I just came back from riding the full course of the last year 100 km MTB marathon which I did last year in ~4:42:00 finishing with excessive cramps in the quads. My today's time was 4:31:30 and I rode it without any problems!
I thought this season was a complete disaster. I almost didn't train in January due to a sprained ankle. I hardly maintained my shape in February. I missed 2.5 weeks in March, 1.5 weeks in April, 3 weeks in May due to a serious virus infection. Inbetween the lay-offs I just spinned easily and didn't train at all. I started regular riding again in June and for 3 weeks I just rode at easy pace, no higher than 75% of my MHR. Then I did one 3 hour fast off-road ride and raced (just for fun) a 24-h race as a member of a duo. After the 24-h race I didn't do any intensity again just easy riding and commuting. Today I did the first serious fast ride in 3 weeks after the 24-h race and I beat my race time by 10 minutes!
Maybe last year's time was hurt by the excessive cramping in your quads. Was your nutrition or hydration different this year to stave off the cramps?
I wouldn't expect setbacks in Jan-Mar to affect fitness in late July much, but I would expect your fitness to build from last year even with the maintenance and moderate training you did this year. Nice ride!
Maybe last year's time was hurt by the excessive cramping in your quads. Was your nutrition or hydration different this year to stave off the cramps?
I wouldn't expect setbacks in Jan-Mar to affect fitness in late July much, but I would expect your fitness to build from last year even with the maintenance and moderate training you did this year. Nice ride!
Last year structured training resulted in a good race time. This year I hardly trained. Most of the time I was trying to recover from illness. I considered this season as a lost one. Now I know I still don't know my body at all.
