As expected, the weather reports were surprisingly accurate, with Saturday turning into nothing but soggy sadness. The rain has been non-stop since around 4am this morning, thus there will be no riding at any point today.
Although Red Chameleon will not be on the tarmac today, I will likely head out to the garage and do some limited maintenance. I did a quick wipe down when I returned from riding on Thursday, but she definitely can use a much more thorough cleansing. Since I have had her for approximately one month now, I also need to lube up the chain with some oil, and will give the lube kit a shot today.
Barring no unforeseen weather issues, the plan for tomorrow is to get in about 60k. Due to the few rainy days this week, I am sitting at 122k of my 180k weekly goal, and have actually been averaging over 200k the past three weeks. Not sure I can pull of 80k tomorrow because I am likely meeting up with a couple friends for coffee again in the morning, and the timing will not work out right. I do not want to leave them hanging for another 60+ minutes while I try and ride an additional 30k🤔
It is amazing how much I yearn to be out on the bike when it is raining. I feel hella guilty every day I am unable to ride, more so when it is a personal choice, but even still when the weather is uncooperative. Since I have started hitting the tarmac on a regular basis, it has become almost therapeutic to be out in the fresh air, spinning and meditative simultaneously.
On rainy days like today I really should hit the gym and do some weight training, and even stationary cycling, but there is something about the gym causing my anxiety to skyrocket. I have not been able to place a finger on it, but it just is not the same as being out riding alone. When I was in the gym early last year I was hitting the elliptical for 45-60 mins at a pop coupled with a bit of machine work. I suspect some strength training would be a value-add to the cycling, and will probably help make me an overall stronger cyclist.
I am not sure if I can get into the gym mindset again. Maybe I just need to make it a priority and dive in head-first, similar to what I did with cycling?
