dsmyth12

I am relatively new to cycling (have been riding for about a month). I wanted to get into training right away so I got into contact with a few coaches and found one I'd like to work with. He's a pretty high level coach (world tour and olympic experience) who runs his own business. His advice was to discover cycling for a few months before I came back to him e.g. go on long rides, short rides, practice descending, bunch rides, bike handling, riding by 'feel', find out what it's like to bonk etc.

So how do I actually go about that? I obviously want to also do riding that is going to benefit me and allow me to be ready to get stuck into training when the time comes. I guess I'm not really sure how to structure the riding. Any ideas? Much appreciated!

rubiksoval

Do as he says. It's completely pointless to have a coach when you've only been riding for a month. I'd even say you don't need a coach for the first year or two, but I got my first coach after about 8 months of riding, so...

Anything you do right now is going to help you improve. Since you want a coach and want to train, I assume you want to race.

First thing I'd do is find a good group to ride with. That is the single most important thing you can do from the beginning along with simply going out and riding. Learning the ins and outs of riding closely with other people can not be understated, and it takes a long time to get used to.

Secondly, I'd work on consistency; getting out and riding 4-5 times a week in the beginning, and maybe 5-6 days later on. Try different routes, different terrain, different efforts on different terrain, etc. With little to no fitness, things are going to be different than they are when you have a few months of fitness, and even later on when you have years of fitness.

Last thing I'd work on is getting a power meter and learning how to keep constant pressure on the pedals when you're training. Maximizing your work for the time you have in training is a pretty big thing, and a power meter can help you understand that really quickly. It'll also be useful for doing group rides and races and working out how to do exactly the opposite of what you do in solo training: spending the least amount of time pedaling and saving as much energy as possible until crucial moments.

Structure doesn't really matter at this point. As you increase the amount of time you ride, you're going to get tired. That will dictate how hard you can go to a pretty good extent. As you start figuring that out, you can curtail efforts a bit to ensure you're able to ride again the next day (consistency). Some days without efforts and just a steady pace are good, some days with a steady pace and a few efforts thrown in are also good (Strava KOMs are fun for this). Group rides are massively important once a week or so.

WhyFi

It's like riding a bike - stop over-complicating it. Ride.

chaadster

Ask at your bike shop after local clubs, and start there with joining one and doing club rides.

Clubs can have a variety of purposes, e.g. touring or racing, so be aware of that. It sounds like a racing club is up your alley.

Through a club you’ll find out about events and races, and probably find a cohort to do them with and to mentor your development.

You’ll probably want to join USA Cycling, our biggest race sanctioning and rider licensing body: https://usacycling.org/?mkt_tok=eyJp...NYZjNUUDBZMiJ9

USAC can also guide you to local clubs.

Have fun, and participate here often!

Rides4Beer

You don't need structure, you just need to ride, so get on your bike and start racking up the miles.

Het Volk

Honestly - at your base of cycling fitness, just ride. Structured training, while sure, you would benefit, you can just use general riding at this point to increase your fitness as well. Your body is so under-trained, that it will respond immensely without the need for a more rigorous and targeted training regimen.

I recommend finding a club that does some challenging group rides (an example would be the Rocky Mountain Cycling Club or Team Evergreen here in Denver which does challenging rides and if you get dropped, they do not slow down). But - these clubs will allow you to get miles under your belt, learn to ride in a paceline/group, and give you some routes to repeat. Try to avoid cafe clubs, which have their place, but you will get frustrated as they tend to be more leisurely and social oriented than focused on riding.

Your cycling fitness level is such that just riding in general will get you fitter. Also - just google "Fartlek" intervals if you want to build in some efforts that are somewhat geared towards the intention of increasing your bike fitness.

Burnout
Also - getting into structured training is why a lot of people can burn out from cycling. It takes all that you enjoy and turns it into a workout on a bike as opposed to a bike ride that just happens to be a workout. One day, you realize that you spend more time looking at your Garmin than the scenery around you or the joy of just cruising around a country road, or the fun of riding hard up a climb without regard for whether you are going too hard that day.

Coaches
I personally am a little dubious of coaches for most of cyclists, and a lot take money from amateur athletes and provide little benefits to athletes who, to be frank, just do not have the genetics to be truly competitive in cycling. At some point, you have to assess your lot in life physically. Now, if you have some talent, and the issue is inability to use data and self-discipline to properly train with certain races/goals in mind in order to build up for that event, a coach is absolutely valuable (because often, athletes dedicated to their discipline, lack the ability to dial it down when necessary and a coach can act as a governor).

Equipment
Another thing to keep in mind. While many coaches will allow you to pay them money to train on heart rate alone, it is a bit like hiring a tax advisor but only giving them half your tax documents. Heart rate is highly erratic day to day, and training on HR alone is erratic as well. So if you want to really get the benefits of a coach, consider that you would want to also put down money for a power meter and a decent bike computer. And while not necessary, a trainer for indoor riding, because once you hire a coach, you need to stick to a plan, rain or shine or snow or whatever. Can't skip an important HIIT training session because of rain.

Also - you will need to pay for some form of training software like Training Peaks so the coach can evaluate your "fitness" and "fatigue" (unless they somehow pay for that as part of the package).

See how much more complicated, costly and burdensome cycling can become once you decide you want to "train".

When I was racing, the most talented guy on our team had no coach, or advanced equipment. His secret. He did not own a car, and he rode everywhere he went. And I mean everywhere. He once rode up Golden Gate Canyon Road from downtown Denver to pick up something he bought on Craigslist.

Iride01 

I assume you are wanting to compete at a high amateur level or maybe hope to go professional. If so, pick a coach you feel you can work with and then do everything they tell you with out you making excuses.

If you are just wanting to do well and look good when riding in a group. Then time and miles in great quantity will go a long way if you give it a few years. (you'll probably do that anyway with a coach)

oldwinger14

I used to teach people how to drive their sports cars on race tracks and road courses. Like them, my advice to you is to first get as much seat time in various environments and conditions as you can. Once you get a good grasp on your own and your bike’s abilities, then you can make a much more informed decision on what is needed for you to improve....whether it be improving your current bike with better components, esp. wheels and tires, getting a better bike or spending money on professional coaching. For the latter, not every coach will be good for you. You need to find one that understands you, your goals and is able to communicate with you effectively. Good luck!

Carbonfiberboy 

What rubiksoval said. One thing I did starting out which worked out well: I rode away from home until I was tired, then rode back. Endurance starts when you start to endure. It's good to learn what you can do. Maybe once a week. I usually limit my training rides to 4 hours. Do some easy some hard. It's just as important to go easy on some rides as it is to go hard. 10 hours/week is enough to be a very good recreational cyclist. It takes up to 7 years to fully develop aerobic capacity and endurance. Don't get discouraged.

Structure: Increase your training time by 5%/week. Try 2 easy rides, then one hard ride. Repeat, then take a day off. Learn to spin. Get used to a 95 cadence on the flat. Climb at 80+. Most beginning riders ride neither easy enough nor hard enough.

Externals: The bike is the least important thing, clothing probably next, learning how and what and how much to eat and drink on the bike in varied weather is the most important. If you're running tubes, practice changing tubes and repumping at home until you can do it in less that 5'.

caloso

You asked how to structure your rides. I agree with the coach: don’t. Just go ride.

Sy Reene

It's an interesting take that folks have on someone interested in getting a cycling coach, and how this desire for structure must be tied somehow to wanting to compete or go pro. In other endeavors, such as yoga, boxing, pilates, karate, guitar lessons, or even buying a Peloton -- having a 'coach' (aka instructor) doesn't have the same connotation.

znomit

Can't you learn everything you need to know from the 41?

For starters, you're obviously too fat and your tyres are overinflated.

rubiksoval

Except for the peloton (which isn't a coach so much as a one-off fitness instructor you'd get at any type of exercise class), all of those require skills that a coach can help your learn and practice.

Cycling (except in riding in a group and fundamental things like cornering and bunny hopping) really doesn't require very much skill. Go out, push on the pedals, and that's about it. It's a pretty simple activity.

A cycling coach can provide training information and plans, and most people that want to go through the very difficult process of training do so for specific performance purposes.

Iride01 

Well the OP hasn't come back to clarify why and what they are wanting out of a coach, nor given any previous experience with riding a bike or any other activities. So who really knows what to tell them.

But even a coach is very likely going to tell them to just go ride far and often along with some ride for a specific purpose. I'd also be fairly certain a coach will want them to get a gps with HR and power meter and access to that data. So then can monitor what is shown by data and not just perception.

dsmyth12

Cheers for the replies! It's always good to see what other people think. I didn't have any previous riding experience before but I am really enjoying it so far. I guess I'll see how I go over the next few months and then go from there. And in terms of getting a coach, it would be for the purpose of seeing how far I can push myself in competition.

Carbonfiberboy 

Sounds good. When you get into group rides, that'll give you a good idea of the possibility of doing well in competition.

63rickert

It seems you are enjoying the ride. As long as it remains fun you are doing everything right, and very right.

If you can ride a lot, and ride a lot while pushing hard, even occasionally pushing hard, and nothing hurts, you are doing exceptionally well. Riding a bike should be pain free. You want to keep it pain free. Should be pain free even when you get faster. So far you are batting 1.000.

Cycling is a technical sport. Requires a fairly complicated piece of technical apparatus called a bicycle. Best way to learn the parts of a bike is to ride, to read, and to talk with your riding buddies. Don’t make a coach teach you mechanics.

Saying “Go ride your bike” is great coaching. Many of the best coaches use that one, and use it a lot.

rubiksoval

Wait, pain free like from joints and the like?

Because cycling is anything but pain-free. And the faster you go, the more heinous and awful the pain is.

63rickert

Pain is your body identifying a problem. Fastest I’ve ever done on a bike on the flat, no known wind or draft assist, would be about 40mph. Did not hurt at all. In fact am pretty sure I was feeling pretty darn good and that’s why the speed was reached. Maybe if I were doing it right that heinous and awful pain might have been found.

WhyFi

He's obviously trying to differentiate between the pain of effort, which is expected and even embraced in road culture, and the pain of stuff like poor biomechanics. If you hit 40 and felt fantastic, in the moment, then you could have gone faster. Feeling pretty darn good after the fact is a completely different story.

rubiksoval

Are you being intentionally obtuse or just trolling?

There is no sport or activity in the world that doesn't result in physical pain when you begin pushing the boundaries of what you are used to or what the body is capable of.

If that wasn't the case, you'd kill yourself from overexertion.

Get real.

Carbonfiberboy 

Yeah, now when I'm getting close to the end of a 2 hour ride on my rollers and my legs are telling me I really need to quit NOW, I imagine that I'm 10 years younger and up on the plateau on the peninsula, 250k into it, 9000' of climbing behind me, and all I have to do is hold the pace and I'll catch the ferry back to my car with its cushions and wings. There's a concept that one can bank the pain against later withdrawals. I try to look at it that way. As it is said, it's all between your ears.

Back when I was learning to fly, I read Flying magazine. There was always an article, "I learned about flying from that." That's how it is sometimes with cycling, and one of the reasons I love it so much.

63rickert

This thread was started by a raw novice with a positive attitude and a wonderful outlook.

Then went to heinous pain and pure rubbish.

rubiksoval

Only when you interjected with more bollocks. You seem to be doing that in multiple threads these days; 100 km time trial warm ups, riding 40 mph on the flat completely unencumbered by metabolic waste, etc.

You straight make stuff up.

MoAlpha

My best performances in a mediocre 40-year competitive cycling and running career were all agonizing.