Silverstone, click the link below

https://www.adidashalfmarathon.com/

Balancing Work & Training

Each week I plan a training schedule. Including time on the bike training with both shorter high intensive rides and longer endurance rides (trying to increase both stamina and time in the saddle). 

I also include my weekly game of 5 a side football for an hour every Tuesday. Plus I have to plan and complete some running time as I've entered my first half marathon in March!

So most weeks I manage to plan and complete the runs and the rides during the week and at weekends. Even in the wind and rain that deluged England during January and early February. 
But this week has been a bit more challenging as I have been away with work at an exhibition most of the week. Plus I am lucky enough to have tickets for The Who's 50th anniversary concert at Wembley this weekend.
So fitting training in this week has been a challenge, compromising by a few runs after work a little later in the evening and a planned ride on Sunday.
All this got me to thinking about how dedicated, organised and supportive people with families must be to balance a training schedule with family, work and training. I have a new found respect for anyone training for any endurance event, whether they are a cyclist, runner, hiker etc.

Month 1 - Training Summary

My training for London to Amsterdam started on the 2nd January 2016.
I've just added up my monthly stats from Strava for the month of January.

• Total Rides in January = 9
• Total Miles = 183.1 miles
• Total Time in the Saddle = 13hrs 14mins 37 secs
• Longest Ride = 41.6 miles

Overall I am pleased, considering the wind and rain throughout January.

 

Off Bike Fitness Training

As you may notice on my training plan I'm working on my fitness levels both on and off the bike. Endeavouring or planning to train a minimum of 5 out of 7 days a week.
With work commitments evening rides can be challenging, so I plan and commit to running at least 3 times in a week. Gradually increasing my mileage with each run from the 3 miles of my normal route at 10m:30s pace, to longer runs of 5 miles or further.
So far in January I have completed seven runs totalling 30 miles.
I don't enjoy running as much as I do cycling, but it does build core fitness levels.

Off Bike Fitness

Training on the bike is going well, despite the best efforts of mother nature with this continuous rain and wind!
So I have been doing some fitness training by running. So far this week I have been out on three runs totally just over 12 miles.
I will be training both days over the weekend. With a 5 mile run on Saturday and a 25 mile bike ride planned for Sunday.