Spin classes

I have been a bit slack with the updates of late but I have kept up the riding.  I signed up to do spin classes at a gym near my work. I thought the 45 minutes of riding a bike would be a nice supplement to my training on the days that I couldn't commute in. However after My first class I found that Spin or RPM they call it is bloody hard work!!! It is high intensity interval training with simulated hills based on resistance. The two young ladies that run the classes are super fit and look like they are ready to tackle the Tour De France. They bounce around to the frantic  music shouting out encouragement as the  doof doof beat becomes hypnotic.  Just when I think that I have the beat and can match my cadence the tempo changes " add another gear " the instructor yells as the class rises as one off their saddles and begins to climb. While I'm doing my best to keep up the pace,  the imaginary me is left languishing at the bottom of the imaginary mountain while the rest of the class is chasing the imaginary peleton over the peak of the hill. Even the imaginary down hill is no time for respite as we go into the "aero position" for an imaginary sprint to the finish line. (the longest 2 minutes ever!) After 45 minutes I'm drenched in sweat and there is a puddle of perspiration on the floor My legs feel like jelly but I think I'll do it again, but hopefully I can catch an imaginary tail wind on the imaginary mountain stage of that very real spin class!

Returning from Hong Kong

I spent the past week or so in Hong Kong on a business trip for work so there was not much riding going on! I spent a lot of time eating some awesome food ! my Hong Kong colleagues took me out for lunch for Dim Sum every day in all sorts of restaurants from  the 2 Michelin star Ming Court at the Langham Hotel  to a tiny back room in a dingy eatery in Sham Shui Po. As usual I ate way more than I should have and so my healthy eating habits went out the window for the week. I did manage 4 sessions on the hotels only exercise bike. With the local weather being 35c and 90% humidity the air-conditioning was on full blast and it was still a struggle, but with the thought of the next feast filling my head I soldiered on. Now it’s back in Melbourne and back on the bike this morning, I rode the 27k route to work this morning and got the cobwebs out , I hope to make the most of the unseasonably warm (19c) weather this week and get a few rides in. I’m conscious that the clock is ticking and the 120km ride in September and the 250km in October is fast approaching,  so I had better get cracking and rack up some serious Kms!

View from Langham Hotel looking towards the Peak (I-Phone)