Detraining dilemma

[RJMang]

I have a somewhat intense 7-day event this May: 375+ miles with 35,000+ feet of climbing. I’m 68, ride over 5,000 miles per year with more than 400,000 feet of annual gain (I’ve been at this level for several decades). So, this upcoming event would not normally be a concern. But it's in Europe, and I’ll be completely off the bike for 12 days traveling around before the event. 12 days of zero riding, which has me a bit concerned about my level of “detraining”, which seems to happen more quickly after 60 years old.

Any ideas on how I can keep my training level up with 12 days off the bike?

Robert

 

[ColinJ]

I don't know if you really would lose that much fitness in 12 days, but if you are worried about it and can't ride or get to a gym, how about running? If you can't run for some reason, walk very briskly, especially uphill?

I was off my bike for 8 months with health issues and I got my fitness back by walking as fast as I could up a big local hill 3 or 4 times a week.

 

[cougie uk]

I don't think you can do much tbh. And I don't think I'd worry about it either. Maybe ramp up your training before you travel and take the traveling time as rest.

I'm sure you'll not suffer too much and you'll bounce back pretty quickly with your 7 days.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

What you’ll do in 12 days is shed the fatigue of any training you’ve been doing, and lose a minimal amount of your top end power. Endurance will be barely touched. Consider it a taper and don’t stress about it.

 

[Mo1959]

Brisk uphill walk if you can find one. I have one here I can get my heart rate up to 130 if I really stride out.

 

[Peter Salt]

If you've been riding constantly - i.e. never taken a week or two off the bike, these 12 days actually have the potential to alleviate most/all of the chronic fatigue in your legs and make you better.

 

[si_c]

85km per day and ~1600m climbing for seven consecutive days is a big chunk for sure, given that you'd expect to taper for a week in advance of the event I don't think a 12 day break will do much, you can always build a little additional volume in the two weeks prior to departure to ensure you reach the event at your desired fitness level.

 

[RJMang]

I’ll add that most of the changes in first 12 days are biochemical such as blood volume, haemoglobin concentrations etc. If you can get some time at altitude, assuming you will be in the alps over those 12 days, you’ll compensate a little for the changes due to lack of exercise stimulus.

In fact one of my past tricks is two weeks walking high altitude hut to hut in the alps right before a big cycling event. Then a weeks rest before the event. Works a treat, blood doping the natural way.

I live at over 7,000', but unfortunately, my Europe traveling will be close to sea level.

 

[RJMang]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. My big takeaway: don't stress about it, maybe take few short easy runs (as I'm not much a runner), and essentially enjoy the time off...which is very good advice.

 

[BurningLegs]

You might find this an interesting read:

https://www.trainerroad.com/blog/re...tness-after-completing-a-full-training-cycle/

They put some numbers on the rate of decline after stopping training (otherwise known as resting, which is not a bad thing!)

There is one question in the FAQ’s basically asking what’s the minimum level of training stimulus required to maintain peak fitness and the answer is basically “not much but make it very intense”

In your situation I think I would want to try and remain generally active for the 12 days and get a sweat on with some intense work two or three times. Mostly for my peace of mind and to avoid any worry going into the event.

 

[midlife]

Fartlek? Been trying to get that word into a post for years on end

 

[BurningLegs]

Fartlek? Been trying to get that word into a post for years on end

Keep trying then. Missed a perfect opportunity here 🤣

Edit - sorry, misread your post and thought it said “into a sentence”!🙂

 

[RJMang]

You might find this an interesting read:

https://www.trainerroad.com/blog/re...tness-after-completing-a-full-training-cycle/

They put some numbers on the rate of decline after stopping training (otherwise known as resting, which is not a bad thing!)

There is one question in the FAQ’s basically asking what’s the minimum level of training stimulus required to maintain peak fitness and the answer is basically “not much but make it very intense”

In your situation I think I would want to try and remain generally active for the 12 days and get a sweat on with some intense work two or three times. Mostly for my peace of mind and to avoid any worry going into the event.

Thanks, interesting article. It says the biggest loss is for sprinting, which is OK, as I'm definitely not a sprinter (I weight 118 lbs). I'm a climber, and it appears this aspect of cycling is a less at risk for taking time off.

 

[derrick]

It's only 50 odd miles a day. Nothing to stress about.

 

[RJMang]

It's only 50 odd miles a day. Nothing to stress about.

uh, derrick, it's not really the distance - in and of itself - but it's the gain as well...