Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
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itaa
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Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by itaa »

My Goal is to be able to ride 20miles a day most days of the week rain or shine at a reasonable pace,
I'm a weak skinny-fat 27y old office worker with no endurance/power whatsoever, currently after riding 20miles in one go I feel knackered and out for 2days. I can maybe sustain riding 6-7miles in good weather every 2days with no effects at the moment.

How do I get there and train my body in the most efficient way to achieve this without overdoing it and messing myself up?
How often/ in what way/ at what speed and for how long /with what kind of increases the training should be done?

I realise this is a lot like weight lifting and most of the gains comes from hitting it the right amount and having a good rest.

Has anyone been in my shoes? How did you got there? What was your experience?
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mjr
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by mjr »

itaa wrote:How do I get there and train my body in the most efficient way to achieve this without overdoing it and messing myself up?
How often/ in what way/ at what speed and for how long /with what kind of increases the training should be done?

I think you need to build it up, but 20 miles a day every day is a tougher demand than you might think, especially if "reasonable pace" is code for fast, especially if you still want to be fast on the bad weather days.

So I think one can either build up distance first, then frequency, then speed, or do it in another order, or even a bit of distance then a bit of frequency then a bit of speed and round and round again, although that may be the most difficult to get motivated by because you won't hit any target until the end.

I feel the key thing to do is to repeat each step/level/target until there's no longer much doubt that you can do it, then stretch yourself a bit... so if building up distance, keep doing 7 miles every other day until you're not feeling quite as wiped out by it, then step it up to 10 miles until you're not feeling quite as wiped out by it, then 20km (about 12.4miles I think but 20km sounds better) repeatedly, then 15 miles, then 20 miles. Then try to up the speed or frequency... but I feel speed is the most difficult to achieve because you can miss that because of the weather, what happens in the rest of your life or even simply other road users.

Beyond that, there's tactics like interval training and so on, but they're icing on the meat of the method (oops, mixed two food metaphors).

Oh and if you have any doubts about your health (being wiped out for 2 days at a time seems unusual), tell your GP what you're aiming to do and see if they'll do any checkups.
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
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Samuel D
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by Samuel D »

I don’t think there’s anything alarming about feeling wiped out for a couple of days after riding beyond your ability as a new cyclist.

Many fairly young people today are sedentary to a degree that is unprecedented in human history. And they’ve been sedentary for their whole life: as a child not allowed to play outdoors on their own; as a teenager with video games and now mobile phones; and as an adult they’re sedentary at their desk job, at home on the couch and bed (not even using muscles to support themselves upright!), and at the weekend too.

Fixing the results of a lifetime of nil exercise does not happen in a week or two. You need to build up gently and keep at it for months and years to develop a historically normal level of physical robustness. If you rush this, you’ll fall into a pattern of getting sick repeatedly.

You’ll soon get over this initial wiped-out feeling by riding once or twice a week. Thereafter, listen closely to your body and ramp up your activity as slowly as your patience allows. Within three months you’ll be amazed at your progress and how much better you feel doing exercise.
whoof
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by whoof »

I would firstly check that everything on your bike is OK. If you are riding with flat tyres, rusty chain and saddle height that means you look like a chimp or will be ready to sing soprano then it's going to be hard work.

As for pace, don't try to run before you have learned to walk. Next time you ride (I take it it's to work 10 miles each way) set off at a pace that feel like you could ride all day not that you hope you can sustain to just about get you there. Do this a couple of times a week and try a continuous 20 mile ride at the weekend. Once you feel OK doing this try three times a week and also on the way home if you are feel OK try riding a bit quicker for 5 minutes. Not so you are killing yourself just so you are going at a bit quicker.

In time you will then start to feel that your 'slow' pace will be quicker with no greater effort and you can ride more often and more often at a higher pace. There is however no quick fix. The good news is your body will adapt. There was a woman who lost something like 45 kg and this week won a Commonwealth medal for cycling.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/commonwealth-games/43712547
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by PH »

I agree with all comments above, particularly these points
So I think one can either build up distance first, then frequency, then speed, or do it in another order, or even a bit of distance then a bit of frequency then a bit of speed and round and round again, although that may be the most difficult to get motivated by because you won't hit any target until the end.

I don’t think there’s anything alarming about feeling wiped out for a couple of days after riding beyond your ability as a new cyclist.

There's plenty of training plans and other ways to achieve whatever you want, but it also has to be fun or the motivation soon disappears.
Here's what I'd do
Distance - just start at what you're comfortable with, ride at what you feel is a maintainable pace and up it each week, back of if it feels too much.
Frequency - one you're comfortable with a distance, increase the frequency, every third day, every other day, two days riding one day off ...
Speed - probably the hardest, because IMO to get any meaningful improvement you probably have to do less of the other two. I like to use the gym, wattbikes mainly, once a week is enough and a 45 min session (Which includes 10 min warm up and 5 min cool down) gives me more benefit than anything I can do on a bike. Such a session wipes me out (I did one yesterday and am still feeling it) but I don't have to wait long to feel the results. If you don't want to use a gym, find a quiet flattish route and look at interval training plans.
Good luck
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mjr
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by mjr »

Samuel D wrote:I don’t think there’s anything alarming about feeling wiped out for a couple of days after riding beyond your ability as a new cyclist.

Many fairly young people today are sedentary to a degree that is unprecedented in human history. And they’ve been sedentary for their whole life: as a child not allowed to play outdoors on their own; as a teenager with video games and now mobile phones; and as an adult they’re sedentary at their desk job, at home on the couch and bed (not even using muscles to support themselves upright!), and at the weekend too. [...]

OK, maybe I'm being a bit jumpy suggesting a medical check, but I'm not quite a generation older. I was allowed to play outdoors with friends, had video games but they were Breakout/Frogger/Sonic not the current ones that seem designed to suck you in for hours, rode to school/work/uni and was diagnosed with a chronic illness while at school so have tried to keep moving every so often even with a desk job.
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
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RodT
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by RodT »

Ride lots. Eat well. Have fun.
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by Vorpal »

My approach would be to do the ride (commute?) as often as I could manage, and increase gradually.

So, start with two days per week, a few days apart, perhaps Monday & Friday. Then, when you don't feel as knackered by it, start doing it on Wednesday, as well. Then, when you feel comfortable with that, add one more day, etc.

The other thing is that it will help, even if you are tired, to get 'little' rides in between. Don't try to ride hard. Just, when you need something form the shops, take a bike & go at a gentle pace, instead of taking the car.

Some people pedal themselves fit, that is, they just start doing whatever it is, such as commuting 20 miles per day, and leaving the time to sleep extra live with discomfort for a couple of weeks until they get used to it. I don't recommend the second approach, although I have done it, I basically can't do anything but, cycle, work, eat, and sleep for a couple of weeks.
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flat tyre
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by flat tyre »

Ride a lot, have a day off from time to time - maybe ride 4-5 days a week. Find some hills to climb, don't overdo the mileage, well, until you've built up stamina.
itaa
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by itaa »

heh, Between ages of 8-15 I was out all day everyday on my bike and could cycle just about all day ,never got enough of it..

Than..I started working at young age and somehow cycling got left behind.. Now 10+years later the **** stationary unactive job is messing up my health and I find myself weak with barely any stamina,there's really nothing wrong with me, that's what the ''modern'' lifestyle does to you...
I want to get back in to cycling (Not competitive or any of that stuff- Just spending time outside cycling for a few hours a few times a week and enjoying myself). So the goal is just to be able to do more of it without taking it too fast too soon
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531colin
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by 531colin »

itaa wrote:heh, Between ages of 8-15 I was out all day everyday on my bike and could cycle just about all day ,never got enough of it..
..................... So the goal is just to be able to do more of it without taking it too fast too soon.


And thats all you have to do.
When we are 8 years old, we haven't heard of recovery drinks, heart rate monitors, and all the other junk that adult sportspeople seem to want.
So go out on your bike like an eight year old, messing around with your mates.
At eight years old, you don't ride so fast that you can't have a laugh with your mates as you ride along....so do that....ride at a level that leaves you enough breath to have a conversation.
You might not want to stop and look for frogspawn, or conkers, or to throw stones at a tin can, but its OK to stop if the fancy takes you. You might be lucky to get a view to look at, or birds to listen to, but you can just stop anyway, or have a biscuit.....or flop down in the grass at the top of a hill, like an eight year old.
The aim is to get home refreshed and invigorated, not exhausted......and jam sandwiches are always good!
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by Vorpal »

531colin wrote:You might not want to stop and look for frogspawn, or conkers, or to throw stones at a tin can,

Why not? :D
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Re: Optimal Training to Ride Faster/Longer/Efficiently?

Post by eileithyia »

As Vorpal, don't expect to ride 20miles/day right from the off, start twice a week and gradually add in extra days.... ride steady don't push so hard that it feels continually like hard work but do not ride in a gear that it feels like your legs are going around like windmills with little forward progression.

20 miles on top of working (even sedentary) is quite a bit extra on your day, if it is a commute you might consider initially park and ride, ie start with half the journey first, you can always add in an increase by doing a bit extra on your way back to your vehicle.
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