# What's the opposite of a morale booster?



## coffeejo (30 Oct 2011)

Yesterday's ride went on for a lot longer than anticipated, and the weather wasn't as friendly as predicted. In the end, still some 30 miles from home in the gloom of a rainy late afternoon on the last day of BST, sans lights, S and I decided to push on ahead of our better equipped comrades and get home before the last of the light vanished beyond the horizon.

We'd done the last hill of the day, so with nothing in front of us other than flat roads and some fantastic downhills, we made fantastic time, averaging fourteen point something over the last 25 miles. 

I crawled into the house at six o'clock and spent an hour wallowing in the bath.

Waking up this morning for another club ride, I felt a bit tired but perfectly fine. It took a while to convince my rear end that it did want to make contact with the saddle but it soon saw sense and stopped whinging. The first mile or two were rough but I kept going at an easy pace, waiting for my muscles to warm up. By the time I got to the meeting point, I felt like I'd done a full ride and struggled to keep up the pace. Twenty minutes in, we did our first hill - though by no means the steepest on the planned route - and that finished me off. 

I made my apologies and peeled off home, my tail well and truly between my legs.

I know this happens to everybody and it's an important lesson about what my body can and can't put up with, but I can't help but feel a bit crap about the whole thing.

Ho hum. Tea?


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## TheDoctor (30 Oct 2011)

Oh dear...
Everyone has an off day now and then.
It's usually a sign that your body is lacking a vital something, like bacon or battenbergs


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## potsy (30 Oct 2011)

Did you by any chance have your usual weeks supply of cakes in your paniers? 

I usually get the same kind of feeling towards the end of the weeks commuting, nothing to worry about Jo.
Mind is willing but the legs have their own idea


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## coffeejo (30 Oct 2011)

TheDoctor said:


> Oh dear...
> Everyone has an off day now and then.
> It's usually a sign that your body is lacking a vital something, like bacon or battenbergs



A walk to the village with the dog is planned for this afternoon for chocolate.


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## Monsieur Remings (2 Nov 2011)

Don't beat yourself up mate, at least you listened to your body like you say.

Apart from carby drinks after a ride, I also like to sit in the bath for as long as possible  and a good thing for your muscles too. Sometimes it just ain't the day but, as you point out, we learn from it and come back stronger.

Keep pedalling and you'll beat the hill next time.

I tend to limit my distances two days on the trot..?


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## coffeejo (2 Nov 2011)

Cheers. Saturday's ride was only 50 miles even though it was a full day and I've done more than that two days on the trot before so I wasn't expecting to be as wiped as I was. Maybe I should take the time spent in the saddle into consideration as well as total mileage.


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## Thompson (2 Nov 2011)

The weather always seems to make a ride harder, no need to hold your tail etween your legs, it was the smart thing to do! Grab some chocolate and relax


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## bicyclos (13 Nov 2011)

About 11 years ago when I came back into cycling as a commuter I could not understand why I was tired and usless on a Sunday ride and sometimes during the week cycling home my legs had nothing in them to climb the mile long hill home which is part of my commute. I posed a question on a cycling forum and got a reply from a cycling coach. To cut a long story short, I was basically doing too much physical work. As my workday consists of heavy manual labour, lifting ranges from 1kg to 65kg plus I walk between 9-12 miles in the day around the warehouse [ I use a pedometer now and again at work]. 

I fully undertand now the difference between work and play [rest].


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## BrumJim (13 Nov 2011)

I've been doing a bit of running recently, and using Parkrun to help my training. This is helpful, as it is a timed route along same 5k each week, so I can judge how well I am doing.
If I ran one week, then the next, times would only improve by a few seconds. When I took a break from running, these improvements were more like 25-40 seconds.
Resting is a lot more useful than you would realise.


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