12.16

Blog post about Mikkel Bording's experiences during and after Bike Camp Altea (July)

'My experience at the 12.16 Bike Camp Altea in the spring has probably just taken me up a level'

 

I have never felt better. That might not be entirely true. And it doesn't really matter. Because I feel stronger, fresher, and more energetic than ever before. Both on the bike and for life in general.

 

Since I started training for the French cycling classic La Marmotte Granfondo Alps in 2017, I have been in constant good shape. Of course, with a few small breaks. A broken collarbone at the Grejsdalsløbet in 2019 and a deep cut on my shin during a classic Thursday training with Furesø Cykle Club last summer. Unintentional breaks. Because I have always wanted to train. Been motivated to improve on the bike.

 

I was therefore not in doubt for a second that I should go when a newsletter in my inbox at the beginning of February lured with: 'Join 12.16 to Bike Camp Altea in weeks 12 and 13'. Altea is located on the coast north of Alicante and slightly south of the perhaps more well-known cycling town of Calpe. The 12.16 camp was put together in collaboration with the 12.16 ambassador Bekim Christensen, who has previously raced as a professional cyclist and is now a professional triathlete.. I already knew a large part of the area from previous cycling trips. And based on the description, it was a training camp just to my liking and mood:    

 

“The stay includes seven nights with full board at a 4-star hotel located right down by the beach and guided cycling tours every day. We have already started the challenges and sent a couple of our other 12.16 ambassadors on a test ride in the Spanish mountains. And we should say that both the guided routes and the delicious Spanish food and wine with a view over the azure Mediterranean are indeed approved as a first-class destination to refine spring fitness.”   

 

If it sounded good, as it was written on the screen one dark evening in February, I can safely reveal that it only got even better than expected when we hit the Spanish roads at the end of March. Only the weather was below par. Everything else was far above.     

 

 

Bekim and his girlfriend Fie Østerby, who is a professional cyclist, were excellent at planning the trips – and also adjusting the schedule a bit if the weather was troublesome. And it was! For example, if there was a threat of rain on a planned long trip into the mountains, we would instead ride along the coast. Or if it poured down all morning, we just shifted the ride to the afternoon. Yes, yes, it can certainly be difficult to please everyone when trips, times, lengths, and durations are changed. We all come with our own attitudes and expectations. And even though not everyone might have fully agreed with the guides' decisions, there were absolutely no sour faces or complaints in the corners when Fie and Bekim gave the signals. Because if we were unlucky with the weather, we were lucky with the group – both in terms of strength and camaraderie.

 

“It's a strong group this week, we'll definitely have some good rides,” was Bekim's comment, served with an expectant smile, as we gradually dropped in two groups at Hotel Cap Negret in Altea. A Jutland faction with some of the country's best triathletes in their age group – those real I-can-easily-hold-300-watts-for-ages-without-sweating types – and a rock and roll young gun cyclist with Funen blood and the same emphasis combined with a confidence the size of Wout van Aert's thigh muscles had already been on a roll while the CPH flight was still in the air. Friends Claus and Alex from Hadsund. And Mikael from Haderslev, who had brought his wife Dorthe along. She didn't join the cycling trips but instead tested the area's many options for walking and running – and also contributed with her always good mood and welcoming manner when we ate… which we almost did constantly when we weren't cycling.

 

There was food three times a day, which also meant that we had plenty of time to get to know each other. We quickly built a both fun and cozy community in the group. In the beginning, it was (of course) quite a lot about various cycling talks… training programs, equipment, goals for the season, etc. But it didn't take many meals before we got closer to each other's lives and naturally turned to both light and serious topics about work, family, mutual friends – who we were as people behind the cycling uniform.                    

 

Nothing was missing. Well, we had to wash our cycling clothes ourselves. Everything else was basically taken care of. It was a week where we just grazed life as a professional cyclist spiced with a fantastic social cohesion. And wow, it was great! For most of us, the time with such big hopes and dreams of a glorious cycling career was long gone. We almost all subscribed to the classic MAMIL lifestyle and were nicely distributed between the early 40s and late 50s. Young Oliver was the exception. The 18-year-old from Funen still has all the opportunities to become one of this generation's new cycling stars. An ambition that was often expressed with unmistakable singing accent when the conversation flowed during meals and shoulder to shoulder out on the bikes.  

 

 

There were only two of us from Zealand. Thomas – a strong rider from Hillerød whom I knew by name and had already competed a bit with over the years in a couple of the larger Danish cycling events – and me. And it turned out that our both tough and cozy competitions from Munkebjerg and the surrounding area continued unabated in the Spanish mountains. Often the pattern was that Thomas broke free alone in the last kilometers and climbed in his both light and colorful gear first to the top. Bekim and Fie could also join in and give us happy amateurs a (perhaps much-needed!) adjustment. The excuse was that they just needed to test their legs, or that the wind was just right for a KOM or QOM on Strava. Thanks for the beatings. Fantastic training! Apparently also for the guides. Fie convincingly became the fastest woman in the recently held La Mamotte 2022 – chapeau! Yes, that was the kind of guides. Top-notch and completely relaxed in sweatpants and flip-flops at breakfast… and highly ambitious and goal-oriented athletes in the saddle a couple of hours later.          

 

There was also the other Thomas, who had been at the camp the week before, but just needed an extra day with us in the rain... and it also had to do with the flight departure home fitting better. Here too, Fie and Bekim had very nicely arranged for transfer and taken individual wishes into account. As mentioned. We were lucky with the group. And besides some really good cycling friendships across the country, I was also fed a long series of super good tips about training – and not least diet – during the camp. I certainly take some of the credit for pushing Bekim to hold an interesting and very thought-provoking lecture on how the right diet can optimize both your performance on the bike and your overall well-being.

 

Admittedly! It was somewhat hidden in the description – and probably only in a single post on Facebook. But it was listed as a highlighted green check mark bullet: 'Free guidance on training and nutrition for cyclists'. The lecture also covered quite a bit about Bekim's own career. About his participation in the Tour de France. About ups and downs. About how to rise and get back up after a setback. And about how basic dietary principles, ionized water, and antioxidants help cleanse your body of waste and keep it in balance. Here you go! It's served.

 

    

As a person, I am the type who perks up when someone talks about doing something that works. Especially when they ride as fast as Bekim does! And I have previously, with great success, significantly changed my diet and improved my results. It had been a few years since then, and while I was sitting there in the hotel conference room surrounded by my new cycling friends and soaking up Bekim's vast knowledge of cycling, training, and nutrition, it dawned on me that there was likely more to gain from that toolbox – or lunchbox, so to speak.       

  

The day after I landed from the camp, I was to attend a 50th birthday party for a good cycling buddy, so I waited until Monday before I started enjoying the tips and tricks for diet and training that I brought back from Spain. For the last 5-6 years, I have felt fit and strong, but it seems that especially my changed diet this spring and early summer has made me even stronger... and happier. And how great it is that you can quietly and clearly feel in your body that you are getting better. And riding faster, while it feels easier.

 

Without dwelling on too many dietary subtleties, I have every day since Monday, April 4th, had the legendary Fie and Bekim Altea Special breakfast with lots of fruit and nuts, significantly reduced cheese and grain products, and dropped all pork and beef. I still eat fish and poultry, but far from every day and in smaller amounts. And I have really increased my intake of fruit, vegetables, and nuts throughout the day. I am neither a coach, nutritionist, nor clinical dietitian and have never held a license, so there is neither a scientific study nor decades of empirical club history behind what I write. I can just feel a clear improvement in many parameters in my own body. And even though it works for me, it is by no means certain that it is a good idea for everyone. People – and cyclists – are different, fortunately!      

 

One thing is the dietary change. Another important adjustment that I also brought back from Spain is a different training form. And just like the change to a much more basic diet is something that has definitely been seen before, my training update after the camp is not exactly rocket science either. Many of my cycling friends already train this way and have done so for many years. I remember the easy rides! Myself. No. With full-time work, family, and freelance tasks, I have always found it difficult to just go for an easy recovery ride. It's always nice, of course, if it's a chat ride in good weather with a good cycling buddy. But I have also felt that I wasted the opportunity for a proper good old-fashioned training session. Yes, perhaps precisely old-fashioned. Today, I do many more of these low-intensity rides to recover better. And it actually feels nice not to always have to 'perform' every time I clip into the pedals.

 

And it's not just nice. It works! When I now ride my hard training sessions – either tons or intervals – it feels like the curve, when the body is getting tired, flattens out, which gives me quite a bit more power than before. My heart rate has also dropped, without the speed going down. On the contrary! For example, I did a tempo ride on the loose day off Monday during Pentecost just to try to peak my form right before the Vätternrundan a few weeks later. 126 km solo around North Zealand with an average of 36.3 without being particularly pressed. Yes, with an NP of 267, there was indeed some effort. But with an average heart rate of 144 and a max heart rate of 163, it was by no means a ride in the red zone. It's new for me to ride with a power meter, so I can't use that as a comparison to the past. But normally, with such an average speed/distance, I would have a heart rate of about 150... often a bit over. And again, I have felt it harder before. Whether it's something mental or physical, I don't know. Probably a combination. That's often how it is.

 

  

Well, before my speaking time is up, I can quickly touch on my experience with Vätternrundan, which at 315 km is of course a long race. The plan in our little six-person group was to take nine hours. For several reasons, that didn't quite work out. But it was close. And yes, it was indeed a long time to be sitting on a bike. It suddenly pinched a bit on the outside of my left knee, and there was also increasing minor trouble with my right shin, which had been bothering me in the weeks leading up to the race. Yes, thank you, the body has after all turned 48 years old. But all in all, I had a fantastic trip around the Swedish giant lake. I was constantly in good spirits – rode without a chain, was on top of the pedals/gears, or whatever it's precisely called in the official cycling glossary. Of course, as I said, over the last handful of years, I've been in quite respectable super athlete form, but it seems that my trip to the 12.16 Bike Camp Altea has probably pushed me up a level and definitely contributed to me now feeling even stronger on the bike... and happier in life.

 

     

     

I'm thinking that I'll click in again for the next 12.16 Bike Camp! It might be that there's even more to gain. And if it doesn't happen in Altea, then I look forward to trying my hand at the Girona area, where Fie and Bekim live and train daily. Or whatever fits in. Recommendation from here. Travel out. Listen and learn. Be open to tips and tricks. Don't be afraid to absorb and challenge the 'but-I've-always-done-it-this-way' mindset. And perhaps most importantly. Make sure to adjust your new inputs so they fit you and your life. You should feel enriched, not limited. Spring is of course peak season for bike camps, but also in September and October, there are plenty of offers – and why not take advantage of the almost always good late summer form with a trip down, where the season lasts a couple of months longer in short shorts?

 

Really good summer!  

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