The last time I posted on here was over 4 months ago now, and as I sit in the library (libraries are for winners) cramming 12 weeks’ worth of lecture notes into my head for impending exams, now seems as good a time as any to break my unnoticed silence and share the latest on-goings of my life with the world.
Heading briefly back to wrap up the end of the last season and to cut a long story short, I returned to Belgium after the Jef Schils Memorial race, got my arse handed to me for a few more races, and decided to end my season earlier than expected in mid-September. I was tired, underover-trained, de-trained, demotivated, demoralized. Sometimes, you just have to stop.
After a ‘generous’ ’transition’ season, and a magical plus 6 kilogram effort later, I got back to (s)training; with the occasional lectures thrown in just to mix things up a bit. Admittedly, whilst 10 hours of lectures a week isn’t even part time, I maintain a sport science degree is a lot harder than the people who don’t do it, make it out to be. We don’t just play football. Occasionally we dance.
The biggest change for this year is the fruition of the Loughborough Student Cycling Club Performance Squad. The student squad set-up is like no other, exploiting the cutting-edge approach to sport that Loughborough University is renowned for. The team is supported by exercise physiologist Dave Bailey of I-Performance, and nutritionist Barry Murray of OptimumNutrition4Sport to deliver cutting edge training and nutrition plans for the team, with the aims of putting Loughborough University not only on the BUCS but also national cycling map.
I will now be racing back on home soil for LSCC, facing an uncertain future in the left hand lane and reaching out to the unfamiliar scene of premier calendars. If I survive the wrath of self-elevated commissaries, I’ll then head back to Belgium, supported by the Dave Rayner Fund, for 3 months racing in the summer with Van Eyck Sport. Sounds like a plan Stan.
I’ve done couple of cross races this winter, the highlight being taking gold at BUCS, but it’s probably time to stop procrastinating now and get back to work. I’m sure I can find the time for a self-glorification blog soon though…
The two key biochemical characteristics of skeletal muscle are the oxidative capacity and the type of ATPase isoform. If you were wondering.
