# help!!!!!!!!!!! (please)



## UNBALANCEDWIFE (2 Sep 2009)

My husband, 53, weighs over 14 stone, wants to climb Mont Ventoux for his 55th birthday. I want to be a supportive wife (even though I can't ride a bike. No, no, I mean I really can't ride a bike. No balance, fall off). I would really appreciate any information on fitness regimes that he could start off with so that by the time he's at the foot of this monster, he isn't likely to have a heart attack - let alone by the time he's half way up.

He isn't any novice since for three years he's ridden around 600 miles across France on his hols, in steaming heat, doing around 40 miles and more a day but he's out of practice now and fatter than ever. It worries me that in encouraging this dream I might just be setting myself up to be a widow...


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## Chrisz (2 Sep 2009)

Well, he's got 2 years in which to get fit - shouldn't be a problem at all  

Tell him to get out on his bike lots between now and then and worry about a more structured regimen 3 - 6 months before the Mt


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## akaAndrew (2 Sep 2009)

Fret not. That's plenty of time to get into shape. If he takes it slowly and steadily, does what he can without pushing himself then the fitness will come. The best advice I can give is to ride as often as possible, even if it's only 10 mile. Get the body used to riding. Once he's comfortable at a certain mileage than up it by 10% and repeat.


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## Big Jack Brass (2 Sep 2009)

If you can handle the jokey military theme there's a book called *Boot Camp: The Sergeant's Fitness and Nutrition Program* which has a very useful approach to improving fitness. The idea is to start at a level appropriate to yourself (Can't do a press-up? Start from your knees instead of toes. Can't manage that? Lean against the stairs. Still no? Lean against the wall and "press-up" from it) using your local environment rather than any specialist fitness gear. The link goes to Amazon and you'll notice that the book is out-of-print, but easily and cheaply available secondhand. 

There are many such guides of course, and I don't doubt that there are many better ones, but I found this particular course of stretching, exercise and nutrition advice much easier to follow and stick to than the usual diets and plans.


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## fossyant (2 Sep 2009)

How far away is work. Commuting everyday will go some way to shedding that weight and getting the fitness up. What area do you live in - might help if you live somewhere with lots of hills, especially long ones..........


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## Fab Foodie (2 Sep 2009)

Plenty of time to build up. Need to loose the excess pork. need to do Ventoux when it's not 100F, so pick a cooler time of year or go early in the morning. ventoux on a calm hot summers day is unhealthy (This I know from bitter experience), but I'm going back!

It's a worthy goal. Just start getting back into it slowly, try to ride about 3 times per week using a weekend day to go a bit further. Find a riding buddy if possible, it really helps. Don't try to go fast and hard especially now it's getting colder, use the winter months to build up some base fitness. Practice hills... a lot, learn good efficient climbing technique, set some goals for the summer, charity ride etc. Most of all enjoy. Clubs can be very good too.


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## Scoosh (2 Sep 2009)

UNBALANCEDWIFE and  to CycleChat 

There's lots of goodgreat advice on here - much of it from people who have 'been there, done that', so keep asking questions, keep encouraging the man and maybe even get _him_ to join CycleChat 

There are also a number of ladies who are 'not in the first flush of youth' , who had never ridden a bike before .... who have started and find themselves actually enjoying it . Wanna join them ? Recumbent trike ?





Then you could join your husband going up Mt Ventoux - make it a family affair - and to make sure he's OK !


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## HLaB (2 Sep 2009)

Welcome to the forum, yer hubby will be grand.

I met a Dutch woman once whose job was to teach adult women to cycle in Holland; I wonder if the UK has anything similar?


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## ASC1951 (2 Sep 2009)

UNBALANCEDWIFE said:


> It worries me that in encouraging this dream I might just be setting myself up to be a widow...


As the others say, he has plenty of time to get in shape. I've done it three times at a slightly greater age and although I'm not 'over 14st', I'm not three stone under it, either.

IME losing weight (through reduced food and drink) will be as important as getting the training miles in.

Oh, and get him insured.


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## montage (2 Sep 2009)

Break it down into mini goals - get him into the local cycling club, convince him to try out the time trials. Get him on here!

Losing weight will benefit him to no end aswell, less weight = less work to do. So put him on a brilliant diet and into a cycling club  The rest will take care of itself


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## FootSore (3 Sep 2009)

I agree with montage.

Two years is far too long for a training plan. It will be impossible to maintain a focus for that long.

Suggest picking some smaller events between now and then. Either sportives, TTs, or even a self imposed challenge. e.g. Cycle to somewhere specific or via a certain route. Then build to this challenge over 3-4 months. Assess the outcome and repeat. Even marathon training is only 12-16 weeks on most programs - but generally they assume you can run a bit already. 

This will give him something to target and some specifc training needs to focus on. 

I would also suggest you consider something you can both build together - any chance of hill walking - I'm not talking Gortex and Sticks. Just getting out for a walk, up hills. Would allow you to see him more, get fitter yourself and will help develop power in the legs. Generating new muscle at that age will be tough.

Good luck and enjoy it.


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## jimboalee (3 Sep 2009)

Is he well insured?

Mind you, it could be pronounced "Death by misadventure" and you won't get a penny.


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## jimboalee (3 Sep 2009)

What I can say in seriousness is:-

Get him a gym membership for Christmas.
Maybe some Personal Trainer sessions tailored to the task ahead.

Climbing up a hill is based on power to weight ratio. Time trials is a different sport.

If you can, find a gym with a 'Stepmill'. Not a stair climbing machine, these aren't good enough. A Stepmill is a four foot high downward moving escalator. Pure torture. Builds big glutes and quads though.

Then get him on the bike machine and blast the 'hills' programs.

A weekly hilly 'real' bike ride throughout the last four months leading up to the event which should be about 75% the distance of the event. He must concentrate on pulling the pedal up round the back more than pushing the front pedal down.

Back at the gym, he should be doing deadlifts, hyperextensions and leg press.
Lots of crunches for the abs, and a few forward lateral raises for the shoulders.


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## palinurus (3 Sep 2009)

jimboalee said:


> Climbing up a hill is based on power to weight ratio. Time trials is a different sport.



But something like taking part in TTs (or sportives or Audaxes or club runs etc) may serve as useful interim goals.


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## jimboalee (3 Sep 2009)

palinurus said:


> But something like taking part in TTs (or sportives or Audaxes or club runs etc) may serve as useful interim goals.



There are not many places in the UK ( I presume the OP is in the UK ) where a cyclist can ride with their hands on the hoods or tops, giving 300+ Watts for 1 solid hour, standing up on the pedals occasionally and retain momentum when sitting back down on the saddle.

The gym bike is just the ticket.

I did say "A weekly hilly 'real' bike ride", which could be an Audax ride. This is where Midlands Mesh and DIYs come into their own because they can be done anytime.
The Audax season starts in November. A Brevet 1000 ( 10 x 100km ) and a Randonneur 500 ( 1 x 100 + 2 x 200 ) can be gained in the 09/10 season.

The OP's hubby is planning to climb a bugger of a hill.
TT's are based on aerodynamics and inertia in a 'tuck' riding position. Climbing is based on power and rythym at probably less than 10kmh for this gent.

If he wants to try a TT, thats up to him. 
I would train in a more upright position with frequent 'out of the saddle' power intervals.


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## jimboalee (3 Sep 2009)

jimboalee said:


> There are not many places in the UK ( I presume the OP is in the UK ) where a cyclist can ride with their hands on the hoods or tops, giving 300+ Watts for 1 solid hour, standing up on the pedals occasionally and retain momentum when sitting back down on the saddle.
> 
> The gym bike is just the ticket.
> 
> ...



Quite unintentionally, I have suggested what Montage described as 'Mini goals' to build confidence, as well as stamina.


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## Bill Gates (3 Sep 2009)

jimboalee said:


> There are not many places in the UK ( I presume the OP is in the UK ) where a cyclist can ride with their hands on the hoods or tops, giving 300+ Watts for 1 solid hour, standing up on the pedals occasionally and retain momentum when sitting back down on the saddle.
> 
> The gym bike is just the ticket.
> 
> ...



I would have thought working up to doing 25 mile TT's would be good training for climbing. There is a trade off between 1) maintaining a low profile aero position and 2) sustaining power output in getting the optimum position and therefore the fastest combination.

It is putting out the power over an hour which is the key and the adrenaline from a race will help get the focus required. It will therefore become easier to produce that same power when climbing in the more upright position.

Riding at that level on a bike in the gym is very tough and I don't think I could do it nor would want to.


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## Jonathan M (3 Sep 2009)

UNBALANCEDWIFE said:


> *My husband, 53, weighs over 14 stone, wants to climb Mont Ventoux for his 55th birthday*.



If he really wants to do it, then he'll put the training in. It would become evident in the months before whether he's done the training and whether this would be a realistic objective.

I'm 39, soon to be 40, weight 16st, recently diagnosed with a brain tumour & seizures and have harboured the same dream for a while. My wife has poo-poohed the idea of me riding up Ventoux a year to the day that my tumour was diagnosed (2nd June) but has agreed to it the following year. Currently I'm in the gym, starting easy rides. Prior to diagnosis I was riding 100+km reasonably hilly rides at weekends and going to spinning classes 2-3 times per week. If I can get back to that standard by the new year then I'll be happy and will plan for Ventoux in 2011.


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## rich p (3 Sep 2009)

I did Ventoux last year at the age of 53 (although I weighed 12 st) with my mate who was 63 and he did it in 2h 8m so your old man can definitely do it if he really wants to.


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## jimboalee (3 Sep 2009)

http://www.bikeradar.com/road/fitness/article/stealth-training-get-fit-on-the-sly-22867

Item No. 1. Find a stairmill.

Item No. 5. This is called 'Fasted lipolysis'.

Item No. 6. This is the same as Item 1, but with random stride length.

Item No. 10. My winter commute bike is 36lb of cast ( solid gold ) IRON.


Also read
http://www.bikeradar.com/road/fitness/article/training-easy-does-it-20916

You can measure your RHR with the second hand on your wristwatch. 
In the gym, there are metal panels on the machine for Heart Rate.


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## xpc316e (3 Sep 2009)

There's plenty of good advice here for Unbalancedwife, but I sense that she'd like to try it with him. There are alternatives like trikes (I have one myself), which would get around her balance problem. I wonder whether she could actually ride a bike though - if you have enough balance to walk upright, then I reckon that cycling would not prove impossible given enough decent tuition. I reckon that she should look for a National Standards Instructor who could accept the challenge of getting her on a bike.


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## TVC (3 Sep 2009)

First thing, get him to his doctor and get a full MOT. Not fun, but he needs to know if anything needs monitoring as he moves towards his goal.


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## UNBALANCEDWIFE (5 Sep 2009)

Thank you all so, so much for your great advice, which I will go with. It all sounds v. positive. As for the cycling, well thanks, people. It's not that I can't ride I bike, I can. It's that my congenitally bad balance means that the slightest distraction (like traffic, dogs, children,someone walking towards me) engenders the wobbles and down I go. I ride a horse all the time but that has a leg at each corner. And the recumbent? Nah, at the risk of incurring the wrath of you dear cyclists, that just looks damn silly. If anyone has seen the lovely film "Belleville Rendezvous" my role will be to be the little old lady driving behind blowing my whistle furiously! Again many thanks.


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## dellzeqq (22 Sep 2009)

There's a limit to how much he can do on his own. He should substitute cycling for car or train on a regular (preferably daily basis) but, in addition train with a club or with a group. Part of that training will be mental, and part of it will be to gain technique in order to ride more efficiently (and pleasurably). There is far more to cycling than physical effort. 

And, before he gets too stuck in his ways, or, possibly, disheartened he should think about the bike, and get one that will do the job. Riding with other people will be valuable in this respect.

Where are you based? It may well be that he'll climb through different clubs or groups. He might start with his local CTC section, and, should he, at some time in the future, find that it's all a bit too relaxed, then he should be on the lookout for a road club. He might find that the CTCers are, on average, a bit older than him, but don't let that put him off - there's a lot of experience there, and if he watches some of these old boys and girls get along at 13mph all day, he'll learn a lot about cycling efficiently.

I'm afraid that _you_ might find the whole thing completely tedious. Middle-aged men re-discovering lost vigour, nattering about targets, buying embarrassing kit, and assembling greasy bike bits in the kitchen can be a trial. Bear in mind that the dishevelled lump that fell asleep in the sofa one glass of red wine after returning home from a day out with a bunch of people that barely bother with conversation is the man you married for love. And don't forget we're here from you when you're on the verge of throwing his sweaty lycra in the bin...


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## Beardie (24 Oct 2009)

HLaB said:


> I met a Dutch woman once whose job was to teach adult women to cycle in Holland; I wonder if the UK has anything similar?



We do in Swindon. The Cycling Officer of your local authority will know if there is anything happening locally, also the area bicycle users' group may run sessions. Also, a quick plug for www.ctc.org.uk/cycletraining.


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## knackeredknees (2 Nov 2009)

I'm 44 years old, weigh about 17 stone and the farthest I've ever cycled is 10 miles, but it would be great to cycle up Mount Ventoux and chuck your cap on Tom Simpson's memorial. Good luck to your husband.


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## alecstilleyedye (2 Nov 2009)

montage said:


> Break it down into mini goals - get him into the local cycling club, convince him to try out the time trials. Get him on here!
> 
> Losing weight will benefit him to no end aswell, less weight = less work to do. So put him on a brilliant diet and into a cycling club  The rest will take care of itself



that is sound advice, although time trialling is optional. if the club takes in some hilly club runs, they'll be good training. he's also likely to meet someone who's done ventoux or some of the other tour nasties, who'll be able to pass on advice.


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## alecstilleyedye (2 Nov 2009)

i'll also add, as someone who came back to cycling after a long lay-off (similarly fatter and less fit as a result), that he'll find it easy enough to get back into, although it will take a lot of miles, starting with small distances, until he's back to where he was before. i'd imagine that if he could do the sort of milage as outlined in the op, he could have had a crack at the ventoux with a suitable bike anyway.


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## Auntie Helen (2 Nov 2009)

With regard to the OP, there are people offering cycle training for adults which includes confidence and safety on the road - I'm one of these instructors! I also second the option of getting a recumbent trike if she has balance issues. Mind you, a trike up Ventoux would be very hard work...


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## ASC1951 (3 Nov 2009)

UNBALANCEDWIFE said:


> And the recumbent? Nah, at the risk of incurring the wrath of you dear cyclists, that just looks damn silly.


 If TubbyHubby can do the training, surely you have time to sew cleats on to a pair of sandals and grow a beard?



> If anyone has seen the lovely film "Belleville Rendezvous" my role will be to be the little old lady driving behind blowing my whistle furiously!


Or how about one of these? http://www.whpva.org/chapters/france/phototheque/jpm/3roues/Rickshaw.html
Fit him up with the full biometric monitors - pulse, cadence, blood pressure and temperature, Alive/Not Alive meter - then he can knock 50% off his training mileage while you sit in the back with the readout bellowing instructions at him.


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