How to train for 50k in two weeks - Road biking
Discussion
PintOfKittens said:
Pothole said:
PintOfKittens said:
8 -> 50 in a few weeks? Good luck 
Ideally you want a 10% increase per week otherwise you will injure yourself
what utter rot. Ideally you want a 10% increase per week otherwise you will injure yourselfpablo said:
PintOfKittens said:
Pothole said:
PintOfKittens said:
8 -> 50 in a few weeks? Good luck Ideally you want a 10% increase per week otherwise you will injure yourself
what utter rot. Ideally you want a 10% increase per week otherwise you will injure yourself10% just can't be applied to cycling. What if the hill I ride up is 25% longer than one I have ridden up before. Will I injure myself?
For the 50k, just load up on carbs the night before and take it easy on the ride. 30 miles is within anyone's ability and is dead easy on a road bike.
If you are a gym member do some spin classes. 1 hour hard spin class (plenty of resistance) will be the equivalent of 2 hours riding as you never go down hills in a spin class. If the classes at you gym are dumbed down 'RPM' as mine are being changed to, you might as well go to the pub.
For the 50k, just load up on carbs the night before and take it easy on the ride. 30 miles is within anyone's ability and is dead easy on a road bike.
If you are a gym member do some spin classes. 1 hour hard spin class (plenty of resistance) will be the equivalent of 2 hours riding as you never go down hills in a spin class. If the classes at you gym are dumbed down 'RPM' as mine are being changed to, you might as well go to the pub.
Marcellus said:
cheeky_chops said:
in a similar vein, my mate asked me if i want to join him on a 100miler (160km!!!) in 20 days time. Seen as neither of us have cycled more than 20 miles i declined!! Madness, he wont be able to walk for a week!
100 miles is very different from 31miles so you probably did the right thing....If your mate had asked you to run a marathon in 20 days with no training, you'd be wise to put it off until you'd done some because of the pounding your body will take but cycling is a non-impact, relatively gentle form of exercise and providing you eat & drink enough and pace yourself well, riding 100 miles is no harder than riding 31 miles, it just takes longer.
You'd be surprised at what the human body is capable of if you believe in yourself rather than thinking "it's too hard". If you find the prospect of 100 miles too daunting, just think of it as 5 rides of 20 miles back to back, you could even take a short rest / food stop every 20 miles to break the journey up.
It's the things we don't do in life that we regret, not the things we do and I say you should go for it.
^ what he said.
I went from never having ridden more than 37 miles in one go to doing a 219km and a 233km ride in the last month or so, and am doing a 300km at the end of the month. Admittedly, I have a lot of base miles from commuting, and was careful about food and drink, my it really wasn't a big deal. Quite honestly, it's been a big surprise how easy I've found it. I am half expecting that I am going to blow up horribly durng the 300km, and I will realised I've fluked the last two.
I went from never having ridden more than 37 miles in one go to doing a 219km and a 233km ride in the last month or so, and am doing a 300km at the end of the month. Admittedly, I have a lot of base miles from commuting, and was careful about food and drink, my it really wasn't a big deal. Quite honestly, it's been a big surprise how easy I've found it. I am half expecting that I am going to blow up horribly durng the 300km, and I will realised I've fluked the last two.
DrMekon said:
Admittedly, I have a lot of base miles from commuting
That's why you could do it.Time in the saddle is key I reckon.
If one is an occasional 20 mile cyclist - every 2nd weekend for 90 mins or so, then you will be less likely to be able to last a 100 mile ride than a commuter who rides 20-30 mins every day.
It's the adaptation of the body to being in the riding position, and on the saddle, that hurts first for those who haven't put in the hours in the saddle.
Raven Flyer said:
10% just can't be applied to cycling. What if the hill I ride up is 25% longer than one I have ridden up before. Will I injure myself?
My background is from racing, not doing a one off cycle ride. When building up base miles in winter, our entire team would take the 10% approachTheres a difference between doing a 25% increase once (or twice), and doing a 25% increase every week for 3 months. You could probably get away with doing a 100% incrase once, but im certain you wont be doing that 6 times a week for the next 3 months (the 100% increase).
Pain usually means injury by the way.
To the OP - Do it, youll be fine, take it easy, dont speed off at the start, take loads of food etc, stop regularly, drink loads of water.
Edited by PintOfKittens on Tuesday 17th August 10:55
neilski said:
But if we all had that attitude, we'd still be living in caves etc etc
My viewpoint was given from that of a regular club rider who rides c150m per week... and has done several 100 and 150 mile rides in a day... I know I can easily go out for a few hours and do a 50/75 with no issues, when the daily mileage is getting above 75 I know that I will start to feel it.. therefore if I've got one coming up I am very careful about what I eat and drink and do for the few days leading upto and after it..(that said have been known to feel it after a 50miler..... but it was up the "Col de Joux Plan" then "Col de Columbiere
My oppinion remains the same; if you are an athlete then doing some extra ordinary effort (run, swim, ride etc) can quite easily be accomodated.. but the comment was around being an inffrequent 10km rider thinking of doing c130km!!
Edited by Marcellus on Tuesday 17th August 12:16
PintOfKittens said:
Raven Flyer said:
10% just can't be applied to cycling. What if the hill I ride up is 25% longer than one I have ridden up before. Will I injure myself?
My background is from racing, not doing a one off cycle ride. When building up base miles in winter, our entire team would take the 10% approachTheres a difference between doing a 25% increase once (or twice), and doing a 25% increase every week for 3 months. You could probably get away with doing a 100% incrase once, but im certain you wont be doing that 6 times a week for the next 3 months (the 100% increase).
Pain usually means injury by the way.
To the OP - Do it, youll be fine, take it easy, dont speed off at the start, take loads of food etc, stop regularly, drink loads of water.
Edited by PintOfKittens on Tuesday 17th August 10:55
Marcellus said:
neilski said:
But if we all had that attitude, we'd still be living in caves etc etc
My viewpoint was given from that of a regular club rider who rides c150m per week... and has done several 100 and 150 mile rides in a day... I know I can easily go out for a few hours and do a 50/75 with no issues, when the daily mileage is getting above 75 I know that I will start to feel it.. therefore if I've got one coming up I am very careful about what I eat and drink and do for the few days leading upto and after it..(that said have been known to feel it after a 50miler..... but it was up the "Col de Joux Plan" then "Col de Columbiere
I don't really see the difference between riding 30 miles or 75 or 125 if the pace is adjusted accordingly and enough food & drink are consumed to replace what's being burned off other than it takes longer.
Friday 20th August 2010
If it's any help to the OP, I took my 12yr old son out for a 'mini-epic' when we got a break in the north Hampshire weather on Wednesday. He's a little over healthy weight, and his normal ride is a lap or 2 of a local lake or 40 minutes riding a mix of tarmac/gravel tracks and easy single track on local army training area (up to around 8 miles at a time). Over the summer holidays I've been trying to get him more active, but the weather's been an issue until our luck changed on Wednesday afternoon. We set out on mountain bikes from home in Farnborough to Fleet Pond, where we joined the Basingstoke Canal towpath, turning right towards Basingstoke. At 9 miles he wavered, but opted to continue, and after covering the 'extra 3 miles' I'd promised it would take to reach the Greywell Tunnel, my map reading error was discovered - it was still 3 miles to go!!
To his credit he kept going, hitting the end of the towpath at approx. 14.5 miles in a little under 2 hours. We then biked the short distance back to Odiham, tamped Lasagne and Gammon/Chips/Egg down our faces at 'The Waterwitch', a canalside pub/restaurant, then made our way home. According to my cycle computer we covered a total 29.47 miles in 3hr33min(actual cycling time) @ AvSp 8.3mph. 4 miles tarmac, 4 miles mixed gravel/dirt fire road, remainder on flat canal towpath, mostly gravel/hard packed dirt, in varying state of repair.
I rode a GT Avalanche 3.0, he was on Giant Boulder Disc (XS size frame, fullsize wheels), and he managed to increase his pace towards the end, and rested much less frequently on the return trip. Bearing in mind his state of fitness, the cycling surface, and the stop/start nature of a narrow towpath, I think he did ok. He even wanted to 'do laps of the cul-de-sac, to get it up to 30 miles' but Farnborough FC were playing at home, so the footy won.
A 50km cycle should be more than do-able on comparatively little preparation, but you'd do the right thing to put a few miles onto the bike itself after servicing or repair, to 'run it in', as the last thing you need 25kms into a charity ride is a gearchange/braking issue caused by new cables stretching, or worse still, finding that your LBS didn't torque up the Allen Screws properly on something vital. Also, as mentioned before, take plenty of fluid (invest in a second bottle/cage) and avoid the gels and specialist bars if you've not used them before. Take real food, bananas/sarnies/flapjacks etc. Take it easy in the few days beforehand, but get a gentle 30-40 minutes on the bike the day before, and treat the first couple of miles as a chance to 'warm up' gently before stamping on them pedals.
Good luck, an I hope you raise plenty of dosh for your chosen charideee.
;¬{D
If it's any help to the OP, I took my 12yr old son out for a 'mini-epic' when we got a break in the north Hampshire weather on Wednesday. He's a little over healthy weight, and his normal ride is a lap or 2 of a local lake or 40 minutes riding a mix of tarmac/gravel tracks and easy single track on local army training area (up to around 8 miles at a time). Over the summer holidays I've been trying to get him more active, but the weather's been an issue until our luck changed on Wednesday afternoon. We set out on mountain bikes from home in Farnborough to Fleet Pond, where we joined the Basingstoke Canal towpath, turning right towards Basingstoke. At 9 miles he wavered, but opted to continue, and after covering the 'extra 3 miles' I'd promised it would take to reach the Greywell Tunnel, my map reading error was discovered - it was still 3 miles to go!!
To his credit he kept going, hitting the end of the towpath at approx. 14.5 miles in a little under 2 hours. We then biked the short distance back to Odiham, tamped Lasagne and Gammon/Chips/Egg down our faces at 'The Waterwitch', a canalside pub/restaurant, then made our way home. According to my cycle computer we covered a total 29.47 miles in 3hr33min(actual cycling time) @ AvSp 8.3mph. 4 miles tarmac, 4 miles mixed gravel/dirt fire road, remainder on flat canal towpath, mostly gravel/hard packed dirt, in varying state of repair.
I rode a GT Avalanche 3.0, he was on Giant Boulder Disc (XS size frame, fullsize wheels), and he managed to increase his pace towards the end, and rested much less frequently on the return trip. Bearing in mind his state of fitness, the cycling surface, and the stop/start nature of a narrow towpath, I think he did ok. He even wanted to 'do laps of the cul-de-sac, to get it up to 30 miles' but Farnborough FC were playing at home, so the footy won.
A 50km cycle should be more than do-able on comparatively little preparation, but you'd do the right thing to put a few miles onto the bike itself after servicing or repair, to 'run it in', as the last thing you need 25kms into a charity ride is a gearchange/braking issue caused by new cables stretching, or worse still, finding that your LBS didn't torque up the Allen Screws properly on something vital. Also, as mentioned before, take plenty of fluid (invest in a second bottle/cage) and avoid the gels and specialist bars if you've not used them before. Take real food, bananas/sarnies/flapjacks etc. Take it easy in the few days beforehand, but get a gentle 30-40 minutes on the bike the day before, and treat the first couple of miles as a chance to 'warm up' gently before stamping on them pedals.
Good luck, an I hope you raise plenty of dosh for your chosen charideee.
;¬{D
Edited by yellowjack on Friday 20th August 10:52
neilski said:
Marcellus said:
cheeky_chops said:
in a similar vein, my mate asked me if i want to join him on a 100miler (160km!!!) in 20 days time. Seen as neither of us have cycled more than 20 miles i declined!! Madness, he wont be able to walk for a week!
100 miles is very different from 31miles so you probably did the right thing....If your mate had asked you to run a marathon in 20 days with no training, you'd be wise to put it off until you'd done some because of the pounding your body will take but cycling is a non-impact, relatively gentle form of exercise and providing you eat & drink enough and pace yourself well, riding 100 miles is no harder than riding 31 miles, it just takes longer.
You'd be surprised at what the human body is capable of if you believe in yourself rather than thinking "it's too hard". If you find the prospect of 100 miles too daunting, just think of it as 5 rides of 20 miles back to back, you could even take a short rest / food stop every 20 miles to break the journey up.
It's the things we don't do in life that we regret, not the things we do and I say you should go for it.
Personally i fail to see how you could go from 20miles, with 3 days recovery to a realistic 70 before the event in 20 days. IMO you are asking for an injury. I used to be a member of a cycling club and even with a good base, 60m would be a push
Anyway, i am currently training for a triathlon, so if i concentrate on cycling, my running and swimming will be affected!
Cheers everybody for your help so far, just thought I'd provide you with an update. Am currently up to about 18 miles a day (split into two sessions due to time constraints). But today I'm hoping to cover 20 miles in a single session just to see how I get on. Its not so much distance but speed that is worrying me now, just don't want to be holding up the sweeper car at the back 
The cycle itself is Sunday week, I'll let you know how I get on. Enjoying it at the minute.
The cycle itself is Sunday week, I'll let you know how I get on. Enjoying it at the minute.
newbie 50K "things that are likely to hurt" - someone who isnt a regular cyclist!!!
1 - arse - no question here
2 - knees
3 - neck
4 - wrists
(2,3 & 4 down to setup - which, if you dont cycle, you wont have a clue about)
Correct bicycle setup will sort the above out APART from your rear, which simply requires correct saddle setup and shape for your behind + lots and lots of miles.
2 weeks - you could do it pretty easily - as stated its only 31 miles - GET SOME PROPER SHORTS!
Good Luck!
1 - arse - no question here
2 - knees
3 - neck
4 - wrists
(2,3 & 4 down to setup - which, if you dont cycle, you wont have a clue about)
Correct bicycle setup will sort the above out APART from your rear, which simply requires correct saddle setup and shape for your behind + lots and lots of miles.
2 weeks - you could do it pretty easily - as stated its only 31 miles - GET SOME PROPER SHORTS!
Good Luck!
Hey there everyone, just said I'd update this, did the cycle on Sunday, trained pretty hard in the two weeks I had kept the advice I got on here in mind. Found the first few miles tough as it took ages for my muscles to warm and the surface we were on was very rutted and broken up, but once we got onto smoother roads I really started to enjoy it. No real aches and pains to speak of since, just the odd little twinge.
Anyway thanks all for the advice it really did help and I raised a few quid for charidee
Anyway thanks all for the advice it really did help and I raised a few quid for charidee
patmahe said:
Hey there everyone, just said I'd update this, did the cycle on Sunday, trained pretty hard in the two weeks I had kept the advice I got on here in mind. Found the first few miles tough as it took ages for my muscles to warm and the surface we were on was very rutted and broken up, but once we got onto smoother roads I really started to enjoy it. No real aches and pains to speak of since, just the odd little twinge.
Anyway thanks all for the advice it really did help and I raised a few quid for charidee
well done.Anyway thanks all for the advice it really did help and I raised a few quid for charidee
Some friends of mine just finished this:
http://www.lifecyclechallenge.com/
Pothole said:
patmahe said:
Hey there everyone, just said I'd update this, did the cycle on Sunday, trained pretty hard in the two weeks I had kept the advice I got on here in mind. Found the first few miles tough as it took ages for my muscles to warm and the surface we were on was very rutted and broken up, but once we got onto smoother roads I really started to enjoy it. No real aches and pains to speak of since, just the odd little twinge.
Anyway thanks all for the advice it really did help and I raised a few quid for charidee
well done.Anyway thanks all for the advice it really did help and I raised a few quid for charidee
Some friends of mine just finished this:
http://www.lifecyclechallenge.com/
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