2026 Megapost

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AI generated slop is better than I expected. There's no seat on the bike and the rider is facing backwards (I think), but otherwise not bad.


Here's a giant post to capture some thoughts in the early days of 2026.

Benchmarking:

  • Weight: 240/245
  • FTP: 178ish
  • 2025 Hours Ridden: ~90
  • 2025 virtual KM:  ~2250
  • Riding Streak: 42 weeks (using 1 shield and a couple weeks of faking it)

Random Reflection:

For me, I think that 2025 was the hardest year since 2020.  Different in many ways, and I was a few years wiser to help cope proactively, but ... tough. Scrolling back even further and rewinding, my 2024 was no cakewalk, with work spiraling and a dozen different types of stress (work) through the holiday period. As each 2024 week piled on more nonsense, I told myself that it would get better after November the we hit a major milestone (boss retirement).  I was partially right - we took our collective breath through the holiday period but then 2025 was a mess right from the start.

That being said, I got back on the bike.  I took a different position at work at Labor Day and while imperfect, I have more control over my day and my hours are less.  I'm learning bass guitar and digging it (and the stress relief it brings).  I'm sleeping better, too.

Although I didn't pull my FTP up to where I wanted, I did make gains on the bike.  I'm happy that I found my footing again.

2026:

I struggle to write discrete goals. I don't know where things are going to go, and want the flexibility to adapt - even if that means I throttle back things like the bike.  But I think I can identify a few general things.
  • Bike more consistently. This might not be in a structured plan, and might just be more time with the pace partners.
  • Walk more. I need to cut some laps at work, and need to make use of the trails on our property.
  • Drink less.  I'm typing this with a Blanton's on the table.  I think I really mean 'drink less frequently' since I don't drink to excess in a single sitting. 
  • Eat more real food.  Work stress meant hat we lived on chicken nuggets and frozen pizza for 6 months of 2025.  I'd prefer to get back to makig better choices with lean meats and green things more frequently.
  • Read more. Mindless scrolling on the laptop could be better spent.
  • Write more. Stuff like this, or fiction.

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