deadprez012

Totally broke (so far as discretionary cash goes), so there's no money left for gadgets--I got the bike, I have the motivation, and...well, I don't really have the time, but I'll do what I can.

How can I train without all the fancy equipment? As mentioned in my other training help thread, I want to improve my TT (for triathlon) and improve my crit skills. I have a watch and plenty of discipline, but when I read the training recipe book, I don't really see what I could emulate without a power meter or trainer or whatever.

Help? When I come back from visiting family (hell, while I visit family) I'll have more time with which to work and would like to maximize my results given the constraints.

kensuf

How many threads on training do you plan to start today before people think you're trolling?

deadprez012

Two seems good unless I think up yet another question that I haven't been able to answer on my own.

johnybutts

lolwut?

deadprez012

Never mind. My apologies if multiple threads on similar topics is or nearly is trolling. But I would appreciate ideas on the questions.

Dean V

Read some old cycling books. They didn't have gadgets then and still went fast.

mike868y

Sorry, but you just can't do it. There is no way to train without at least an hrm and even then you're training is practically a waste compared to training with power. Sorry, you're screwed.

kensuf

I know guys who would disagree with you. One of them won 6 or 7 races last year.

wanders

A guy I ride with uses a 15 mile loop and a wrist watch.

And hill repeats thrown in. Multiple hill repeats.

ridethecliche

I think the kid was kidding. You know. Cause he's a kidder kid.

dnuzzomueller

If you have access to a gym you may be able to get an approximate idea on your HR zones by using cardio equipment there. I know that personally after alot of time doing different types of exercises I have developed a sense for my rough HR zone and how I feel at each of them.

Otherwise yea just a watch would let you do it aswell if you want to estimate HR. count your heart beats for 15 seconds, multiply by 4 and there you go. I have always found it is also pretty easy to distinguish between your aerobic and anaerobic zones. might work as a guide for you.

If you search though for cheap HRMs you will definately come up with models that don't cost that much.

Here is an example

You can also look on amazon for some or even ebay they will only go for 30-40 for some of the decent more bare bones ones. Just decide to live on noodles and bread for 2 weeks and you can save up for it

tallmantim

You have two opposing goals here - one requires steady state and the other requires bursts of energy.

Overall though, powermeters and HRMs are just tools. People got fit and fast before these were invented - they just allow you to focus better and have a reliable track record of your progress.

Generally, you want to build base fitness first (ie, "ride lots"). If you have good fitness you can then do intervals. Intervals are just high level efforts for a set period of time, so if you have a hill nearby that is 3-5 minutes long with you being very winded at the top, that would be a good "VO2Max" repeat - ie, go up it as fast as you can and repeat as many times as you can - and time it.

Each repeat should take the same time. If you can do more than 6 of them, you were taking it too easy, if you can't manage more than 3, you were taking it too hard - if you can manage 4-6 that's just right.

Shorter hills can be used for sprint training - 30 sec or 1 minute efforts - climb as fast as you can, coast slowly down and repeat.

These sorts of drills done 1-3 time a week will help raise your "functional threshold power", and you can keep track of it by logging how quickly you do each repeat (taking it out harder if you start to find them easier).

HTH

deadprez012

I like this, thank you. The idea is simple enough and that's not so much time on the bike that I lose time in other places.

A question: is 6 weeks the magic improvement window, as in many other things? Meaning, if these drills are done, say, twice per week for six weeks, is that when I would expect measurable improvement? Or is this a faster/slower process?

And another question: how do the long hill intervals compare to 2x10 or similar intervals? This in terms of what I develop by doing them.

Racer Ex 

Aussies aren't familiar with Lubbock's topography.

hammy56

believe it or not there was a time when cyclists trained without any sort of computers or gadgets of any kind. Some of them did quite well, winning grand tours and such...

WCroadie

You can't, it's impossible. You need fancy equipment to dial it up to 400w

Racer Ex 

The same can be said about racing with no freewheels or derailleurs while smoking unfiltered cigarettes. That guy on PBS can still make damn nice furniture using all manual tools, it just takes him 10x as long and he usually ends up bleeding at some point.

If you wanted to get an HRM you could pick one up for $20-30 off Ebay. Otherwise go out and do simulated efforts of the things you want to improve hard enough that you hate doing them. If you're tired take a day off. Go by the dollar store and pick up a notebook and a pencil and keep a log so you can look back and see if something works or doesn't.

graphs

Familiarize yourself with the percieved exertion scale. Many workouts can be found that utilize this method (often in addition to heart rate).

deadprez012

Terribly true. But out at Buffalo and Ransom Canyons and a small handful of other good-warmup-ride distance away places, there are a few solid hills.

Good feedback folks, and I appreciate the general notes, but like the one I quoted above, a specific workout would be awesome. I've got hill intervals, cool; maybe one thing to do on the flats that I can handle with a watch and keen sense of pain?

fordfasterr

Do you at least have a bike computer?

deadprez012

Yes. Speed, time, distance. Good enough?

ridethecliche

You should buy the cyclists training bible. You need to read for yourself and ask questions instead of coming here and asking people to share information which has been discussed a lot.

Seriously, take your time to search. Read some of the workouts that people are doing. Try learning some of the jargon, etc etc etc. Then come back with a concrete question to ask.

You're asking everyone here to hold your hand and spell out what they want you to do without demonstrating that you've made any effort to even try to learn/understand on your own. I don't really think that's fair for you to ask.

Personally, I'd like to have cadence for spin up drills.

waterrockets 

Roy Underhill. Badass. Anyway, yeah, +1 log, cheap HRM.

+1 here too.

I learned a lot about regulating my output before I had a PM by doing negative splits on hill repeats. I would go up the hill hard enough that after six repeats, I was completely blown, but each trip up was 2-5s faster than the previous trip. This took a lot of sensitivity to my RPE. You could do similar with 5' intervals on a flat course, so you either get a little further along the same course with each interval, or you finish the course a little sooner each time. Then, each week, you raise the effort level and try to tighten the group so the time or distance spread is smaller. When you first start out, you'll blow it and your 3rd or 4th interval will be slower, but you'll learn.

Then you can take this internal RPE meter out for all your training. Sensing the pedal pressure is very useful. When I got a power meter, I already had a good head start for pacing and RPE.

gsteinb

chicken bones and tarot cards.

deadprez012

Check. But what can I actually measure? Solely for training purposes I mean--it will be easy enough to see progress made when the season resumes.

Fair enough, that I haven't said anything about what I'm doing. However, I am doing some of the workouts that have been recommended and trying to schedule in others. The first round of hills was yesterday.

I managed 3 repeats on a roughly 3:15 time (3:10, 3:17, 3:15). I thought I was doing well, then realized that today my commute was incredibly painful. Tomorrow, I'll be on for 2x10s as hard as I can manage because I'll have a clear road near home. And I'll report progress and ask better questions as I figure this out.