Chris Froome is delighted to be back on his bike for the first time since the Vuelta a Espana, and insists his road to a third Tour de France title starts now.

Froome was forced to abandon the Vuelta with a fractured bone in his foot after crashing on stage 12, and although he finished that stage, the 30 year old was told he couldn't ride his bike again until the injury had healed.

He was given the green light by the team's medical staff on Wednesday, and back in the saddle less than 24 hours later.

The British rider is now looking forward to getting back to full fitness and feels as inspired as ever as he prepares for his 10th season as a professional.

"I've really missed it," he told TeamSky.com. "I hadn't touched a bike since I finished that stage in Spain, and it's not just the training I've missed, but the whole aspect of getting out there and riding. I've not been able to join up with my team-mates, do gentle runs to a coffee stop, or anything. I've been pulling my hair out, but it's good news that I can start getting back into it again now.

"As much as I miss being on my bike, it's been fantastic to have some time at home with my wife. I spend so much of the season at races and training camps that this is the first time I've been able to switch off at home and live a bit more of a normal life. That's been refreshing and given me the recovery I need to get back into it again.

"When you have a good season there's always a danger that you can get complacent at the end of it, but the way things have gone, I'm hungry to get into next year fighting hard. I couldn't wait to start training again.

"It's going to be an exciting season, that's for sure. My main focus is the Tour de France again, but a week after that we've also got the Olympics. There's a road race and time trial in Rio, and it's an exciting prospect thinking about how I can do all three. I'm really looking forward to it.

"The Tour is my major goal but both Olympic races suit me well. The time trial is a long one at over 50km, and has over 1000m of climbing in it, and the road race is also tough - over 250km with close to 5000m of climbing. If my form is good after the Tour, I'll be in with a shot.

Going for all three titles is a massive goal to set so I'm going to have to take each one as it comes, but it is exciting. In cycling, it's really difficult to plan too far in advance because you never know what's going to happen along the way. At this point I have to focus on the Tour de France - I need to be ready at that point, and after that, we'll see how things go.

"I think it's important to see what that Tour route looks like first. We've got the presentation later this month and after that we can start planning accordingly. I haven't worked things out with the coaches yet, but I'd like to start my season a little bit later which will allow me to build up to the Tour.

"If possible, the team is looking even stronger than it did do this season. We've lost some strong guys - notably Richie Porte - but we also have a lot of strong guys coming in. It's exciting times at the team and we've got a lot of strength within the squad. It's going to be important to spend time together as a group over the winter and integrate the new guys into the team.

"It was such a tough journey to get to where I am right now - having been brought up in Africa, getting onto the European scene, and working my way up the ranks. It's been such a journey, and such an accomplishment, that I want to make the most of it.

"I'm in a privileged position and have fantastic support at Team Sky. How can I not find motivation at the prospect of going back to the Tour and defending my title? It's all there for the taking and this is what I love doing.

"The Olympics are massive and will always be special. One-day events like that are always a gamble and you have to be the best you can be on that particular day. That makes them tough to win, but if you can pull them off it's fantastic. The Vuelta is another special race, and one that's always slipped away from me. I've come second twice and obviously crashed out this year. I'd like to go back there in the future and do well again.

"The Tour has to take priority, and in cycling there's nothing bigger. I don't think it's impossible to do both but it does take a lot of doing and it wouldn't be an easy challenge to accomplish."