Just like the picture above, with the trail cutting machine at the end of some new single track trail. I am now entering uncharted territory. Between training rides, gym sessions and a calorie counter app I have my weight equal to my 2014 TDR start weight, 157lbs. Last year I reached 157 about 2 to 3 weeks before the grand depart from Banff. I was very pleased with how I climbed in 2014, basically as well as I ever have. So I can’t help but wonder what finish time I might attain with about 20 lbs (bike & body) less in 2015. In case you are wondering my goal is to finish in 20 days, give or take 1/2 a day. Or roughly about 2 days sooner than my 2010 21.75d finish.
We have about 16 weeks till GD 2015 and the hope is to
get down to 148lbs, my old high school weight.
On paper it seems possible but there are lots of questions. How much longer till I hit the dreaded plateau, beyond which additional loss becomes exponentially more difficult? At what point do you lose critical muscle and
strength vs fat? And how long should one be
at a ‘stable’ weight to optimize long term endurance? (side note on the calorie counter app-the app really helps me hit my daily calorie goals but even more important has me eating a much more balanced selection of carbs/fat/protein)
From a practical point of view I will get a real test of
my current fitness come March 27th at this year’s Stagecoach 400. Last
year I took my full rigid TDR bike, with aero bars etc, along with a body
weight of 167. It took me a bit over 3.5
days to finish and I treated it as a tough training ride—which it was.
This year I should go in about 155 to 154 lbs. I plan to slap the front suspension back on
and gear out for about 3 days ‘light’. Hopefully I will have a stronger result and
get some confirmation that I can race strong at lighter than 157. I also plan to test my Blizzard emergency
bivy/TDR sleep system with some real back to back night circumstances.
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