6 Tips for Pushing the Limits

Having had that much needed rest day on Monday, I decided to push my exercise limits just a bit this week.

Previously, my longest cycle was 38km (remember this is a mountain bike on a road, not to be confused with a road bike on a road).  I announced to The Cyclist that I would like to break that 40km mark early on Tuesday morning.  Ok, I know this sounds small to any experienced cyclist out there but this is all about baby steps...

My Bike Garmin - 40.5km

I even knew exactly which route I would like to do.  It involved a huge 6km climb and later another 4km climb, so an adequate challenge for a relatively new cyclist.  I promised myself that I wouldn't get mean and nasty to The Cyclist as I got tired and he was pleasantly surprised in this regard (I think I was just too tired to complain and was conserving my energy)!  Being a real romantic, he cycled alongside me on the Hill of Hell, passing me the bottle of electrolyte water and insisting I take huge sips as I cycled.  All while not falling off, quite a huge feat requiring concentration and coordination I wasn't previously capable of.  In the end we cycled a total of 40.4 km and no small achievement thanks in part to the lovely cup of coffee that I had at the 35 km mark.

A Well Deserved Coffee

As I had used my cycling and not my running muscles, I decided that a nice long run was now in order for Wednesday.  Bad news is that I had bookclub on Tuesday night. Before leaving for bookclub I ate a huge bowl of oats (with fruit and nuts) and snacked on olives and chocolate eclairs at bookclub (there is a reason that I run).   Having decided to do a long run, I stuck to drinking water and left at 10pm.  I think my friends now know that I am the girl that always leaves first!

Oats for Supper 

Off Road Run

On Wednesday morning, instead of driving, I ran from home to meet Yoga Running Girl at the coffee shop 2.5 km away.  We then ran 10km together, both on and off road.  There was plenty of changing scenery and chatting along the way.  The time flew. I think I only glanced at my Garmin 5 times - although Yoga Running Girl may dispute this!    Yoga Running Girl mentioned that she had eaten sweet potatoes the night before, also a good way to carbo load.  I then ran an extra 2 km to get home, making it a total of 14.5 km, my furthest run so far.





In pushing the limits I find the following works for me:

- Have an exercise companion, it certainly makes all the difference in motivation and boredom levels.
- Carbo load the night before.  None of this nonsense about just salad or veggies with your protein.  I love eating a bowl of oats (breakfast for super) the night before a run.
- A good nights sleep is essential, I find I need a minimum of 7 but ideally 8 hours (and then a nanna nap at lunchtime too!).
-If I plan to train for more than an hour I'll eat a banana or a huge handful of raisons and drink a glass of water before setting off on my run or cycle.  Get some sugar into the bloodstream.
-Electrolytes while cycling - I have only tried this once but found that it made a huge difference and think I may be come a fan of rehydration tablets.
- Avoid alcohol - we exercise freaks make excellent designated drivers, every time.



Have you had any experience with rehydration tablets?

Are you usually the designated driver?

What do you use to carbo load?  Do you eat before a morning run?