A Second Mileage Record In 2015

This was today's short, counter-clockwise spin around West Bend.

March goes out like a lamb: 55 degrees with brilliant sunshine! I finished the month with 538 miles, a personal record that beat the 516 miles I rode in March 2012. Add that total to my record-breaking January (241 miles) and predictably quiet February (50 miles) and I’m at 829 so far this year. That’s a month ahead of last year’s record pace.

Early-season miles, while slow and frustrating at times, really matter to me. Maybe it is just a psychological hurdle, but I always feel like I am “back” to being a cyclist once I get to 1,000.

After 4 straight months of weight gain, I dropped 2 pounds this month. I am 1 pound lighter than I was on this date last year, a statistic I almost don’t believe because I feel so heavy. The numbers don’t lie, but I remember the form I had during the cyclocross season. I’m a long way from that, and simply running up a big mileage total won’t bring me back. Last year I didn’t drop a lot of weight until the ’cross season started. Then the combination of high-intensity training sessions and weekend races really worked. With the goal of competing as a Cat 3 this fall, I want to be lighter than I was when the 2014 season began. That means more high-intensity workouts, starting in April.