Bonk to get better

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This weekend warmed up a bit and I got some good riding in.  On Saturday I managed to get out on my road bike for about 3 and 1/2 hours.  The temperatures were in the high 30’s to mid 40’s. 

I put on all my wind proof gear but I didn’t have have to bundle up. The wind was pretty brutal though.  There was one stretch of road, Hwy V between Hwy M and Hwy U, that was basically into the wind the entire way.  Not to mention that the majority of that stretch is also up hill.  I was only able to average about 10 miles per hour on that section.  Even with the wind I didn’t get cold at all.

With the wind and the fact that I’ve been restricted to indoor trainer rides for most of the last 3 months, my legs were spent.  I bonked and it wasn’t because I wasn’t eating enough or I was dehydrated.  I was eating plenty and I was drinking enough.   

Its been months since I was able to make my legs hurt like they did on Saturday.  Its a good hurt.  I know that after that ride I could go do that same route again in the same conditions, much faster than before.

Every time you go out and ride hard, your body adapts to that stress to make you better able to cope with it again.  So every time you go out for a long ride and use up all of your energy stores, your muscles adapt to store more energy.  Your lungs adapt to more efficiently use the oxygen you breath, and your cardiovascular system gets better at moving fuel to your muscles and washing away the lactic acid that burns in your legs.

So I welcome a good bonk at the start of a bicycle racing season.  It lets me know where I am and I know I will benefit from it.