Floundering is what I generally feel that I\’m doing when it comes to my cyclist training. I\’m like a fish that\’s been hauled onto dry land and is flapping  helplessly.

It might help if I actually wrote down a training plan, and then stuck to it. As it is, I\’ve long had a habit of constantly changing my mind about what I want to work on. I can\’t seem to determine what will truly be helpful.

My \”force intervals\” did seem to help me to get stronger. Then, at the beginning of last October, I pulled a hamstring. It took three weeks of very short and very easy rides before it stopped bothering me. Even then I kept rides short and easy for at least a few more weeks while I worked to get my left ankle to behave better.

Maybe I don\’t increase the length of my intense efforts as quickly as I should. I ride in the morning before I go to work, so I don\’t want to get too tired. Or am I overly concerned about that?

Would it help if I had a big ride scheduled? Possibly. There\’s a difference, though, in working up to doing a 100 mile ride as a solo rider, and doing it as an organized ride. Organized centuries are apt to have cut-off times. If I tackle an organized century ride and run into headwinds or hills for which my self-training hasn\’t prepared me, I\’d have a very tough ride at best. At worst, I\’d miss the cut-off time.

Then again, I mustn\’t forget why I ride. My legs love it! It might be better just to ride — and quit floundering.