A Slow Return to Training

Well...this is exactly what I was NOT hoping for...a very slow return to getting back on my bike following last weekend's 24 Hours of Fury race.  That's right, I have not been on my bike since then.  I believe I suffered some minor over-use injuries during that race, so I suppose that some time off the bike is actually quite beneficial...physically.  Mentally however, an entire week off of my bike seems like such a long time, and plays havoc on my confidence level and my perception of my own physical condition.

Two days after my race I had a deep tissue massage performed to help relieve some extreme soreness.  I originally scheduled a 55-minute session, but early on in the process of working on my legs, it was quite apparent that I would need to extend that session to 80-minutes.  My legs were so tight, that the massage therapist was having difficulty getting the muscles and fascia to relax.  I am a huge fan of deep tissue massage, but this was the most pain I had ever experienced during a session.  All in all, the therapist spent 80-minutes on just my legs!

Tomorrow morning will determine whether or not a week off of my bike was helpful or not.  I plan to get up early and attack the trail that I will be riding, hopefully for 12-hours straight, on January 7th.  Papago Park will play host to the 2012 12-Hours in the Papago Mountain Bike race again this year.  This trail system is often referred to as the 'bunny hill' of Phoenix mountain biking, as it is not considered to be difficult when compared to the plethora of highly technical riding spots located throughout the Phoenix Metropolitan area.  The loop used for the race last year was roughly 6-miles long, and information regarding this years race states that the same course will be used, however it is stated to be 10-miles long...hmm.  In any case, while relatively easy, there are a couple of short, steep climbs that when performed repetitively over a period of 12-hours, transform this 'bunny hill' into a lung and leg crusher!

So my plan is to get out there early tomorrow, and ride for about 3 hours to see just how many calories I expend.  This is an important piece of information when it comes to planning my nutritional intake over the course of 12-hours...of riding.  This becomes quite tricky when the majority of time (if not all of it) will be spent pedaling.  Much of my caloric intake will come in the form of liquid and gels...which can get quite boring and have been known to cause gastrointestinal issues when consumed over long periods of time.  Wonderful.