Following the Swedish National Championships two weeks ago, I headed home to Norway with a suitcase full of two new blue and yellow jerseys. No matter how many titles I have won in the past, each new title feels like a huge achievement. It really makes me proud to ride in my blue and yellow.

That blue and yellow has been doing the rounds on my home roads in Norway these last two weeks. It has been really good for my head and my legs to be have this period at home where I can recharge my batteries and get in some base miles on both the road bike and the mountain bike.

I have been following the Giro a bit from here and keeping an eye on how my teammates are doing, but I have to admit, I haven’t even missed it a tiny bit – which is a sign that I really needed this period at home. It’s the best way I can prepare for what’s coming up next.

Beyond the bike, I have been taking all the moments I can to feel like a “normal person”. It’s been a long time since I’ve been home during July, and there’s so much to love about this time of year. The weather has been fantastic, so Martin and I have been enjoying the BBQ and our backyard terrace.

It has also been a great opportunity to visit with family. I got my Swedish family dose during Nationals when my parents and brother came down to cheer for me. Coming back to Norway has meant time with Martin’s family. We’ve seen his brother, our nieces, his mom and her partner. There have been birthday parties and homemade pizza dinners and hanging out together on the couch. We’ve been able to invite people over or visit at their houses without feeling like I need to head home straight away because tomorrow I need to pack my bed and hit the road again. That’s been a really nice feeling.

I have also enjoyed getting to fix up the house a bit. I’ve done some shopping – adding new couch pillows and curtains to the living room. We painted the terrace, and I washed every window in the house. It’s funny because I don’t love doing those things at all. I just like for them to be done because they make me enjoy my home more. It’s like training, I suppose. I don’t actually love the training, but I love the satisfaction of finishing a really hard training session and knowing that it’s all worth it.

As wonderful as all this time at home has been, I have started to get antsy. I feel like I’ve been away from the races and the peloton for a long time now – which is a little silly as it’s only been three weeks! I had a massive month of racing in June and was on the road for nearly three weeks. I guess that just goes to show what how transient the life of a professional cyclist is – when three weeks in one place feels almost too long.

Home time comes to end on Thursday when I fly to Germany for Thüringen, which marks the start of another important block of racing for me – but I’ll tell you about that next week. For now – I’m going to enjoy the last days at home.

EMMA