Banishing the Monday blues............ on a Tuesday

As I travelled home last night there were loads of folks out exercising. I toyed with the idea of climbing on my bike however the sofa won ................... and anyway I had loads of chores to do.

Tonight would be different. Come hail, rain , snow or sleet, I would be on my bike 'gunning the garmin'.

Tonight the Aberdour Beastie was the target and would be a benchmark of fitness compared to the peak last year when the Beastie was tamed in sub 4 minutes. The wind was fresh and out of the south west which means more than 50% will be into the wind.

Dressed for a 'summer hosing' the legs felt strong as I climbed the 7% gradient that is Garvock Hill. A good one to wind up the heart rate. It blasted through 150bpm within the first couple of hundred yards. The voices were screaming ' you must be joking'. And then a rest as I zoomed down the other side heading for the wilds of Tough and out into the Fife wilderness. The pace was good and compared to the same period last year, the metrics were looking good.

As I climbed to the Burntisland roundabout the legs could give more but this was only Tuesday and I did not want to push too hard.

In no time the Aberdour Beastie was upon me. 300 ft of climb in less than a mile, on an 11% gradient (this Garmin is brilliant). The heart rate was at a blood vessel bursting rate of 177 bpm (Max recommended for a man of my age is 170 bpm but dont tell the missus, all insurances are paid up!)

The target had been to match the sub four minute climb and the result was .....................X mins, yy seconds. It is not that I am competitive however the Etape is just over two weeks away and some things are best left unsaid.

On return to Dunfie the overall stats were very pleasing for the outing with a couple of weeks to improve. Now it is time for food. Another 27km nearer circumvention of the globe!

PS Mark Beaumont is on the same starting grid as The Ironman at the Etape. Bigman shares the start line with Emma Carrick Anderson, the downhill skier, and Santiago, hero of the Paris Marathon.

Bigman