Lack of fitness

[Roscoe]

New to the forum, so be gentle! Currently ride a mountain bike on the road twice a week, about 10 miles each ride, taking an hour. Go out for a walk twice a week, 2 miles in 30 minutes and do weights twice a week. Slightly overweight, work in an office so sat down all day, diet fairly good.

When I've been out for a ride, I always come back knackered. Today being a case in point, did 14 miles at 9am, now feel as if I've done a stage of the Tour, legs are like jelly. It took 1 hour 33.

Every time I'm out on the bike, I get passed by guys on road bikes who look like they're putting in no effort at all while I'm huffing, puffing and struggling uphill.

I'm going to buy a road bike in the spring, but don't want to end up "red faced" by my lack of fitness.

Can anyone help with some tips to get me in better shape?

 

[ianrauk]

Yes, keep riding and ride regular.
The fitness will come.

 

[vickster]

If not using the MTB off road, you may find some slicker tyres make riding more enjoyable (as well as locking out any suspension if you can)

 

[ColinJ]

I think that I'm currently pretty unfit, but the truth is that I'm way fitter than I was when I first got back into cycling aged 33. I commuted to work in Burnley a few times the summer after I got my bike. The route has one decent hill and some longer drags on it and is about 15 miles each way. I remember that when I used to get home I couldn't even walk up the stairs - I had to crawl up them! Nowadays, I'd run up them 2 steps at a time.

Fitness takes a while to build up but once you've got it, it doesn't take that much effort to hang onto it. Keep up what you are doing and you'll start to feel pretty fit by early 2012!

If you haven't done so already, put slick tyres on your mountain bike - that will make rides feel a lot easier and more fun. When you get the road bike, stick knobblies back on the MTB.

 

[Roscoe]

Cheers guys, sounds like a set of slicks need ordered first.

 

[MattHB]

Keep going take it steady. Find some nice flat routes (www.mapmyride.com very good for this) and build your legs up slowly. My best advice would be to a) ignore everyone else you see, there's no point in trying to judge yourself against anyone, and b) make sure your rides are enjoyable, that way you'll keep going and get the bug. Once you've got the bug nothing will stop you!
Good luck and keep chatting to the superb peeps on here, they'll help lots and lots

 

[Nebulous]

You haven't given any indication as to your age - but I would suggest you want to build up your distance rather than worrying about speed at this point.

You may also want to look at pre and post-ride nutrition and hydration. 10-14 miles should be fine without eating during the ride, but you would probably want some water.

 

[Mozzy]

Hi Roscoe

I use a hybrid with 700 x 32 tyres and this is fine (IMHO) for road use ... fitness wise that is. Check diet as well as teh exercising during a good 2-3 litres of water EVERY day, see if you can get a good intake of fruit; I drink a litre of home-made smoothie daily. On the bike side, get warmed up for a while then see if you can really cycle hard for a while and ease off, then hard and so on. Diet is important so well balanced would help.

I'm only a few weeks into this cycling thing, and do recover very quickly now. I cycle 15-25 miles daily (weather permitting of course) dropped almost three stone and that does seem to have helped my recovery. Give it time; it'll come together, I feel certain, especially if it is what you want. Oh, I'm nearly 60 BTW so recovery can happen

Mozzy

 

[accountantpete]

Hi Roscoe

Depending on age and fitness it may take some time to make a noticeable improvement - but any exercise will start you on that road.

I'd look into getting a turbo for the winter months.

Personally I find that a little and often is better than one ride a week.

 

[Roscoe]

Thanks for all the advice, much appreciated. For those that have asked, I'm 43, 5'7" and 12 stone.

Usually manage to drink at least 2 litres of water a day and diet's quite good. Will have to look at pre and post ride nutrition.

 

[MattHB]

Personally I find that a little and often is better than one ride a week.

I'm saying NOTHING

 

[Willo]

Keep at it as other's have said. I'm around the same age and, like you, I started off on my old mountain bike (I did put some slick tyres on). I occassionally overtake others cyclists, and sometimes cyclists pass me. Don't feel conscious of that at all; most I encounter are friendly but, in any case, you are cycling for YOU so it's irrelevant what other's think. Switching to a road bike automatically makes you fitter - seriously, it made a big difference for me in that the same route on a road bike become much easier relative to my old mtb. However, it's important to note that it never gets easier, you just go further/higher/faster (those roadies you see have just got good at hiding the pain!)

What worked for me was setting some milestones. Nothing too exact but, say, build up to 30 miles by the spring, 50 by August, etc. I was doing plenty of running before I picked up cycling, so wasn't building fitness from scratch, but having got the bug this year I have stepped up my distances from 30 miles to a 76 mile ride last Sunday by just setting some incremental targets (my next will be a 100 miler next Spring). When time is constrained, the targets become to cycle a certain hill, or a regular route at a higher average speed than previously. Above all, just remember that getting out on your bike will improve your health whatever so don't push it beyond what's enjoyable for you and enjoy the ride!

 

[montyboy]

I found that I could ride much further, much faster and felt altogether fitter once I had changed from a cheap mountain bike to a proper road bike.

Keep going, you will get there.

 

[Roscoe]

Once again, thanks for all the advice, much appreciated. Must also say, what a friendly bunch!

 

[wakou]

Set yourself a target. I am in a similar position, my target it this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunwich_Dynamo

and err........ to get up the only local hill in one go, currently need two stops, involving me being a retching, weeping, beetroot-faced heap at each stop.