I’ve come up to Wales for this weekends cycling and this morning me and Ryan went out for a couple of hours, cycling down the coastal path and back home for a 20-mile round trip.  Increasing my distance is great training because I am learning a lot about myself and my cycling every time I go out.

On today’s trip I learnt:

• I actually go a lot faster then I think I do, managing 7 mph up hill was not something I thought myself capable of.
• My lungs/head will not in fact explode if I keep cycling up very steep hills instead of stopping.

• I can’t wait to get my bike changed so that it fits me properly, because after an hour the pain in myshoulders and bike was incredibly…well…painful.
• When cycling in to incredibly strong winds watch out for parked vans, being thrown in to them by an angry gust is not fun.
•  I need to get some thermal socks for cycling in cold weather, when we got back I couldn’t feel my feet for about an hour.
• No matter how cold it is and how much I’d rather stay in bed, it feels so much better to be outside getting some air in the lungs. Being back home after trying to warm up also feels pretty good.
• Standing in a boiling hot shower to warm up your icicle toes just makes them hurt more.

Tomorrow we’re going to stay indoors and do some hours on the turbo trainer, working on sprints to help increase my fitness.  I can’t quite believe that I’m volunteering to do this when it is so very unlike me, but change is a positive thing and I’m embracing it.  It should be just as exhausting as today, but with less icy wind hopefully!