A True "Recovery Ride"

With the exception of some trainer time I logged over the weekend, today was my first day back outside on the bike since tearing my left quad to pieces playing soccer. I stayed off the bike for almost a full week as the muscle healed. Since the swelling and all but the slightest soreness is gone, I bravely put on the old kit again and stepped out into the early-Fall heat to ride for a little while and regain some strength.

I did just over an hour, slowly, but felt really good. The leg was talking to me just a little bit, but for the most part felt strong and responsive. The overall effort was very light, but a couple of times I gave the bike some gas and did some very easy sprints just to test the muscle. No pain.

The leg may be getting better, but my aerobic conditioning is totally shot. The form I had built up over the summer is officially wrecked all to hell. In September, I rode only 400 miles for the entire month, down from around 1000 for each of the three months before. The combination of burnout and injury really stopped me in my tracks.

October is young, though, and the weather will soon be getting cooler. I love riding in the Fall, and I'm really looking forward to some long, endurance-focused group rides, falling leaves and cold breezes. Bring on the knee warmers!