Winter training

[David Martin]

 The season is over. Time to plan for the next one. My aims are to get my weight down, and my competitive distance up. I'd like to do a 25 next year and a LEJOG.

So far I have two things lined up - other commitments notwithstanding.

1. the tuesday night ride - chaingang for about 20 miles. Harder if I take turns on the front, easier if I just sit in.
Add a hill at the end that I get dropped on every time.
2. The Thursday night ride - long hill climb, circuit of about 21 miles with a sprint at the end.
3. Periodic ride/run to work. Ride will be about 15 hilly miles.

These are the regular rides that get me out and riding.
I need to do some stuff at weekends, longer rides of 2-3 hours, but what else should I be doing? Base speed is poor, leg speed is poor, time is difficult when you are not a selfish git and want to spend some time with the family.

..d

[GruB]

Have you considered your pedaling style during these different ride types?

During my Long Slow Distance training I have built up a really strong base strength.  I am now playing about with upping cadence at times, pushing bigger gears at times, sprinting up hills and also some speedplay / fartlek type riding.

Mixing it up keeps not only my mind in gear but also makes it less boring for us selfish gits.

[vorsprung]

In the winter you don't need to train up your speed.  Train your speed to peak when you need it.  I'm sure you will get lots of advice on how to do time trials.  They are the British disease.

If you want to increase your cadence then maybe a bit of turbo work could help or sessions on your "long hill climb" to spin a tiny gear

You might like to come up with a weight loss plan for after xmas.  I found no alcohol+less snacking+an hour a day of brisk riding or turboing worked for me

If you want to do a 25 mile time trial then step one is to be able to do that distance with ease.  Your 15 to 20 mile rides will not do this.

For a lejog it depends how fast you intend to do it.  The distance is roughly 800 miles.  So at 100 miles a day average + one rest day that would be 9 days or for 50 miles a day with 3 rest days that would be 19 days.  The main problem with distance riding isn't the lungs and legs, it's more often the contact points (backside, feet, hands).  So the "training" you need for this is to ride a few long rides to harden up the backside and to check that your bike fit is good.

[Bigdaveskinnytyre]

Race cross and hit the turbo for lots of interval sessions, you WILL be faster next year.

A 1 hour cross race is similar to a 25 in that you hurt yourself as much as possible for about an hour, it's no coincidence that most crossers can push out a pretty good TT.

Don't overdo the long easy miles 2 hours at 75% is far more beneficial than 4 hours at 55 - 60% the only real benefit of which is getting your backside used to time in the saddle.

I rarely ride for more than 3 hours at a time (mostly about 2 hours) but when I went touring a couple of years ago I easily adapted to 120Km days.

[David Martin]

Race cross and hit the turbo for lots of interval sessions, you WILL be faster next year.

I have one cross race lined up - I have never ridden cross before but it looks fun.

Don't overdo the long easy miles 2 hours at 75% is far more beneficial than 4 hours at 55 - 60% the only real benefit of which is getting your backside used to time in the saddle.

I rarely ride for more than 3 hours at a time (mostly about 2 hours) but when I went touring a couple of years ago I easily adapted to 120Km days.

I'll have to work out what the thresholds are. At present I can do a just better than evens 10 (mid 28) but I rarely feel that I am capable of a sustained power outlay - more like a series of shorter TT's linked with recovery.

I'm hoping the weekend rides (2-3 hours) will boost the distance with the occasional longer ride of 4-6 hours.

As for weight loss, I rarely drink and am being more observant about what I eat.
I'll have to dig the rollers out again and get them working.

..d

[nmcgann]

One of the key things for TT training is 2x20 threshold intervals. A good dose of these on top of the road work will certainly help get your sustainable power up.

Don't make the mistake I made last winter - do the threshold work down in your TT riding position so it is as specific to your timetrialling as possible 

Neil

[nightrider]

This is my plan,
(1) ride some randonnees,these drag out the season & keep me interested
(2) improve group riding skills,bike handling skills(i plan on doing some racing next year)
(3) lose some weight,about 10kg,in my case
(4) club runs
(5) start doing randonnees in march

[mike]

my plan is similar to yours, with some fast stuff (2 x 20s), gentler longer runs and fast club rides. 

Weight loss is what'll make the biggest difference for me though, I think. 

[David Martin]

my plan is similar to yours, with some fast stuff (2 x 20s), gentler longer runs and fast club rides. 

Weight loss is what'll make the biggest difference for me though, I think. 

Is that 2 x 20 seconds or 2x 20 minutes?

My major aim is weight loss (and being able to output sustained effort for 1 hour).

..d

[mike]

2 x 20 minutes at about 90-95% of 10 mile TT effort.

[Chris S]

2 x 20 minutes at about 90-95% of 10 mile TT effort.

Those 2x20's look hard. Probably best before breakfast/dinner rather than just after...

[mike]

with a 10 minute gap between the two efforts, they're not too bad.  To make it harder, drop the gap to 5 minutes.  That's lovely. 

[Palinurus]

The cross thing sounds interesting, there's a league starting in my area this season.

I'll need another bike tho', and I'll need to find a place to put it.

[Chris S]

with a 10 minute gap between the two efforts, they're not too bad.  To make it harder, drop the gap to 5 minutes.  That's lovely. 

Right. Bored as I was with prevaricating about painting the house, I decided to try one of these 2x20's.

Ten minute spin to the start, cunningly positioned so that a 20 minute balls-out ride at 170bpm would land me nicely in Swaffham for a 10 minute spin around town before the return.

Wow! Talk about jelly legs  . Fun though - the endorphins are flowing now. Oh yes  .

[mike]

 

What's your max HR?  I do the 2 x 20s at about 180bpm, my max on a time trial is about 195.

[Chris S]

 

What's your max HR?  I do the 2 x 20s at about 180bpm, my max on a time trial is about 195.

The highest I can push out on the bike is about 185bpm - probably not bad for a fat, ex-smoking nearly-50-year-old like me; and 170 is about the highest I can manage for spells longer that a few minutes.

I was clearly near my lactate threshold as my legs were burning nicely at the end of each push.

[David Martin]

 

What's your max HR?  I do the 2 x 20s at about 180bpm, my max on a time trial is about 195.

The highest I can push out on the bike is about 185bpm - probably not bad for a fat, ex-smoking nearly-50-year-old like me; and 170 is about the highest I can manage for spells longer that a few minutes.

I was clearly near my lactate threshold as my legs were burning nicely at the end of each push.

I can't do 20 mins. I do a 10 as a series of 5ish min efforts where I judge teh downhills as recovery. And the last bit as flat out till I die...

..d

[mike]

I can't do 20 mins. I do a 10 as a series of 5ish min efforts where I judge teh downhills as recovery. And the last bit as flat out till I die...

..d

slow down a bit? I've been told that you should finish the second one with a bit left in the tank so you didnt completely knacker yourself for the rest of the weeks training.

[David Martin]

I can't do 20 mins. I do a 10 as a series of 5ish min efforts where I judge teh downhills as recovery. And the last bit as flat out till I die...

..d

slow down a bit? I've been told that you should finish the second one with a bit left in the tank so you didnt completely knacker yourself for the rest of the weeks training.

This year it was my weeks training.. (the midweek tt that is.)

Slowing down a bit gives me a slower time overall. Lack of fitness is the main reason though.. I'm looking forward to the chain ganing starting next week.

..d

[gonzo]

If you're willing to make training less fun, you can make bigger improvements; specific stuff will make you faster than general riding. eg if you spend a month doing sprint training then the next month doing lactate threshold stuff you will get faster than doing two months of rides with some fast stuff in.

Have you considered getting a coach? Combine one with dedication on your part and you will be the best athlete that you could possibly be. Every forum thread about cost priorities for cycling put coaching at the top and they are by no means just for the elite. Some of them do a large part of their trade just by getting people to loose weight and with no competitive goals at all. They aren't too expensive either; I've signed up to one recently for £40 a month.

[David Martin]

If you're willing to make training less fun, you can make bigger improvements; specific stuff will make you faster than general riding. eg if you spend a month doing sprint training then the next month doing lactate threshold stuff you will get faster than doing two months of rides with some fast stuff in.

Have you considered getting a coach? Combine one with dedication on your part and you will be the best athlete that you could possibly be. Every forum thread about cost priorities for cycling put coaching at the top and they are by no means just for the elite. Some of them do a large part of their trade just by getting people to loose weight and with no competitive goals at all. They aren't too expensive either; I've signed up to one recently for £40 a month.

I couldn't fit a coach down some of the roads I ride on..

But seriously, I do think that having a specific objective for each ride is key, especially when time is limiting.
I can split my morning ride up into the various hills and try different strategies (eyeballs out sprint, fast spin, steady pace etc)  and see how that goes. Weight loss has to be the key priority though - with that everything else will improve.

Off to get the rollers out now and see if I am still as crap on them as ever I was. Where is my radio to give me something to listen to?

..d

[Chris S]

I think having a coach is a brilliant idea if you want to shave seconds off a TT time, or target a Sportive season.

For your average middle-aged Joe with a history of inappropriate life-style choices (like me), you don't need a coach. What you need is discipline.

Eg: I need to lose 10Kg of lard. I know exactly what I need to do to achieve this. I need to:

1. Stop daily boozing,
2. Stop eating calorie dense crap
3. Run a daily calorie deficit
4. Cross training
5. Core stability weight training
6. Interval training

I don't need to spend any money to tell me how to do this. But it doesn't make it any easier to achieve. Being middle-aged, I'm quite set in my ways. Lifestyle changes at 48 are hard. Ask anyone trying to stop smoking at this stage (at least I've managed that!)

[gonzo]

If weight loss is a priority, then commute as much as possible, but ride at a sedate pace (ie. sub-75% of your max). In fact, ride as much as possible generally, but do so below 75% and you should start shedding weight in no time!

[gonzo]

I don't need to spend any money to tell me how to do this. But it doesn't make it any easier to achieve. Being middle-aged, I'm quite set in my ways. Lifestyle changes at 48 are hard. Ask anyone trying to stop smoking at this stage (at least I've managed that!)

Personally, I find find the thought of having to explain in a guilty fashion to my coach that I did something wrong puts me off doing it!

[Chris S]

If weight loss is a priority, then commute as much as possible, but ride at a sedate pace (ie. sub-75% of your max). In fact, ride as much as possible generally, but do so below 75% and you should start shedding weight in no time!

Yes. Sadly, I work at home and have to contrive my commutes. But I try to average at least an hour a day on the bike to compensate.