Beautiful Weekend in Chicago for Training

NAN: Just came back from a half marathon race in Chicago with Doug. He finished! Only his second race ever, and he enters a half marathon! I did not (finish). Bad news: IT band injury not healed enough to do a half and after 5-6 miles had to hobble back and search for "ii" (ice & ibuprofin). Good news: Injury does not seem to affect my biking! Totally running related. Yesterday did a series of hill repeats with Ben and Adam. Ben and Julianne are doing hill repeats today. Training is coming along. But I am wondering, how many switchbacks to the top of a mountain? Or (she asks with even more trepidation) what happens when there are no switchbacks and it's a steady climb? Hard to mimic that in the Midwest. We'll just have to wait and see. All I can say is I trust there'll be penty of good wine at the end of each day!

Climbing Psychology

NAN: It's all individual, Ben, and we will never be the same on this. Pace-lining feels very purposeful, fun and driven to me as does solo sprinting; climbing feels a chore, okay, yes, with a reward of surviving at the end should I make it assuming my pounding heartbeat allows me to even enjoy the moment which is rare. Lance or Contador climbing and Cavendish sprinting are all equally motivated and rewarded. (Actually, Lance and Contador can do everything ... a league I'll never know - those who ride fast and climb well!) Take tip #8 below and reverse 'climber' with 'sprinter' with each other. You get my point. Also, you assume that I ever wanted to be a climber. I was happy going for speed. Venues for our non-local trips have both been decided by you, did ya notice?? I never chose climbing, YOU did. Yes, 'fraid so, you're just a climbing bigot. (Julianne not so, she's not as pushy as you. She just happily goes along for the ride with a hint of sheer glee in her eye doubtless fueled by the fact that she will be sitting at the top of each and every hill waiting for our sorry asses to jon her. Well, you'll be with her if you take your 'meds' if ya know what I mean, and I know you do. (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) So cut it out. I'll never be you (re climbing) and you'll never be me (re time trialing). Get used to feeling guilty that you forced me into this. (I kind of enjoy that, actually. It'll be the only way I can inflict pain back at you as you tell me how great that last climb in the Pyrenees felt with rabid glee in your eyes. I will doubtless put the glare of guilt on you at that point as only oxygen-starved eyes can do.)


Having established the groundwork - that it's not a matter of me 'seeing the light' (read YOUR light) but rather of me coping with it, tips 9 and 10 will be taken to heart. I would not mind at all becoming a better climber and a stronger cyclist, although there are days I look at this and think I am a little crazy, days when I feel every inch of 57. Luckily they are balanced by days when I feel, insanely, of course, that I can just eat up the world happily and go for a second round. (I suspect you each know both of these feelings.)


#9 - Relax:

Always working on that and will try to be more conscious of it in the climbing context. Agreed, easy to start relaxed, harder to maintain.

#10 - Suck-it-Up (paraphrased):

I race, been there, know that normal pain is transient. Only dread injury pain a little since it disables you. Will try to convert better to the new brand of leg/lung pain on hills, nay, mountains! (okay, I'm breathing hard thinking about this - back to #9 ....)

bonus pts:

#11 - Don't Look Up:

Best advice yet - after Berkshires I never want to try to assess the lenghth of a hill again, nor do I need to. It's a given: it'll hurt, it'll always look endless, you will always be left saying, "what the f---?!?" if you look up before you reach the top. (The eyes, or mountain demons, play tricks on us, or perhaps it's just optical illusions of theoxygen-starved brain...). I will never look up again. And if you should catch me doing so, I give you permission to take a 2x4 -- or the nearest bike pump -- and crack me on the helmet.

#12 - Smile:

F----off.

Okay, let me elaborate. As Jon Stewart (Daily Show) would unabashedly say to mentally limited bigots who trash him (rightly so, I might add, I mean Jon Stewart, not the bigots) with full robed choir in the background: "Go F--- Yourself!" Did he get this from the ear-phoned kid in "About a Boy"? Image keeps coming to kind... (You obviously have not been getting your Daily dose if you don't get this, but surely you get my drift either way.)

Smile?!? Really, he asks too much. Besides, I always hated people telling me to smile. Smiles come naturally when they come. Doesn't mean you're miserable just because you don't have a gaping grin all day. Well, hmmm, except maybe when climbing a mountains on a bike....

BEN: The on going discussion we've been sharing on the our different approaches to climbing have engendered a little (just a little) reflection on thinking about climbing. It just feels so much more purposeful and rewarding than pacelining. How it will feel when the climb is more than 600 ft remains to be seen. I'm going to have to use the techniques below on headwinds.

Enjoy.

Toolbox: Climbing Skills 2
Monday, August 13, 2007 10:51:43 PM PT

by Josh Horowitz

As we've seen in France during July, time trials and the climbing are the two primary triggers for stage racing success, with Contador signaling the return of explosive climbers to the top steps of the podium. Last month we discussed the first series of training and technical tips on climbing, and today we focus on the mental strategies to “elevate” your cycling…

Unlike other aspects of cycling, climbing success is considered by most to be almost 100% dependant on fitness and natural ability. After teaching a race clinic a few weeks ago it occurred to me that there is actually much more to it. Over the years, I’ve picked up numerous tricks and techniques that have allowed me to occasionally put one over on a stronger competitor. At the grass roots level, it is possible to just out ride your opponents, but as you get into the higher categories and the gap in ability narrows, strategy becomes increasingly important.

In the first article, we focus on the first 7 tips under Training and Technique. We will spend the second article on the Psychology of climbing and also on some bonus tips. If you find one or two that help you out then my job is done!

Mental: Tips 8-10
8. I am a Strong Climber and I Love to Climb!
I couldn’t write an article on climbing without mentioning the mental aspect. For most riders, the climb is won or lost the moment the looming incline comes into view. I cringe when I hear riders declare “I’m not a climber” or even “I’m a sprinter.” Unless you are a world class or professional cyclist, there is just no reason to limit yourself with statements such as these. The rider who thinks to himself that s/he is not a climber will never be a great climber no matter how hard they train. Mentally, they defeat themselves before they even reach the base. These negative self believes are powerful and deeply ingrained into the subconscious, but they can be overcome.

Next time you have one of these thoughts, write it down and then write down a positive thought that directly counteracts the negative one. For instance if you find yourself thinking “I hate to climb and I’m terrible at it,” you may want to write, “I am a strong climber and I love to climb!” Notice that the statement is 100% positive. Using the word love in your statement has also been proven to improve the power of your mantra. Find 20 minutes on each ride to repeat this statement or affirmation to yourself. Say it out loud and with conviction. Think of the brain as having a type of muscle memory that can be re-shaped with training and repetition. If you do this consistently, you will be amazed at the results.

9. Relax
Negative thinking can cause a physical reaction. Riders who get nervous whenever the road ascends tend to tense up. They waste energy by clenching their shoulders and their arms. They lose their breathing rhythm and some (as ridiculous as this might sound) actually unconsciously hold their breath. Another result of this physical tension is a breakdown in efficiency. Their otherwise smooth pedal stroke becomes choppy and broken. As a result of all this, their heart rate rises much faster than a rider with a similar power to weight ratio and they end up going off the back.

Try these two tricks. At night, when you are relaxed and lying in bed, close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Imagine yourself on a challenging climb. Visualize yourself feeling relaxed and pedaling smoothly. Conjure up emotions and feelings you’ve had while doing something cycling related where your confidence soars, such as riding in a pace line or sprinting, and translate that into this climbing scenario. See yourself spinning effortlessly and summiting in record time with very little difficulty. Do this every night before you fall asleep. Make your visualization as realistic as possible incorporating sights, sounds, smells and sensations. If possible, imagine a particular climb that you want to conquer. You punish yourself on the bike week after week. Why not add a few minutes of training each day which won’t even require you to break a sweat?

10. Take the Pain
This may seem obvious, but be ready to suffer. I don’t mean normal suffering - I mean be prepared to push yourself past the point of pain. Often an entire ride or race comes down to one moment on the slopes. How you respond at that moment will define you as a rider. Depending on the situation, don’t worry about conserving energy and DON’T look at your power meter or heart rate monitor. The heart rate and power you put out in a competitive situation will be much higher than what you can handle in training. In many situations, if you ease off on the climb, your day is over anyway so what are you saving it for? If you are suffering, chances are so is everyone else. Holding on for that additional 10 seconds could be the difference between heart break and a personal best. Then if you do get dropped at least you’ll know you gave it your all.


Bonus Tips
I went back and forth about this, but I decided to toss in some climbing secrets that I’ve picked up over the years. Use these when you need that extra half a watt to make it over with the group and for heavens sake, don’t tell anyone about them!

11. Don’t Look Up
When you look up to see the top, you get a distorted perspective of the steepness of the climb. Instead, distort your view in the opposite direction. Look straight down at the pavement in front of you. From this angle, it will appear to your brain that you are riding on a flat road and riding on a flat road isn’t so bad is it?

12. Smile
Often I catch myself making an exaggerated pain face as if to express my suffering to the world. Instead, try a smile. The brain associates a smile with pleasure and happiness. Smiling while you are climbing can trick your brain into thinking that you are not in as much pain as you think you are.