We didn't get one ticket for 2012 but luckily all is not lost

Thankfully, much of the road race is open to the public so my family and friends will get to see me no problem at all.

Every one of them applied for tickets to watch me on the track in the velodrome but not one of them was successful.

It would be so disappointing if none of my family could be there for what is potentially the biggest moment of my career. However, I'm fortunate in that the BP support programme for athlete ambassador families means they will be able to cheer me on from the sidelines which means so much to me.

Before then, there's still plenty of racing. I've spent the last few days in a youth hostel in the mountains of northern Spain.

It's just me and my Garmin-Cervelo team staying here and it's been amazingly tranquil. We've had lots of home‑cooked meals and I've been doing a lot of sleeping.

As strange as it sounds, I'm making more of an effort to rest and it's doing the trick.

I won a race in Chonming Island in China last month and came close to another win on Sunday here in Spain. I broke late on but got caught with a kilometre to go and, once you're caught, there's no way you can keep pace.

Obviously, it was annoying not to win but I'm really enjoying my racing - I don't think I've ever felt more motivated.

It helps that we get on so well as a team. Our former manager thought not just about riders' abilities but characters when he put the team together which means we have this unbelievable unity. We got on from day one but the only problem was we had to get used to how everyone raced. But that's happened now and our team are going the best they ever have.

I started riding with the girls in the four-day Iurreta-Emakumeen Bira race today and, after that, it's time for us to say our goodbyes as I'm heading over to the UK for the National Championships. There's definitely kudos to wearing your national jersey. I know I look at the girls in the peloton with their national jerseys on and have real respect for them. It's what I want to be wearing.

I've not seen the course in Newcastle yet but I'll get a chance to ride it beforehand. I think it suits me although opinions are divided. If you speak to a sprinter, they say it suits the climbers and, if you speak to the climbers, they moan that it's a sprinter's course.

Going back home brings with it guilt. Once you're there, everyone wants to catch up with you and it's what I want to do. But as crazy as this might sound, doing that is very draining. This time at home more than ever, I'm just going to have to say "no" to things even something as simple as going out for a coffee. The Nationals have to be my sole focus at the moment.

Lizzie is supported by BP, the official oil and gas partner and a sustainability partner for London 2012. To find out more, go to www.bp.com/2012