11,111 km 31 days BY BIKE

To sum up last week’s training: Whoop said it all for me.

My body doesn’t seem to be falling apart, I don’t have a fever, and there aren’t any serious after-effects of being ill either. But saying I’m full of energy and ready to conquer my training plans would be a huge exaggeration. My immune system is busy doing its job right now, so I’ve decided to stay out of its way.

Just two easy activities all week, and even those were more like a research expedition: aero position, new saddle, I pedalled for an hour and drew my conclusions. The experiment gets 3 out of 10.

My fitness doesn’t seem to have gone anywhere. It’s just decided to take a little break from me. And perhaps that’s a useful skill too: sometimes the best sporting result of the week is not forcing yourself to train at any cost, but recognising in time that your body needs a little peace and quiet right now, not another FTP test.

So no heroics this week.

My immune system is doing its job; I’m staying out of the way. Meanwhile, the bike just sits there, silently judging me.

Last week’s longest tempo session covered 95 kilometres.

The main goal wasn’t speed or distance, but working on my aero position. Throughout the session, I made small adjustments, tried different options and looked for the best position for riding comfortably for as long as possible.

Training stats:

Today, I’d rate my position 7 out of 10. It’s already quite good, but there’s still work to do.

We keep experimenting, making adjustments and searching for those extra few percentage points of comfort and efficiency. The work continues.

Another week of preparation for the “Five Ones” challenge has flown by.

And you know what I keep coming back to? It’s the people who matter most.

Some came to race, some for trail-running camps, some headed into the mountains with a backpack, and others are simply riding down by Sirius. Somehow, we all end up in one big kaleidoscope.

Some I hadn’t seen in a year. Others suddenly “fell from the sky” and were a lovely surprise. Some just happened to be nearby — we talked, laughed and went on our way.

Those meetings, conversations, chance encounters and training sessions together are what make a training camp truly valuable. Sport is sport, but people fill the days with far more emotion than kilometres and elevation gain.

Even a recovery walk along a mountain trail in the Olympic Village unexpectedly became a vivid memory of its own.

Krasnaya Polyana really is like a kaleidoscope: look, and every day brings a new colour.

Meanwhile, we’re getting ready for “Five Ones”.

Training, spending time together and trying not to forget why we started all this in the first place. 🙂

Where is your place to recharge, and how often do you go there?

The week's longest training session was on Friday and consisted of two parts.

Main block:
4 hours in Zone 2. In that time, I covered 142 km at an average speed of 35.5 km/h, with 877 m of elevation gain.

Additional volume:
After the main block, I added another 1 hour 23 minutes of easy riding — 38 km and 340 m of elevation gain.

Total for the training day:

The numbers in Krasnaya Polyana are starting to look good.

Speed is up. My average heart rate is improving. So is recovery. Both how I feel and the data show a positive trend.

But another side of training is emerging alongside it.

Fatigue. Strain. Little warning signs.

And this is where the main thing is not to push too far.

After several fast and tempo sessions, I felt discomfort in a tendon in my left leg. The opposite leg to the one I injured during the “1111 km without sleep” challenge.

So, two days off. No focus on sport.

Not because I can’t train. Because I can afford not to train now, so I don’t end up with a bigger problem later.

The same goes for my position on the bike.

I’m riding in quite an aggressive aero position on the TT bike at the moment. And I’ve started feeling slight discomfort in my neck. For now, it’s just a signal. It means I need to work on mobility, stretching and gradually getting used to the position.

There it is — the anatomy of a crisis.

Preparation isn’t only about improving your numbers.

Sometimes progress means listening to your body in time.

Because fitness-wise, you might feel fresh, want more, be ready to add volume and intensity.

While your tendons, ligaments and joints are already saying: “Easy there, mate.”

And this is where you need a cool head.

Do no harm.
Stop.
Recover.
Strengthen.
Only then start adding more again.

Because a serious injury very often starts with a little signal you chose to ignore.

Well, what can I say? It wasn’t easy, but we hung in there.

I rode with Pavel, and at the finish I ran into Anton from Dusty. Small world.

Dusty is here. Krasnaya Polyana is a place that gives you strength.

Recovery is the focus: the main thing is to give my body time to absorb the load and make sure I get enough sleep.

Takeaway: invest in your body ahead of time; don’t wait for deficiencies!

Well, it’s time to announce the contest results!

I’ll be honest: hardly anyone knew that I flew in from Vladivostok for the Battle of Running Clubs literally on the night before the start.

The jet lag was so bad that my body was living somewhere between time zones, and my last running session was back in the previous week. But, as they say, that’s all just excuses.

The final time on the board was 10:39.37, and the closest prediction came from Stepan Zaytsev @zaytsev_stepan, who guessed 10:40.

Styopa isn’t just anyone — he’s our friend, a like-minded member of Gastrodynamics and a regular on our Sunday long runs. Congratulations!

A T-shirt from the new merch collection is already waiting for its owner.

And yes, we’ll change the format of the 11,111 challenge over 31 days in December a little, to make it even more interesting.

Thanks to everyone who guessed, cared and cheered us on — it’s little stories like these that make our running community truly alive.

Some rides end at the finish. Others stay with you long afterwards.

For the fourth year running, we celebrated Midsummer with our traditional long ride.

This time, the route led from Moscow to Ivanovo via Kirzhach, Yuryev-Polsky and Gavrilov Posad.

The plan was ambitious but clear: 300+ km at an average of 35 km/h. In the end, it went even better. We covered the main part of the route at an average of 36.5 km/h, and the total distance was 310 km.

Once, the very idea of riding 300, 400, 500 or even 1001 km in a single day seemed mad. Now it feels like a big journey you don’t want to end.

And it has nothing to do with fitness. With the right people beside you, a well-judged pace and good organisation, a long distance stops being frightening and starts being enjoyable.

The highlight came at around kilometre 270, in Teykovo.

We’re riding through town. Suddenly, a traffic police car blasts past us with its siren on. My first thought was a very down-to-earth one: “Could these be the same guys who recently fined our support van?”

But what happened next was something nobody expected.

The crew drives ahead, blocks the intersection so the whole group can ride through safely, then escorts us for several kilometres all the way out of town, clearing the traffic.

Trips like these make you especially
appreciate two things.

The first is the pace.
There were just 12 of us. Everyone understood that smoothness had long since become the new speed. No surges, no fuss, no pointless battles with each other. Stops were planned too: every 50–60 km in the first half of the route and roughly every 40 km closer to the finish.

The second is the road.
After Chernogolovka, the route becomes simply magnificent. Start early in the morning, as we did at 5:30, and you enjoy literally every kilometre.

I definitely recommend the route.
📍Route on Komoot:

Days like these don’t happen by themselves.
Thank you to Viktor for bringing everyone together again and leading this masterpiece of a ride.
@Romchillin and @mio_bikelover for the organisation and attention to every detail.
Rebellion — for the coffee and that cake, which tasted especially good after a couple of hundred kilometres.
@karachenkov — for the support.

What is the most unexpected thing a stranger has done for you on the road?

P.S.

The Midsummer 300+ story was far from over for everyone.
The others stayed in Ivanovo to rest and recover. Kirill and Stepan took the Lastochka back to Moscow to take care of their own things.

My adventure, though, was only just beginning.
On the morning of June 28 I ran DDLONG, and that same night Konstantin and I flew to the Altai Mountains.

Ahead lay the Chuysky Trakt, almost 900 kilometres, more than 9000 metres of elevation gain and five unforgettable days.
Sometimes the best rest after a big ride is not to stop. Just to change the route.

But that’s another story…

Active May holidays in Sochi and Krasnaya Polyana, where everyone is more or less on the same schedule: you’re either riding at the WTH training camp, going on a social ride, or pretending you’re “just here to have fun” while already counting watts and cadence on day two.

I spent the first day supporting the others. The race up to Krasnaya Polyana 960, the famous “Rixos”. I came to cheer everyone on. First at the start, then I dashed to the second kilometre of the climb to greet them in the classic way: shout, encourage and dispense the most important advice in cycling, along the lines of “shift down” and “come on, come on, nearly there… halfway behind you”. Though there was still quite a lot of that “nearly” left.

It turned out to be the shortest and loudest day.

On the second day, I raced up Laura myself. For me it was purely a training session. But honestly, I love Laura. Probably my favourite mountain in Krasnaya Polyana. The most beautiful, and seemingly endless. As you ride, everything around you changes: snowcaps, dense forest, switchbacks, views of the neighbouring peaks, Aibga on the right. At some point you catch yourself thinking that yes, you’re suffering, but you can’t take your eyes off it.

This mountain is like the cherry on a cake. Only, for some reason, the cake keeps beating up your legs and your sporting ambitions.

My training format was a fun one. I’m in a strength block. I rode the whole mountain on the big 54-tooth chainring, never shifting to the small one. A 36-tooth cassette at the back — and off we go. As the saying goes:
“Cross-chaining is a lad’s honour; even a lady has a second chainring!”

My job was strength work, low cadence and, above all, never getting out of the saddle. Ever. Under any circumstances. The whole mountain seated, enduring it and conducting internal negotiations with my glutes and quads.

But, as the saying goes, break Zhora — get Albatross. Noggano wouldn’t steer you wrong.

Day three was a group race finishing at the legendary ski jumps. My favourite ski jumps, where I once did a double Everesting — 17,696 metres of elevation gain — and other adventures after which you’re either a hero or looking for a banya. We had both. It worked out that way :)

As usual, the race came with surprises. Crashes here, someone missing the right breakaway there, favourites not getting their ideal scenario elsewhere. Overall, though, the story stayed the same: the strongest riders confirmed their positions, and the top riders ended up where they should be — fighting for the win and the overall standings.

And I especially want to thank the organisers and partners. Putting on races now is an enormous amount of work. At DD Event, we understand perfectly how much effort goes into organising, finding partners and sponsors, and simply keeping events like these alive.

So a huge thank-you to Vysshaya Liga and everyone who supports cycling, tourism and a healthy lifestyle. And a special thank-you to Mangazeya, whose support made the race possible.

Holidays like these stay with you for a long time. Because they’re not just about racing. They’re about people, atmosphere, support, suffering uphill and happy faces at the finish.

Thank you all for these powerful May days.

The training camp in Polyana is coming to an end — today it’s already time for the Three Mountains start and the trip home.

Yesterday our group went to the banya.

A Russian banya in the mountains during a training camp is something else. What could be more beautiful?

We went to Russkiye Traditsii, and I can say it’s one of the most enjoyable places to recover.

How do you recover before a race?

I’m in a speed and strength block at the moment.

After the tests, it became clear that I need to invest in three areas — strength, speed and endurance.

That’s what the current plan is built around: running for the key work sessions, cycling mainly for recovery.

By an interesting coincidence, a new coach has joined Dusty — Lilia Mendaeva, who coaches runners for 3000 m and is writing a plan for the group ahead of the Battle of Running Clubs on August 1. And it turns out that her work is a 90% match for what I need right now.

So our small experimental group is doing exactly these running sessions — a great example of how my current training fits into a new direction at Dusty.

I also want to highlight the 3000 m training group — it’s a strong format for anyone who wants to develop speed and running power, and get structured work on the track. And Lilia is a coach with a very precise approach to running goals and a good understanding of middle-distance training.

It’s a great combination: my current training block and the new group at Dusty are effectively heading in the same direction.

If you’re interested in speed work and training for 3000 m, this is a great time to join.

The base block is done. You’d think — just keep going.

But training blind is costly. Time is the most valuable resource.

Before moving on to speed work, I did testing at Rekordika: Gas analysis. Lactate. Power. Heart rate.

The numbers don’t lie. They show where you actually are, rather than where you think you are.

What did we find?
Endurance is a strong point.
Aerobic threshold — 210 W (2.93 W/kg), heart rate 139.
Anaerobic threshold — 300 W (4.2 W/kg), heart rate 166.
Strong for my age.

But there’s a catch.
Peak power — 12 W/kg. My threshold is 35% of my peak.

In plain terms: the engine is good, but I need more pushing power.
To raise the threshold, I need to raise the peak.

The plan for the next 3 months is to work on strength and speed.
In 3 months — another test. We’ll compare the numbers. See the progress.

Why am I telling you this?
So you don’t make the same mistake of “training by guesswork”.

If you can’t get tested, follow 3 rules:
– Don’t ignore your heart rate. It’s a basic sensor.
– Keep a diary of how you feel. Fatigue builds up unnoticed.
– Reduce your training load for a week before the season. If the fitness is there, it will show.

Individual zones matter more than general advice from the internet.
A test is a starting point.

The next stage is to improve my running.

How do you work out your zones?
By heart rate? By feel? Or do you get tested too?

Write in the comments — let’s discuss mistakes and discoveries. 👇

🎥 Maxim Murygin

60 days in which my body remembered what discipline, regular training and working out even on the days when motivation got lost somewhere along the way feel like 🙂

The main takeaway is simple. Base training builds the foundation that all your fitness will later rest on.

The task was clear. Stay injury-free, steadily develop zones one and two, and simply put in the miles to build endurance. No heroics. No trying to prove to the world that you’re the Terminator.

For anyone else, is base training mainly a battle not with the workload, but with the thought “I could skip today, couldn’t I”?

I only ran at the beginning. After that I switched almost entirely to cycling. The final weeks were all about volume and long hours in the saddle.

The numbers are simple:
203 hours 3 minutes
4769 kilometres.
46,987 metres of elevation gain.

And the irony is that base training looks boring from the outside. No thrills, no records.

But it is precisely those “boring” sessions that later turn into the fitness everyone admires.

Come on, admit it. Does your base period always feel endless too, or am I the only one whose every third session comes with the motto “right, this is definitely the last long ride”? 🙂