We've all heard about burning matches...We talk about the matches we burned in races.  We use cycling peaks to find them and analyze them.  But, what about the other matches we burn.  The ones at home, the ones at work.  What about those....they won't show up in cycling peaks....nope, the PMC isn't able to factor in the TSS of dealing with a 3 year old that doesn't get her way. 

 

I remember the days when I was a DINK (dual income no kids), when I'd go out for my midweek death march.  Afterwards, I'd come home, prop my feet up on the couch, get a nice snack, take a nap before dinner...the house was quiet and peaceful...so conducive to recovery. Those days are gone...long gone.  Quite honestly, it's easier to get through a 5hr training ride, than bath and dinner time at my house. 

 

For those that seek to quanitfy everything (and you know who you are), it's a hard concept to grasp.  We know what 350W feels like and will do to us, but what about being asked by your child 25 times for gum right before dinner...what about having alcohol based hand cleaner rubbed all over the piano....how can we assign a TSS to those events.  But, I've come to realize, these are matches...mental and physical matches, and they can not be discounted as we analyze our performance and develop our training plans.

 

I must admit, I have tended to discount the things I cannot quantify as possible reasons for less than top performance on the bike.  And, with powermeters and a hill, we can quantify performance to a tee...no more thinking you don't feel good...it's right there in the numbers.

 

But, the answers aren't always in the numbers (ok, I said it)...ask yourself what's been going on in your life, aside from cycling.  Stressful family & work events effect your performance on the bike, no different than doing too many hard interval days.

 

So, don't forget to count all your burnt matches, before you go digging through cycling peaks for answers.