starting out

[sem]

I have been cycling as a commuter for over a year now and upon completion of a charity cycle ride in chile decided it was time to step up my game, so to speak. I have treated myself to a Specialized ladies road bike, and joined a club. Yesterday I went out for the first time with them and we did 3 circuits of Richmond Park (21 miles). I was the slowest rider, but given i've just joined, I suppose it is to be expected. However, today my knees are killing me and I'm pretty shattered! (i did cycle a further 23 miles there and back, mind)

I do about 3 spinning classes a week and cycle daily, but I don't feel like I am improving at all. If anything, I've noticed I'm stopping more in the spinning classes.

I just wondered if anyone had any suggestions for starting out a training programme. What do I need to start logging / monitoring, and what are good ways of building up speed......

I've just ordered a little HRM / pedometer thing.

Thanks

 

[Sittingduck]

Hi Welcome to CC

Is that with "London Dynamo" Club by any chance? I was reading through their site and the PDF file that describes how they organise their club rides round the park. Seemed very well written to me and they mention segregating into 2 or 3 groups, based on speed and ability etc.

Of course, if it's not that club you may wish to disregard my previous paragraph

I am sure you will soon get faster and more used to it the more you go. Afterall you've only just completed your first club ride right? Best of luck with it and keep us updated!

Cheers,
SD

p.s. Any idea how long it took you guys to do 1 lap of the park?

 

[Randochap]

Congrats!

As Sittingduck says, it's early days yet. Don't overdo it. Sounds like you are. The single most important training advice available is: Get plenty of rest. This is when your body adapts. Don't ride every day and don't ramp up mileage or intensity too quickly. If you do, you will injure or exhaust yourself and then it's "one step forward, two steps back."

If you're getting a HR monitor, figure out your training zones and follow a regimen using those parameters. Go to VeloWeb links and click on the "Training" tab. I'm also working on a new complete page on health and fitness.

If you are really serious, get Joe Friel's Cyclist's Training Bible.

 

[garrilla]

The knee problem is maybe due to seat hieght on your new roadie. Is a set up OK?

I'm also thinking that maybe your tiring on the spinner is a bio-mechanical adjustment - so from sitting in the race position to sitting-up on a spinning machine may take some adjusting...

just a thought or two

 

[Randochap]

The knee problem is maybe due to seat hieght on your new roadie. Is a set up OK?

Ah, yes, good point. That crossed my mind as well, but got waylaid on the training stuff.

Also check out the bike fit page on VeloWeb.

 

[sem]

Hi Welcome to CC

Is that with "London Dynamo" Club by any chance? I was reading through their site and the PDF file that describes how they organise their club rides round the park. Seemed very well written to me and they mention segregating into 2 or 3 groups, based on speed and ability etc.

Of course, if it's not that club you may wish to disregard my previous paragraph

I am sure you will soon get faster and more used to it the more you go. Afterall you've only just completed your first club ride right? Best of luck with it and keep us updated!

Cheers,
SD

p.s. Any idea how long it took you guys to do 1 lap of the park?

Hi

I have just signed up to Phoenix....got there at 7, set off about 15 mins past...when I finished and checked my phone it was 8.30 so I figure we did 3 laps in about 1hr and 15 mins...I think the others did it in about an hour, although my chain did come off on lap 2 and i certainly slowed the lovely lady who stuck with me down!

I have no idea if this is a good speed or not.....

it takes me about 15 mins to cycle to work (4.1 miles approx) in traffic with stops etc. again, no idea what to go on, if this is reasonable, average, etc etc....

thanks for all your advice by the way.
I just found this website, i dont know if this is a reasonable timetable suggested?

http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/cycling-training/a804301dec7dc4e4d8b5ab7fd83a210d

 

[TVC]

Hi Sem,

First thing to say is that cycling is not a race, unless you want it to be.

Secondly, the only person you're riding against is yourself. There are people here who bomb round flat Cambridgeshire at 25+ and there are those who ride up the steepest hills in the lake district. You can only compete with the road in front of you, and if you must measure yourself against others then enter a sportive and be prepared to be disappionted. The one truth that I can pass on is that if you are going to let cycling take over then it will get expensive!!!

Welcome and Enjoy!

 

[Globalti]

Hi, if you are relatively new to cycling you need to learn about the importance of bike fit. Have a look on You Tube, there are some useful videos on there on bike fit and setup. The best advice I saw was to start by getting your saddle height and posture right before thinking about arms and upper body. If your knees are hurting it's possible your saddle is too low, a common mistake with inexperienced cyclists who fear not being able to touch the ground. Saddle posture is extremely important too, most people find slighty up at the nose to be best because this way the saddle cradles you between the sit bones and the softer perineum. Too low at the nose will throw your weight onto the bars and too high will hurt and will make you feel distant from the bars. Don't be afraid to experiment, take an Allen key out to the park and ride around with the saddle at different heights and postures.

 

[sem]

thanks for all the advice

Yes I suppose I just want to push myself a little bit as cycling has sort of clicked with me and its the only sport I have really found myself getting a real buzz out of, so it would be good to move from being a commuter to actually challenging myself and improving as I go along

Cheers for all the tips, I'll check out those links asap!

 

[Angelfishsolo]

+1 My first thought was "Is the seat too low?"

The knee problem is maybe due to seat height on your new roadie. Is a set up OK?

 

[Sittingduck]

Sounds like you're having fun and that's the main thing Sem
I think it's probably good to push yourself a bit. I have found over recent months that I am not satisfied with slow commute times and am always looking to break my PB's!

For leisure riding, the Richmond park loop is a nice place to ride and I have been going out there a lot since taking up cycling. Keep up the good work

SD