BF is pulling away

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Hi! This is my first post. I'm trying to figure out how to get FASTER, before I have to kick my boyfriend's beautiful butt out the door.

We started dating last summer, and our first date was a bike ride. He showed up on a hybrid, in a plain T-shirt and old sneakers, and promptly got a flat tire. I was on my Terry, and I kicked his butt that day and for the rest of the summer!

Well, it turns out he's as competitive as I am. He had surgery during the winter to alleviate arthritis pain in his neck and shoulders. Then, he bought a road bike, not a great one but at least it has skinny tires. Next on the list was SPd pedals and shoes, and some honest-to-God jerseys. (All this was with my coaching.)

I knew the day would come, and it has. He's faster than me now. The bar has been raised. So, I'm desperate for help. How do I start kicking his butt again?

I ride a Terry Symmetry, it's a good bike, maybe not the best for me but I don't know what to change, and I'm on a budget. So I'd rather not buy a new bike right now. We usually spend most of the weekend on the bikes, riding 30-50 miles both Saturday and Sunday. We average 12-14 mph, often cruising around 18-20 for short distances, with max speed around 32 downhill. So there's lots of room for improvement!

He works out of town during the week and doesn't ride. So, I'm thinking I have the home court advantage. I usually only ride one additional day during the week. I walk an hour every day at lunch and run 1-2 mornings before work. I also do an upper body weight routine once a week. I'm stretching and doing PT exercises on a daily basis, to improve core strength.

From reading posts here, I'm guessing that what I need to do is ride more often, and focus on speed rather than distance. Interval training, perhaps? I notice that my cadence is slow, is that a problem? I'm much more comfortable in a slower cadence, everything hurts when I try to speed it up, even with low resistance, but if that's what it's gonna take, I'll do it!

I'd love some help! Thanks!

I am sitting here, looking at a book called "The Carmichael Training Systems cyclist's diary" which I bought and made two entrys. If you would like it, just send me your address and I'll just mail it to you. Isn't doing anyone any good just sitting on the counter. At the top it says "A daily training log to maximize your performance from the world's top cycling coach." sounds like you and it are a match made in heaven. I decided that I don't want to train, I want to stop, take pictures, go slow, go fast...