Winter Training Challenges - Signup/Discussion Thread
TheBigYin
Posts: 5,686 Member
I bet you've been wondering when this thread would start. I've been agonising over what to say/do about this for the past few weeks now - indeed, since my "medical episode" during the Vuelta Challenge, I've had to give quite a bit of thought to the whole thing.
Truth be told folks, I don't think that I have the time this year to organise and administer the "winter omnium" challenges similar to last year - to be absolutely honest, it was a struggle last year to do so, while I had medical problems, and with the substantially different problems I'm having now, it's just going to be a bit too much for me - frankly, I have to really concentrate on getting myself organised and following my own Cardio Rehabilitation routines to be able to positively participate in any of the riding challenges on here - I found it massively difficult last year to be running the "Classics Challenge" and not able to ride - I think that running the Winter Omnium and not participating would be even more soul-destroying.
So - if anyone else wants to organise something, I'm happy to provide any of the "source materials" - i.e. the google spreadsheets from last year, and obviously, any insights or recommendations I can pass on I'll cheerfully do so - I'll even try and join in with some of the challenges where I can - i'm thinking that something non-specific on the indoor trainer may be in my remit - though I'm doubtful that I'd be up for something exclusively Zwift based for example - it's TOUGH to ride that application with a prescribed Max HR of 104bpm...
Sorry folks - hope this isn't too much of a let-down for everyone - and I really, really hope that someone steps forward and takes on the organisation of something motivational over the winter... Hopefully, by the time the Spring comes around I'll be able to actually get outdoors and at that point I can consider the future of the Classics Challenge and the Grand Tours...
Truth be told folks, I don't think that I have the time this year to organise and administer the "winter omnium" challenges similar to last year - to be absolutely honest, it was a struggle last year to do so, while I had medical problems, and with the substantially different problems I'm having now, it's just going to be a bit too much for me - frankly, I have to really concentrate on getting myself organised and following my own Cardio Rehabilitation routines to be able to positively participate in any of the riding challenges on here - I found it massively difficult last year to be running the "Classics Challenge" and not able to ride - I think that running the Winter Omnium and not participating would be even more soul-destroying.
So - if anyone else wants to organise something, I'm happy to provide any of the "source materials" - i.e. the google spreadsheets from last year, and obviously, any insights or recommendations I can pass on I'll cheerfully do so - I'll even try and join in with some of the challenges where I can - i'm thinking that something non-specific on the indoor trainer may be in my remit - though I'm doubtful that I'd be up for something exclusively Zwift based for example - it's TOUGH to ride that application with a prescribed Max HR of 104bpm...
Sorry folks - hope this isn't too much of a let-down for everyone - and I really, really hope that someone steps forward and takes on the organisation of something motivational over the winter... Hopefully, by the time the Spring comes around I'll be able to actually get outdoors and at that point I can consider the future of the Classics Challenge and the Grand Tours...
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Funnily enough this was on my mind this morning during my first morning commute in full Winter gear this morning, sorry your having a crappy time of it Mark, truly wish you back to good health as soon as possible, I'm sure come the new year you'll be seeing some decent progress and look to be hitting it again.
I don't mind helping or running something over the Winter if there is interest, last Winter I found it quite nice to take part in BUT the participation was very low I felt a bit of a lone Winter wolf in the outdoor side of things.
What I suggest is an overall combined challenge, everything is converted to calories and then points, it's purely an effort based challenge, aimed at keeping fitness over Winter and building that base fitness, no matter if your riding indoors or out, if we have 10 or more riders then a league becomes interesting, less then that then I don't think it's worth running. Let's see what interest there is and then we know if to move forward with it.
Example of how this would work:
25km would be typically 500kcal = 1 pt
and visa versa:
500kcal would be typically be 25km = 1 pt
I really honestly don't feel it would be the same if you Mark wasn't involved in this though, perhaps one or two of us could run the spreadsheet and figures and you set up spot prize point challenges such as Winter pics or performing an FTP test.
I'll be setting my own Winter personal challenge but would be nice to be part of something too, shout up now if you think it's worth doing.0 -
Jakess1971 wrote: »Funnily enough this was on my mind this morning during my first morning commute in full Winter gear this morning, sorry your having a crappy time of it Mark, truly wish you back to good health as soon as possible, I'm sure come the new year you'll be seeing some decent progress and look to be hitting it again.
I don't mind helping or running something over the Winter if there is interest, last Winter I found it quite nice to take part in BUT the participation was very low I felt a bit of a lone Winter wolf in the outdoor side of things.
What I suggest is an overall combined challenge, everything is converted to calories and then points, it's purely an effort based challenge, aimed at keeping fitness over Winter and building that base fitness, no matter if your riding indoors or out, if we have 10 or more riders then a league becomes interesting, less then that then I don't think it's worth running. Let's see what interest there is and then we know if to move forward with it.
Example of how this would work:
25km would be typically 500kcal = 1 pt
and visa versa:
500kcal would be typically be 25km = 1 pt
I really honestly don't feel it would be the same if you Mark wasn't involved in this though, perhaps one or two of us could run the spreadsheet and figures and you set up spot prize point challenges such as Winter pics or performing an FTP test.
I'll be setting my own Winter personal challenge but would be nice to be part of something too, shout up now if you think it's worth doing.
Didn't it work on Kcals last time; 500 for men & 400 for women? That seems to ring a bell...0 -
last year's threads
First of all, there's the google spreadsheet
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1nFe3yhPER06uHif1AkaRPYluLzBQCXC_Q-_pe4eC2uY/edit?usp=sharing
then the individual challenge "discussions"
Cross - http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10004643/2014-5-ws-cross-challenge-discussion-signup
Commuter - http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10004636/2014-5-ws-commuter-challenge-signup-discussion
Indoor Trainer - http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10003912/2014-5-ws-indoor-trainer-challenge-discussion-signup
Base Builder - http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10005450/2014-5-ws-rule-9-base-distance-builder-challenge0 -
Didn't it work on Kcals last time; 500 for men & 400 for women? That seems to ring a bell...
That sounds fair to me, the cals would accumulate to build points too, so you could in theory do a load of 250 cal sessions to build up those points.
As mentioned on marks thread Clive I'm happy for you to take the lead and I can help entering the figures if needed, the main consideration is do we have any takers for taking part? I'll add something on my status now to see if we have any takers from my friend list.0 -
well - as far as taking part goes - I'm in, as far as I'm allowed to do so... now, that degree of participation is partly out of my hands - as it's down to the Medico's just what they allow me to get up to - it might be once a week of hamstering, it could be more - it could (gawd forbid) be less... but if there's a "handlebar option" for exercise, rest assured i'll take it, and try and join in where I can...
Glad that someone's prepared to try and "take up" on the running some challenge or other though - don't feel like you have to copy what I did - fresh ideas are always good, I simply linked last years as an example of what worked (and, in fairness, of what patently didn't work anywhere near as well as it should...)
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I'm in for whatever, tricky with calories as the calculations used vary wildly unless you use a power meter but as we're all on strava i suppose it'll be fair enough
EDIT: Also will this be limited to the northern hemisphere? xD0 -
I would totally be in on this, both as a participant and helper. I'm not sure I'd have the time to run something like this wholly on my own but I'd certainly be willing to help with whatever gets going.0
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Same ntnunk, more than happy to be an admin lurking the forums updating a spreadsheet of some description.0
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Ok great, I don't think it matters to compete, it's just taking part in a group mission to improve our fitness, so that's:
Jakess1971 - Me
cloggsy71 - Clive
Mark - TheBigYin
Dave - Dave2041 just expressed his interest to be in too.
ntunk
I'd say we need another 5 to make it worth running.
I really do think keep this as simple as possible, logging would be one thread with all your cals burnt and link to proof, this could be a link to the Strava activity that shows the calories burnt or a screen capture of your indoor turbo hamster activity. Mine would all be Strava as I'd either be cycling indoors on Zwift or using Strava to log my outdoor, both would be logged on the same account.
Example logging would be:
Date / In or Out / Calories / Link to proof
Total Cals & Total Points
i.e:
26/10/2015 - Out - 1275 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/420538428
20/10/2015 - In - 1082 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/416551669
Total Cals = 2375 / Total Points 4
For those using other indoor turbos and not able to create the Strava entries, create a screen shot, upload it to something and then just link it as you do the strava entry.
I'd suggest one other thread for the photo challenges that would be set and I also think points could be given for FTP tests, perhaps even performance increases on this from beginning compared with the end of the challenge.
Clive how does this sound, any other thoughts?0 -
Jakess1971 wrote: »Clive how does this sound, any other thoughts?
Yup! Ladies get 1pt for every 400cals burned, Gents get 1pt for every 500cals burned.
FTP tests 1pt (only 1 allowed per calendar month?) Performance gains +1pt?
That being said, Zwift now updates your FTP after every ride doesn't it (or it did for me when I rode the other day?! Whether this was another glitch, who knows???)
Does this start from 1st Nov?0 -
Jakess1971 wrote: »Clive how does this sound, any other thoughts?
Yup! Ladies get 1pt for every 400cals burned, Gents get 1pt for every 500cals burned.
FTP tests 1pt (only 1 allowed per calendar month?) Performance gains +1pt?
That being said, Zwift now updates your FTP after every ride doesn't it (or it did for me when I rode the other day?! Whether this was another glitch, who knows???)
Does this start from 1st Nov?
Sounds good to me, 1st November makes sense, all we need now are willing members, need that 10 for starters and then I think an open policy of allowing others to enter if they would like to join, if we get a sudden influx of participants then we may want to limit the number to 40 or something but can't see that happening really based on last year.
Jakess1971 - Me
cloggsy71 - Clive
Mark - TheBigYin
Dave - Dave2041 just expressed his interest to be in too.
ntunk
Possible additions pending conflabs are Mr & Mrs centralcalicycling, so that would make 7 ish so far.
Added on the Strava club and awaits stampede of interest!
Regarding the FTP test, one submission a month sounds like a good plan, screen shot as proof would do it I think.
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My wife, @canbbot, might be interested. I just sent her a message to inquire. This sounds like a lot of fun. My intent was to not let the riding fall off quite as much this year as it did last winter and this kind of challenge would definitely help me with that.
Also, for future reference, ntnunk = Noel.
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I'm in.0
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I'd be up for it 0
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I'm in. I definitely need something to kick me in the butt and get going again 0
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So this counts for any type of exercise? I do workouts a few days a week, only problem is they are Manuel entries, so I don't think it shows a calorie burn, although it does when it uploads to mfp,
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Never mind, I didn't mean to post the last question -
I went back and read all previous entries so I know how it works.0 -
I would be willing to join in just for fun. Will likely only be cycling about 3X per week of which a couple will probably be indoor sessions if we have a "normal" winter! Calories seems like a reasonable way to cross compare indoor and outdoor cycling.0
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I would partake as well. Won't be a lot but it is a great motivation tool.
Kevin0 -
I'd be in for something like this, I probably won't get much for points though - I'm stuck with the bike trainer this winter 0
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Jakess1971 - Me
cloggsy71 - Clive
Mark - TheBigYin
Dave - Dave2041 just expressed his interest to be in too.
ntunk
jillyian
amiller7x7
banshee1013
spiffytools1610
toughmudderaddict
Possible additions pending conflabs are Mr & Mrs centralcalicycling,
So that would make 10 to 12 ish so far which means we have hit the minimum allocation to get this started.
So far so good, would like to see more if possible, join for fun and Winter endurance demons as well as hamsters most welcome.
If you put your name down then add your Strava id too, MPF name and real name, i.e:
https://www.strava.com/athletes/4357846 - Jakess1971 - Jason Savage
A spreadsheet and Winter Strava club will no doubt be setup soon enough.
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Does it have to winter where you are to participate?
If not, I'll give it a go.0 -
Does it have to winter where you are to participate?
If not, I'll give it a go.
No it doesn't have to be your Winter, we just call it that because it's our Winter and we need an off-season motivator, feel free to join in, just stick down your Strava id, MPF name and real name and listen out for the logging thread which we will sort soon.
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For those new to these challenges you will need to update the logging thread (available from 1st November) once every week with a full list of all your entries starting from November 1st, I think adding your entries once a week in the logging thread with the weeks data would be good, daily would be too much as the logging thread would be HUGE and more then a week you wouldn't be able to see how the league table was holding up.
So week 1 (URLs for example only)
01/10/2015 - Out - 1000 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/420538428
02/10/2015 - In - 1082 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/416551669
03/10/2015 - Out - 1000 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/420538428
04/10/2015 - In - 1082 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/416551669
05/10/2015 - Out - 1000 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/420538428
06/10/2015 - In - 1082 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/416551669
07/10/2015 - In - 1082 cal - https://www.strava.com/activities/416551669
etc.
We then update the spreadsheet as we see the entries come in and you'll be able to see how you hang in the league table if your competitively minded, come end of the season we crown the Winter champion, I managed it in 2014 season and Clive was last years by doing a crazy amount of hamstering!
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I'm in ... Trainer rides for sure after a bit ... weather has turned up here in the Pacific Northwest, and I really dislike riding in the rain. LOL
https://www.strava.com/athletes/62921 - Webtracer - Randy B
One note ... I don't have the equipment (yet) to use Zwift, but I use the Sufferfest videos to train off of in the winter when I can't get outside ... those manual entries going to work?0 -
https://www.strava.com/athletes/5925001 - gobonas99 - Christina B
Definitely won't be riding every day. I have swimming, running, and strength training to do also, while still maintaining balance with the hubs and work.0 -
I'd echo this, you can't just create any old manual entry, without a screenshot of the cals as proof of the burn or a proper strava entry it can't count.
I believe last year some of the turbo entries had screen grabs from the software, one thing you could do is create a manual entry and attach a screen shot of the software capture, how does that sit with you Clive?
IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a cycling challenge, walks, runs etc won't count, only calories burnt during the turn of a cycling crack count 0 -
I'll bite. Might as well get credit for what I'm doing already! (even if it isn't much comparitively) Besides, if things work like I hope, there'll be a new steed in the shed to rack up miles on.
Here's me:
https://www.strava.com/athletes/596751 - Spatialized - Tom0 -
Jakess1971 wrote: »I believe last year some of the turbo entries had screen grabs from the software, one thing you could do is create a manual entry and attach a screen shot of the software capture, how does that sit with you Clive?
IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a cycling challenge, walks, runs etc won't count, only calories burnt during the turn of a cycling crack count
I'd rather just see the Strava links TBH; you can upload .hrm files from Polar etc.
If it ain't on Strava, it didn't happen
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