Training advice

[nickg]

I've got my first event coming up in may, 60miles at my own pace although would like to do it reasonably well. I've got a road bike. I know its basically get out there and put the miles in, but does anybody have advice on what sort of training I should do? Or are there any plans to follow?

 

[Kiwiavenger]

When training I work in the hills that way if it is flatter that your training routes then it'll be a breeze! Other than that get out and ride and try and do the distance before the event.

 

[Kies]

Build up your mileage in 10 mile increments. Keep drinking water/fluids and do a few hills on your training routes.
Try and ride 2 - 3 times a week (even a small ride of an evening helps)

 

[Sittingduck]

RE: Training Plans
If you are a BC member, there are specific plans that seem quite well presented and cover various levels of ability etc. They are in the Insight Zone, I think they call it? A new feature of the main BC site and I have had a look through it a couple of times. It strikes me as being quite impressive.

 

[nickg]

Well went out and done 10.52 miles in 41.34mins today. Pretty flat this time. I have to do some hills because everywhere I want to go from my house there's a hill of some kind. Is it worth taking a protein shake after my ride?

 

[Rob3rt]

Well went out and done 10.52 miles in 41.34mins today. Pretty flat this time. I have to do some hills because everywhere I want to go from my house there's a hill of some kind. Is it worth taking a protein shake after my ride?

No, just eat some food!

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

Well went out and done 10.52 miles in 41.34mins today. Pretty flat this time. I have to do some hills because everywhere I want to go from my house there's a hill of some kind. Is it worth taking a protein shake after my ride?

Glass of milk within 20 minutes of your ride. A normal meal within 90 minutes.
Will help with recovery for the next days ride, or the day after. Nothing worse than riding whilst still sore. Recovery is important. The milk is quickly absorbed and will start repairing muscle tissues. The meal within 90 minutes (preferably 60 mins tbh) wants to be a mix of protein and carbs. You can even throw some green in there too.

 

[montage]

Well went out and done 10.52 miles in 41.34mins today. Pretty flat this time. I have to do some hills because everywhere I want to go from my house there's a hill of some kind. Is it worth taking a protein shake after my ride?

How hard were you pushing?
41 minutes from door to door?
How much time to train do you have?

Quality miles is the aim of the game.

Download strava.
Join a cycling Club.

Rough idea of a plan:

day 1: 90 minutes, tempo/hard
day 2: 90 minutes, tempo/hard
day 3: 4 hours - whatever pace. Weekend club ride is perfect.

Do these days in any order, on whatever days you want. Doing them monday/tuesday/wednesday is absolutely fine - not optimum, but fine.
Ride other days if you can/want, but make sure you get these sessions done.

Quality miles!

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

This above ^^^^

Can't remember the last ride i did that wasn't planned out with goals/targets in place. Same for the recovery - plan ahead. Getting home to find there is nothing in the fridge is not going to help.

 

[User16625]

How hard is hard? Generally I will cycles as fast as I can physically maintain which is about 20mph or so on a flat. Any faster than this and I will have to slow down again because of my useless lungs. Does this count as hard?
If I get a tail wind or on a downhill I will cycle as fast as I physically can for as long as I can. This is definitely hard as im at maximum effort and my lungs are blowing up. Speeds can be anywhere from 30-45mph, for just a few seconds to a minute or so depending on how I feel or how long im in a slipstream etc. Do you have to feel bonked out at the end of a ride for the miles to count as "quality"?

 

[montage]

How hard is hard? Generally I will cycles as fast as I can physically maintain which is about 20mph or so on a flat. Any faster than this and I will have to slow down again because of my useless lungs. Does this count as hard?
If I get a tail wind or on a downhill I will cycle as fast as I physically can for as long as I can. This is definitely hard as im at maximum effort and my lungs are blowing up. Speeds can be anywhere from 30-45mph, for just a few seconds to a minute or so depending on how I feel or how long im in a slipstream etc. Do you have to feel bonked out at the end of a ride for the miles to count as "quality"?

Definitely not - in fact, I'd say it is counter productive. If I crack in a ride, usually because of a failed nutrition strategy, it takes a lot longer to recover and therefore subsequent days training are ruined. A banana every 20 miles is my rule of thumb. You don't need to go flat out either, depending on aims(the shorter the time you have available, the harder you should ride). Feel free to slow down in your rides to recover from the harder efforts as well. Following the layout I set out above, if you ride the 90 minute sessions at a tempo pace, that would be fine (tempo meaning laboured breath - and judging from your speed of 20mph, 17-18mph). Once you've been putting in good miles for a month or two, google HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) or SST (Sweet Spot Training) - or come back and ask on here. Sounds like you are pretty nippy though, so keep doing what you are doing, so long as you aren't wrecking yourself 7 times a week.

I'd also like to point out, I am no expert, just a keen racer who has tried and tested a few different systems of training. My main advice to anyone looking to make gains is not to concentrate too much on the science of training - you can get lost in it and end up using prescribed training methods to slack off. Just ride you bike and get quality miles in.

Quality miles:
- a hilly ride is quality miles
- structured efforts, e.g. timed routes, sprints, recovery rides when adequate....quality miles

- adding a 2.5 miles commute to your mileage total....not quality miles
- riding along a canal path whilst walking the dog - not quality miles
- riding your town bike to post a letter - not quality miles

 

[Rob3rt]

You currently average ~15mph for 10 miles (please clarify, is this moving or overall average, was it in heavy traffic?).

Provided you are not getting on a bit and have no medical conditions that force you into being an all day plodding machine (i.e. the sort of person who can ride 400km but will do it at a slowish pace) what this tells me is that you simply do not ride enough. I agree fully with Monty re. quality miles and quality over quantity, however for some people (beginners, not so fit people etc), pretty much any mileage is quality mileage, I would suspect you fall into this bracket. Ride more and reap the benefits.