Monday 4 March 2013

Watt Bike Training

Just a short post today - Some crazy pics of me on the Watt bike @ Refine Gym. 

This is a great link that will let you know all about the watt bike - they are the experts: 

http://wattbike.com/au/guide/getting_started/heart_rate_and_power_training_zones


The feet are a little sore so I used this as my Interval/threshold training day.  
I did 46 minutes on the bike. I am using the bike to a) take some of the strain off my feet and running muscles and joint impact b) vary my training, improve my 'cycle' fitness and keep me motivated and c) hit the higher HR thresholds in a controlled environment much more quickly than I would while running

After a long warm up I rode at 60 on, 60 off (the number being the seconds count) trying to hit about 70-80% of my HR threshold. This attained to about 250 watts on the bike on setting 3 of 10.

The next segment was 30 on 45 off at about 90%. Leigh had me aiming to hit and maintain 400 watts and keep a smooth and consistent output graph. At this stage it was starting to hurt...

Following that we jumped to 15 on 20 off at peak output. Again the target was 500 watts, getting towards my threshold (90-95% max HR)

For the the last '10 on, ten off' threshold session I used the training mask 2.0.(To find out more, head this way). I think I lasted 5 of the 8 sets with the mask on. The feeling was pretty intense. You certainly had to breath hard both in and out and as set progressed I really noticed it. 

Was it a scary feeling having restricted breath? Kind of. I had to give it away but will certainly try it again next week, especially after doing a little bit of research.

I almost wore my HR monitor but gave it a miss. I wish I'd worn it. 

The workout was followed by 50 'tyre flips' that included box jumps into and over the tyre after each three flips. 

I'll update when I have some research and info about the Watt bike (ah, now I have a great link at the top) and I'll let you know how it's been working for me. 

**********
It's now March 27 and it's been a month since I've been on the bike for my weekly session. I'm pleased to say that it's getting easier. I can now push myself to the limit and hit a higher wattage and maintain it for a longer period of time each rep/session. 

My running feels stronger. I don't feel faster but I can hit the higher HR and keep running much higher in my threshold limits. The Rollercoaster run saw me run 21.5km at an average of 161 BPM. I maxed at 193BPM. I feel that the Watt bike has allowed me to shift the limits of my capability. Only time will tell. 

Many thanks to Leigh for the pics and getting me on just the right program.



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