Raerfani

What's base?

LowCel 

Lot's of riding with no real intervals or maximum exertion. It's kind of like building a house. You have to have a good foundation before you can start building the rest of the house.

'nother

The time between a post asking "how do I get better" and the time someone else posts "Intervals."

Eatadonut

Here's something I never heard getting into this sport: comfort. Took me probably 750 miles for my

1) ass to stop hurting
2) flexibility to be good enough for me to sit properly
3) handling skills to become adequate so I didn't slow down to 10 for every turn
4) wallet to recover from schwagging out.

noisebeam

Before I joined a bike club and started to do longer (50-80mi) rides I was faster from my daily 8.5mi each way commute, which I basically sprinted between lights (i.e. intervals)

Of course with the longer rides in, I can go faster when needed in the 2nd half of a 50mi ride than I could before which is needed to not get dropped during sprints.

Al

group105

40~ in the group.

Including but not limited to 2-3 high level thriathletes who compete several times a year.

3 women who do long distance. Last week they were doing the 300 mile ride in Ohio...

Several other people who are serious riders

group105

1) My first 54 mile ride was done with running shorts and flat platforms. I did it in 14.8mph avg. My butt did not hurt and the next day I rode 24 miles. There was one seasoned rider who was crying that his ass was hurting after 30 miles.

I've since gotten some cycling shorts...the foam takes some adjusting.

PDay

"I was born knowing how to run slow, I want to learn to run fast."

- Paraphrased quote from Emil Zatopek, works for cycling too.

DannoXYZ 

Note that LSD does not mean long slow distance. It's actually long steady distance where you are riding at about 60-70% MHR continously. The idea is to do a large amount of aerobic work in a certain amount of time. Holding 70% without interruption for 2-3 hours will build up capillaries in the muscles and tax the aerobic system. The steadiness and constant ride at this pace yields the most benefits. Better than starting, coasting, stopping and going from 40% to 80% and back up & down all the time. A HRM or power-meter is really helpful in keeping a steady effort. Basically you're recording the amount of time at 60-70%. If you've only got 2 hours to ride, then do it at 70% non-stop. If you've got 3-hours, you can do it at 60% for roughly the same benefits. If you can do 3 hours at 70%, even better.

Also endurance is partly being able to handle the aches & pains of sitting in the saddle for hours on end. You also learn proper nutrition amounts and timing.

Eatadonut

The seasoned rider is a pansy, or maybe his shorts needed a wash.

What type of saddle are you riding?

group105

The craprastic Fuji Ultralight Racing that came with my Roubaix. Fuji uses this on a lot of their bikes (Roubaix Pro, Team).

LowCel 

If a seasoned rider is complaining that his butt hurts after 30 miles he either isn't seasoned or he has saddle sores.

dekindy

I started riding again last summer. I averaged <16 mph over 30 miles and my breathing was labored. I was completely drained when done.

Now I am in the 17-18 range and can put my bike in the car and leave right away and don't feel exhausted. I have also lost 10 pounds.

I am in better shape, but not good shape. Wind and hills still slow me and my legs strength needs to improve considerably and I need to lose more weight.

I still usually end up riding by myself even though I attend a group training ride. When I can start comfortable keeping up with the group I will know I am in good shape. I could do it now but only with maximum effort which would not be safe for me or other riders. I would not be able to concentrate on my surroundings and that leads to crashes. Or I could get hit by some of the others that are having difficulty keeping up. Besides, it is better training to break my own wind resistance and I can more accurately measure my ability and imrpovement. Besides, in the summer I need the air for cooling more than I want the draft.

Denny Koll

No..actually the original term is Long, Slow Distance...Joe Henderson of Runner's World wrote a book by that title in 1969. The term has since been adopted by other sports.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Slow_Distance


LSD without interval training can only get you so far. At some point intervals are need to increase the fitness level.

grebletie

Right, but the steady part helps to emphasize the most important aspect of the concept. And slow is a relative term, and not a very accurate one. My LSD pace is ~ 20 mph on the flats.

Hocam

For how long?

chipcom 

A LSD pace should be measured by heart rate, not speed, correct?

group105

I figured out a few things:

1) I'm building my own training plan.

2) I'm taking a break from the group rides for a while.

3) The group ride almost always does 20 miles on the MUP no matter what route they are taking hich has gates at almost all intersections and you have to slow down to 8-10mph to go around them. These are roughly every 1-1.5 miles. This kills the AVG which I think would be a lot higher.

4) Let's go!!!

PDay

Or tempo training.

ericgu

Riding is about training all your energy systems.

Your aerobic system gets trained by riding at lower levels -the Long Steady Distance training (steady, not "slow"). This training pushes up the level at which you can ride without going anaerobic. If you've ever been out of breath and then been passed by better cyclists who were chatting, it's because they have a much better trained aerobic system than you. This sort of training is often referred to as "base miles".

You anaerobic system is trained by intervals done at a very high level. This both improves your peak power and improves your ability to recover after those high exertions. There is also "tempo" training, which is done at your lactate threshold, to improve your ability to deal with lactic acid, which allows you to work out harder and remain aerobic.

For somebody with a given amount of training, they can get faster by doing intervals, but that will not improve their aerobic system.

So, your overall speed is a function of both your aerobic and anaerobic training. If you are doing interval work and the level you have reached isn't where you want to be, it's possible that you can modify your interval training to make it work a bit better, but it's more likely that you need to back off and work on your aerobic side instead.

That's what people mean when they say that you need more saddle time.

Oh, the other function of base miles is to get your body ready to deal with the high-intensity work. If you try to do too much high-intensity work without the base work, you are much more prone to overuse injuries.

SDRider

Well, maybe those people should ask these questions in the race forum? Generally speaking, more time in the saddle is a good way to improve your overall fitness. Obviously, if you have specific areas you are weak in then you should be more specific in your question.

Maybe you should redirect your attack at those who ask the questions?

group105

I'm not attacking anyone. I'm just pointing out the obvious of what I've seen as far as advice being given.

This led me to the conclusion that I need to come up with a system, a plan for beginners.

grebletie

4 hours at most, usually 2.5-3 hours. I spent a lot of time over the winter working on the aerobic engine. Seems to have paid off.

DamianM

Oh well then, who are we to tell you ? By all means, educate us.

group105

Just stating the obvious "mate"...because I'm sure you will agree that riding 50 miles @ day @ 12mph avg will for 3 days per week will not increase your average...intensity vs taking it easy always wins...

There is a saying that someone with 15 years of experience in a field may just have stopped learning after 1 year so in essence he has a 1 year experience which he did 15 times over.