How far should you ride in training?

phreak

Obviously most sportives are around the 100km + mark. Is it neccessary to do that kind of distance in training in order to perform well in the sportive?

markos1963

You should work up to around 70% of your intended event distance and then ride it on a once a week basis. Obviously if you're just starting out then 70 miles is too much to start with so start with around 20 miles and then add 10% to that distance weekly.

fuzzynavel

phreak wrote:

Obviously most sportives are around the 100km + mark. Is it neccessary to do that kind of distance in training in order to perform well in the sportive?

As markos said, about 70% of distance seems to be recommended but I can't see any harm in doing the full distance once a month just to get used to it..70k's is a long way to go to find you have nothing left in the tank for the final 30!
Alternatively you can do as much as is comfortable and then add a few miles on to go past your comfort zone. I find that this works for me.

ride_whenever

Ideally you'd want to build up to doing 150% of the distance, able to do back to back repeats of 70% with say a 30min rest in between (although that might take a while)

andrewjoseph

I find it odd that people don't train to the distance involved. My bro-in-law runs marathons, he trains to 20 miles as does everyone else in his club. the reasoning is that you can force yourself to do the last 6 miles.

On several occasions he has been disappointed with his times, the last 6 miles lowered his average speed. Really? I wonder why?

I really don't understand why people don't train for the distance or greater, that way you know you can do it and you know at what speeds you can do it.

I've done a few mtb events and one sportive, I always try to 'train' to the distance. I then know I'm capable of doing that distance (all things being equal), so can ride a bit harder on the day.

markos1963

andrewjoseph wrote:

I find it odd that people don't train to the distance involved. My bro-in-law runs marathons, he trains to 20 miles as does everyone else in his club. the reasoning is that you can force yourself to do the last 6 miles.

On several occasions he has been disappointed with his times, the last 6 miles lowered his average speed. Really? I wonder why?

I really don't understand why people don't train for the distance or greater, that way you know you can do it and you know at what speeds you can do it.

I've done a few mtb events and one sportive, I always try to 'train' to the distance. I then know I'm capable of doing that distance (all things being equal), so can ride a bit harder on the day.

I think its a question of conditioning, if you can regulary ride a distance then the body conditions to that effort but also builds up a reserve which is that extra 30% I also find its a motivational thing, if I am training for a special event, say 100 miles, then if I do it whilst in training then I don't feel as motivated when the event comes around.

The Shiny

andrewjoseph wrote:

I find it odd that people don't train to the distance involved. My bro-in-law runs marathons, he trains to 20 miles as does everyone else in his club. the reasoning is that you can force yourself to do the last 6 miles.
I really don't understand why people don't train for the distance or greater, that way you know you can do it and you know at what speeds you can do it.
I.

Can't really agree with the above.....a fair rule of thumb for running used to be

'over speed-under distance, under speed-over distance'

If you are going to do a 10 mile race at 7 min pace you should get used to running 8 miles at 6 min pace and 12 miles at 8 min pace.

Harder to replicate for things like 100km as doing 120km in training isn't always practical, people do sportives as a challenge, they have more hills or are longer than thier normal rides.

I'd work on riding regularly and getting a good base of miles in. Try and add some hill work - find a hill, ride up it at a comfortable speed 3 or 4 times - do it regularly and it will build your stamina.

You will get pulled along when you are in a group, it's much easier than riding on your own, and don't start too hard, a slower start will leave more in the tank for later, these are events not races.

andrewjoseph

I think its a question of conditioning, if you can regulary ride a distance then the body conditions to that effort but also builds up a reserve which is that extra 30% I also find its a motivational thing, if I am training for a special event, say 100 miles, then if I do it whilst in training then I don't feel as motivated when the event comes around.

I can sort of see the point in not continually riding/running the same distance time and again, but it seems to me that you can regain motivation by trying to improve times.

fuzzynavel

andrewjoseph wrote:

I think its a question of conditioning, if you can regulary ride a distance then the body conditions to that effort but also builds up a reserve which is that extra 30% I also find its a motivational thing, if I am training for a special event, say 100 miles, then if I do it whilst in training then I don't feel as motivated when the event comes around.

I can sort of see the point in not continually riding/running the same distance time and again, but it seems to me that you can regain motivation by trying to improve times.

You are right that doing the same thing over and over can get repetitive after the first few times....your body also gets used to it and the training isn't so effective. These are the reasons that I mix it up a little....3 time trials during the week in the evenings when I am short of time and a longer steady paced beasting at the weekends.
Have a look at the attached short article regarding training http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/articl ... less-18287

nasahapley

andrewjoseph wrote:

I find it odd that people don't train to the distance involved. My bro-in-law runs marathons, he trains to 20 miles as does everyone else in his club. the reasoning is that you can force yourself to do the last 6 miles.

On several occasions he has been disappointed with his times, the last 6 miles lowered his average speed. Really? I wonder why?

I really don't understand why people don't train for the distance or greater, that way you know you can do it and you know at what speeds you can do it.

I've done a few mtb events and one sportive, I always try to 'train' to the distance. I then know I'm capable of doing that distance (all things being equal), so can ride a bit harder on the day.

This is the general approach I take too. I like my long distance off-road running events and if at all possible I recce the route in one go beforehand. This means that I won't make any navigational errors, know what to expect on the day, and know how hard to go at it. I do seem to pass a lot of knackered looking people in the last third of races too! Obviously sportives are a bit different because you can get a bit of a rest in a group, and if they're well signposted navigation shouldn't be a problem, but I reckon if you can do the distance in training you may as well, and aim to take a chunk off your usual time on the big day.

jhop

phreak wrote:

Obviously most sportives are around the 100km + mark. Is it neccessary to do that kind of distance in training in order to perform well in the sportive?

Not sure most sportives are around 100k I've never done one that short!

Surely the 150-200k distance is nearer to the norm.

oldwelshman

In a nutshell, no it is not necessary to do the event distance before hand.
What do you mean by perform well? To finish ro to finish in a fast time? Big difference.
It takes a much bigger effort and more training to complete a 220km sportive at av speed 19mph compared to twiddling around at 15mph

GeorgeShaw

oldwelshman wrote:

In a nutshell, no it is not necessary to do the event distance before hand.
What do you mean by perform well? To finish ro to finish in a fast time? Big difference.
It takes a much bigger effort and more training to complete a 220km sportive at av speed 19mph compared to twiddling around at 15mph

You might twiddle around at 15mph. That's balls out for me ... :shock:

phreak

Glad you said that George

Obviously completing the event is one thing but it's always nice to go around as quickly as possible. I don't usually train more than say 70km and I've found myself suffering around this point in my last couple of 100km + rides. Hence the question.

damage36

It could be a psychological block as much as anything. "Shit, I've only ever trained this far before and 30km to go!"
Just do some rides that are longer than 70, and maybe the odd few longer than the distance. Distance alone isn't the challenge of a sportive, its the challenge of the route surely.