Comfortably Uncomfortable - Nice Phrase!

After a couple of easy days following my strength session on Monday, today I completed my normal bike/run session. It was long intervals this week and the aim was 2 x 15 mins at 270W on the turbo, followed by 3 x 1 mile run with 90 sec recoveries on the road. These sessions are always hard and, as the power gradually rises, they are getting harder! As a reminder to you bloggers, my aim for the race season is 2 x 20 mins at 305W and 4 - 6 x 6 mins at 350W. I sometimes wonder how I will ever get near those levels, but to improve I must try! Interestingly, there is a training article in Cycling Weekly today that is almost identical to the session that I did today (well, minus the run of course!). There was a great phrase used - 'the session should be comfortably uncomfortable..' What a nice explanation that is! What exactly is comfortably uncomfortable?!!

Anyway, I hit my target today on the turbo. . . feeling comfortably uncomfortable, of course! I then staggered into my trainers and went straight into the first mile effort on the road. I remained 'comfortably uncomfortable' as I hobbled along! My aim for the mile efforts was 6:20 for each rep, though I really knew that I would be faster. First rep: 6:07. Second rep:5:49 (a 400m downhill stretch helped!). the third rep included a 700m uphill at the end and I slipped to 6:27. I use a Garmin Forerunner to measure these reps and, as I crested the hill (feeling decidedly uncomfortably uncomfortable!), I desperately tried to make up the lost time before the mile was completed. As the time depicts, I did not make it under 6:20. However, the route that I ran lends itself to a challenge: run the first 2 reps quick enough to get sufficiently along the route to make it up the hill with sufficient time to make up time to get under 6:20 for the last mile rep. Does that make sense? It will be fun and a test to see if my running improves.

The weekend approaches and I am getting revved up for the Sunday club ride. . . I must ride easy. . . I must ride easy. . . I must ride easy. . . I may ride easy. . . I may ride easy. . . I may ride hard. . . I may ride hard. . . I will ride hard. . . I will ride hard. . . Ah! Too late! I am riding hard!