Show us your.......newbie progress! [4 Sep 2012 - 4 Oct 2014]

[BrianEvesham]

Out with OH again before the hot sun

http://www.strava.com/activities/169716945

She is sat here moaning that we haven't done enough miles, sort that tomorrow

Avg up to 11.2mph

 

[Mo1959]

Out with OH again before the hot sun

http://www.strava.com/activities/169716945

She is sat here moaning that we haven't done enough miles, sort that tomorrow

Avg up to 11.2mph

Good to see her enthusiasm building up again.

Heat is building up here now. It got pretty unbearable yesterday. Just got a lounger delivered so I can sit at the side of the house in the breeze/shade.

 

[Coggy]

You don't lose it that quick, well I never have, took me nearly three months to really drop in performance. The thing i notice after two weeks is an increased H.R.

To be fair you are hardly a "beginner"

 

[Coggy]

I was interested in this, so I looked it up and found this was quite interesting:

http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/fitness/training/detraining-the-truth-about-losing-fitness-22330

Thanks, very interesting

 

[Coggy]

Overtook someone on a hill today, that's progress enough for me to break out the fine whisky in celebration!

Also signed up for the Manchester-Blackpool night ride this September. Better make that drink a double...

I also overtook what looked like a fairly seasoned cyclist on a Hill last night. I was pleased as I got my personal best on the hill (not particularly steep) and maintained an average of about 15.6mph going up. I think on Strava it put me at around 129/441 riders.

 

[moo]

New bike parts still in transit I've been doing some intensity training on my exercise bike for the past few days. The perfect quick workout to maintain fitness - but my god you need a lot of willpower to get through each rep I don't think my heart has ever beated so fast.

 

[confusedcyclist]

First week of commuting underway and going strong. I managed to get 4th place on a segment without really trying, wonder what I will get tomorrow when I do!

Here's my route:

http://www.strava.com/activities/169232380
http://www.strava.com/activities/169390582

and still finding time to squeeze in the evening rides

http://www.strava.com/activities/168993456

 

[Nigelnaturist]

To be fair you are hardly a "beginner"

Which period of time that I took off over the last two years would you like me to explain, the lack of cycling at the end of Sept 2012, Dec 2012, Jan 2013, July 2013 Nov2013-Mar 2014, I was talking from experience not how I am now, each time i have took up to two weeks of I can't say I lost much in performance but my H.R. did increase, the the extended time from Nov 2013 to Mar 2014 whilst I rode it was only what was needed, then my performance did drop, but not to the stage I was like a beginner, it takes a long time for your fitness to fall, almost as long as it took to build it, well 6 months or so for someone reasonably fit to fall back to like they started possible longer.

 

[Coggy]

Which period of time that I took off over the last two years would you like me to explain, the lack of cycling at the end of Sept 2012, Dec 2012, Jan 2013, July 2013 Nov2013-Mar 2014, I was talking from experience not how I am now, each time i have took up to two weeks of I can't say I lost much in performance but my H.R. did increase, the the extended time from Nov 2013 to Mar 2014 whilst I rode it was only what was needed, then my performance did drop, but not to the stage I was like a beginner, it takes a long time for your fitness to fall, almost as long as it took to build it, well 6 months or so for someone reasonably fit to fall back to like they started possible longer.

What I mean is going by your stats you have an immense level of fitness. People like me that did pretty much nothing until starting to ride can notice a massive difference in their fitness levels after even a couple of weeks off.

 

[welsh dragon]

Afternoon people. Its scorchio out there today. I went for a pootle round town this morning. Probably not the best day as it's market day, but hey ho, never mind eh? Went through the park, then along the main road leaving Mach. I intended to turn onto the B404 once out of town, but there were a lot of road works as you can see from the photo so decided to go back into town. On the way there I cam across a little lane, but after going up so far, I decided it wasnt suitable for a folder

I went back into town and pootled around the market for a while. Very pleasant morning, if rather slow.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

What I mean is going by your stats you have an immense level of fitness. People like me that did pretty much nothing until starting to ride can notice a massive difference in their fitness levels after even a couple of weeks off.

I was just the same when I started, but as the article said (which I think backs up my point) it takes time, I only started cycling seriously in June 2012 so those breaks in the first 6 months would tell, it does fall off but not at the rate you think, look at it this way take your first ever ride then compare that with a ride having taken a few weeks of, I bet on the whole that ride after the break is better than your first ride, its took me nearly three months to get back to where I was a 10 months ago after not riding s much over the winter, but I rode most weeks at least once through the winter, not far 92 miles in Feb @13.98mph.

I hated hills when I started, not over keen on the killer ones even now, not that there are any really close, just some short sharp ones 150ft in 1/2 mile or so, it took me six months to do this one

http://app.strava.com/segments/3804327

and from this you can see how slow I was, I cant tell you what gear but probably 28x28 or something.

I do the same climb coming from another road so I have done it more than 6 times, and you can see I wasn't that quick on it last time, you also spend as much time climbing out of the potholes as you do climbing there are that many, thats part of the reason I don't go down it.
Its took me a long time to get where I am, a lot miles in all weathers, when I started I couldn't do a local 10 mile loop without stopping 3 times at least, these I can do 50Km like last night, but usually I stop after 40Km or so and have a cig.
There are many newbies than come on here and blow my stats away in terms of speed and endurance, we are all different, but once you get some basic core fitness unless you totally give up you will retain some of it.

 

[kurt909]

Furthest journey yet for this Fatboy!

Nice ride along Newcastle quayside

 

[Steady]

Decided a few days off was the better option so my bike finally got it's wash and the chain mickle'd .

Does anybody else have difficulties getting the wheels to sit properly in vertical drop outs? Whether it's front or rear, the clunk is fine, it's sat in but I always end up pulling the wheel into the brakes when I pull the qr lever up unless I push the wheel to the opposite side with my knee whilst I pull the qr lever up, somehow what I'm doing doesn't seem right. The qr levers on a different bike don't do that.

Still, managed a short one today, extremely short four miles, way to hot for me at this time of day.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Decided a few days off was the better option so my bike finally got it's wash and the chain mickle'd .

Does anybody else have difficulties getting the wheels to sit properly in vertical drop outs? Whether it's front or rear, the clunk is fine, it's sat in but I always end up pulling the wheel into the brakes when I pull the qr lever up unless I push the wheel to the opposite side with my knee whilst I pull the qr lever up, somehow what I'm doing doesn't seem right. The qr levers on a different bike don't do that.

Still, managed a short one today, extremely short four miles, way to hot for me at this time of day.

Try the qr from the other bike and see what happens.

 

[Steady]

Try the qr from the other bike and see what happens.

Sadly it was sold, I think I go out of my way to forget that part as it was a depressing parting, it was a lovely bike but the student I sold it to stripped it and sold the parts on separately, can't say I know why, he looked like he had made a big loss by doing that. :-(