Well, its about five weeks into my century training and I have to say, things have gone fairly well. My enjoyment from being on the bike has grown exponentially and so has my fitness level. But, as I tend to do from time to time, I managed to become OCD about it. My disorder almost caused me to stop riding...almost.
Let me explain. My sister and I tend to have moments of OCD...you know, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. We go off on tangents and things around us have to be just right. If they're not then we starting freaking out. For example, my sister and I both must place silverware in the dishwasher or drainer in a particular order. Me, I like to put all the sharp knives in one spot, then all the forks, then spoons, and finally butter knives. In my head this is extremely logical because when it's time to put the silverware up I don't have to pick and choose through the different slots for all the forks. I can just get them from one place and put them up. In my OCD world this saves me time. My wife on the other hand, she just puts the silverware any place and that drives me nuts! I can't stand it!
Another tendency of mine is to make sure all the DVDs and Blu-Ray movies are put in their proper boxes and stacked just so. If they're out of order or there is a disc missing from its case then I freak out. I won't stop until I find it and it's all back in the proper place. As you can see, I tend to obsess a little bit. This was a sure-fire recipe for disaster when it came to my training.
Yes, I was and am meticulous when it comes to keeping my training log...almost a little too meticulous. I found myself wanting to give up and pout if I had to miss a day of training because of a family issue or if I couldn't go the required mileage for the day because work caused a shortage in time to ride. I HAD to have my iPhone with me and the MapMyRide app had to be just right for the ride. And if for some reason the app missed a part of the route then I would get frustrated and feel like the ride was unsuccessful. It was a downward spiral.
Then the other day the unthinkable happened. I started telling myself that I don't want to ride anymore and that I didn't want to train. I started going through the list of things that would give me a way out of riding and training. I was supposed to go for an 18 mile ride for pace that particular day and I just didn't want to do it. Then from the depths of within I managed to convince myself to just get up and put my gear on and ride. Only this time I told myself that I would not use the MapMyRide app to monitor the route and elevation. I also told myself that I would not look down at my cycling computer for speed, cadence or mileage. I talked myself into "just riding". And a funny thing happened along the way...I actually enjoyed the ride. Before I was so caught up in meeting training goals and pushing myself through certain training checkpoints. If I failed to meet a training goal then I would be disappointed and would try to make it up the next day. But now, after putting away the goal sheet and technology and just riding I found myself making more headway than before. My overall speed and cadence were faster, climbs were easier, and I found myself just enjoying the scenery. It was great! It was what riding your bike is supposed to be.
Since that day I have not used the MapMyRide app at all. Instead of focusing on a particular amount of miles to ride I simply just pick a route to ride that is roughly about the same distance or maybe a little more and just get after it. I enjoy being in the saddle now. Before it felt like work. Now it feels like play and my performance on the bike is improving because of it.
So, take heed my friends, if you find yourselves in a rut from training then just go out for a ride. Don't worry about the numbers...just ride. You'll be amazed at how much you enjoy riding again.
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