Hi all,
This is going to be a long one. TL;DR: I’m recommitting myself to cycling with the following goal: 200 lbs and 300 watts in 6 months.
A few weeks ago I had all but thrown cycling into the bin. I’m in my mid-40’s with four children, a wife, and a stressful job. For the last 3 years I’ve trained 6-10 hours a week, listen to hours of podcasts a week, and for what? I get dropped on the B-group Saturday ride and barely make it mid-pack in races. Last week I dusted off my kickboxing gear with the full intention to get back into a sport that I know I’m able to compete well in.
But I realized that I miss the road, I miss the feeling of biking. I also miss a good kickboxing match but not in the same way. I miss being the vanguard at the front, slaying myself for the boys in back. I put my 22" shoulders to use because it feels good to be the draft horse. Howling into the wind while I chased down the break filled me with adrenaline more than any time on the mat. Thinking of the races, I realize I never really cared if I finished well, I’d rather be the guy that people depend on in order to win. There’s something about the fluidity and camaraderie of a good road race/ride that makes the blood, sweat, and tears of cycling worth it.
So I’m going to fully commit myself to cycling, one last charge into the breach. It’s trite but I need a goal, I’m targeting a FTP of 300 watts and a weight of 200 lbs in 6 months. I’m currently 220 lbs and TR puts my FTP at around 270 watts. Why 300 watts? I think it’s attainable and I’ve been close to it, physiologically I will need to improve my aerobic fitness to get there which will help me in the wind. Why 200 lbs? The lowest I’ve gotten since I started cycling was 205 lbs, I think 200 is within reach as my bodyfat is around 25%. These are attainable goals that will undoubtedly help my fitness and enjoyment of this sport. These goals also don’t require me to win anything.
The hard part for me is discipline. I will not neglect my family so I will have to be flexible, I likely only have 3-6 hours a week to train but with consistency I think I can get there. Anyhow, just wanted to share the thoughts of a guy who was on the verge of quitting and stepped back from that exit.
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Good luck man, I’m right there with you. 220lb, 250w ftp. Goal of 180lb and 300w ftp. Lots of sporadic training and riding over a crazy summer with not a lot of progress. Tons of missed events and generally super high stress levels from owning a business/family/etc.
It’s always nice to see that there are others out there with the same struggles; makes it a little easier to find new motivation when others are going through the same thing!
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Good luck! Sounds like you have a bunch of stuff going on in your life. Why not have fun with both the bike and the kickboxing.
Setting goals that are so specific by number is often a bad habit, although yours seem well founded. Better to choose a concrete progress goal that you can directly control in your day to day life, that will eventually lead (or not) to your goal.
For example: complete at least 2 out of 3 planned rides a week for the next 6 months.
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Those are your real goals. Discipline to train consistently and try to figure out the ‘right’ number of hours. Whatever is possible without compromising your other commitments, and more importantly your ability to absorb and adapt to the work. Don’t underestimate the recovery challenge of job stress, family obligations, and losing weight. In my experience, 2 high intensity workouts mid-week, plus a weekend easy ride, got me to a similar place as TR MV plan. The struggle is real. It can be hard to accept that sometimes less is more. Work the discipline angle first, and see where you end up.
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yeah, the discipline to train consistently wasn’t too hard for me because I’m a completer and having a training plan gave me something to complete and choosing a 4:30 am wake up time helped with conflicts. The diet discipline is a bit more elusive because often you aren’t the only person influencing what or where you are eating and those social or family situations can be hard to mitigate. Or at least they are for me. The key is coming up with something that works that is sustainable. The process goals are more important, but the targets you have can help you understand the priority these goals have in your life. If you want to lose 20 lbs, there are likely things some hard choices to make. If that goal is 5lbs, those choices are easier. If it’s 40lbs, they are probably harder still. You’ll have to put together a plan that will get there and then see if it lines up with your priorities (family, job, etc). good luck. It’s a great feeling to achieve goals.
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Re: losing 20 vs 5lbs it’s more about discipline over long timeframe imho
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Thanks, my brother in bikes 
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I wish I could do both sports as I love them both. The issue with kickboxing is that I love to compete, I wouldn’t do it if I couldn’t compete. Smoker events are just pure adrenaline but the damage you do to your body is real. I don’t think I’d ever be able to ride effectively if I trained for competition in kickboxing.
Yeah I’m basically on the same plan, 2 hard 1 easy. I’m also following a 5-3-1 strength protocol but only twice a week, largely for muscular and skeletal health, but also because it helps with body composition. We’ll see if that sticks when I start getting into the VO2 workouts 
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I’m right here with ya, but without kids as they’ve finished college now. Going for -20lbs and +20W. Flirted with 275 most of the year, may not ever hit 300W but at least I can cut some weight and finally get back to where I was in my twenties. Oh, and I think my upper body and posterior chain needs 3x a week on the strength stuff. Not going to torch my legs in the gym, going to do more climbing instead, so that will make the strength easier on the bike work.
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