No new bike after first club ride.

paulieb2006

As some of ye might have read on past posts I had been thinking of getting myself a Ribble Sportive, but having gone for a spin with a couple of guys from my local Club I have decided that It would proberbly be a waste of money. Dont get me wrong I aint quitting but basically think that I need to do a heck of a lot more miles to be anywhere nere the level that I thought I was at. I didnt get off to a good start when I got cramp in both calfs after about 5k which lasted the whole 35k spin. They were very supportive but felt like I was holding them back too much for their liking. They told me to put in a couple of weeks hard going on my own and they would take my out in 2-3 weeks again. Thing is that my calfs are still too sore to even think about going out for another couple of days. I am not looking to race or anything but I have signed up for a couple of sportives and would like to be able to do the 100k and not just the 50-60k
Any advice would be great thanks :oops:

LittleB0b

progress takes time.

IIRC the rule of thumb is axpoximatly a 10% increase in milage per week, and only increasing the milage of individual rides by 10% as well.

Gentle exercise can help reduce soreness and stiffness (that's gentle!) - you're aiming to get the blood flowing, but not to be working.

bobtbuilder

It sounds like you have 2 distinct goals: Increase speed for club rides, and increase distance for sportives.

You can improve in both areas simultaneously, but you need to work on each individually as well.

To increase your speed, most people swear by interval training (me included). It's horrible and hard, but the results come pretty quickly.

To increase your distance, you need to be more slow & steady, making sure you take on enough food & drink to sustain your rides. As LittleB0b says, the 10% rule is the way forward. It allows you to puch your body past it's comfort zone, but not to the point where recovery takes forever.

bompington

BigG's reply to your other post is right - buy the bike if you want to, but I personally like the old "don't buy upgrades, ride up grades" cliché. In particular it might or might not help your sore calves. I've never heard of sore calves being a problem as the lower leg muscles don't really work that hard most of the time. If you weren't suffering in other departments (quads, lungs) then it's probably not your basic fitness: could your saddle etc. need adjusitng? I do remember setting my saddle so high one time that at the bottom of the stroke I was "on tiptoe" - that was certainly not comfortable. If it's cramp then fluids & salt could also be an issue, but that does sound a bit unlikely after 5k.
Anyway, don't despair, keep going steady, new bike or old, you could probably get hundreds if not thousands of testimonials on this forum from people who started off very unfit and wound up very fit.

Tom Butcher

Did you warm up well ? If their pace is quite hard for you then you may benefit from doing 5-10 miles easy before you meet them. The calf problem sounds like it may be more than simple post ride stiffness too - if you got cramp at 5k then perhaps there is a muscle problem or just a bike set up issue - I don't know but maybe carrying on with the cramp has torn some muscle fibres. If the calf thing is a one off then I think you'll probably be OK just to carry on building up the miles - if you aren't happy holding these guys back then maybe agree you'll do the first however many ks with them and then ride back alone - or else ask around for a steadier group to ride with for now.

Good luck anyway.

Anonymous

Don't give up, lots of fluids and good stretching every day will get you limber for when you train.

ShaunL

I thik fluids might have been the issue for the cramp. I use Isostar prior to a long hard ride and it seems to give me really good legs. make sure you have some water with you, hydration is your friend.

keef66

I once set up my saddle about an inch too high, and within minutes had quite violent cramp in both calves, presumably because I was having to over-contract them at the bottom of the stroke. Even more likely if you found yourself pushing harder than usual to try to keep up.

sicknote

If you had cramp for most of the ride, your calf's will be sore as it is like hold a muscle tension for an hour or two.
With a cramp it would have been a big tension so just give it a rest.

Anonymous

Self massage afterwards will help too...

jgsi

paulieb2006 wrote:

but I have signed up for a couple of sportives and would like to be able to do the 100k and not just the 50-60k
Any advice would be great thanks

Welcome to hard world of club riding.. :-) Is there not another group you can join in with that has a gentler pace so that you can build up your endurance etc?

I often see local based club boyz out and about and yup .. to be honest they is hard as nails and I wouldnt last 2km with'em .. but they is in serious training and it aint for fun and they do it to kill each other off ... but there are alternatives...
just keep riding purposefully and you will get fitter and stronger

TomF

Not all club riding is designed to tear your legs off... Sure, if people are racing, and they're out on a training ride, then they will work (very) hard.

Plenty of clubs have riders who don't race. They enjoy the company and cameraderie of club riding and have different personal goals.

It sounds like the OP does have a set up issue, or spent too long going hard uphill out of the saddle (that has given me cramp in the calf once before, though it was at the end of a tough sportive on a baking hot day).

Have a think about the pace you usually average when riding (both riding time and overall), and decide if that's anywhere near what the club rides are run at. If you're off the pace, you will suffer. However, most club riders I've met won't be so harsh as to drop you for not keeping up (unless, as I say, it's a chain gang or other hard training ride), so don't worry about holding them up.

Both the Bobs have good advice - you cannot achieve this overnight, but it can be done, and done very effectively. In order to get the best out of interval training (i.e working on speed), you need to have a good base fitness. Base fitness is achieved through long steady hours in the saddle, gradually building up distance and your own speed. Once you have this, you can then work on making yourself go faster.

Don't worry about the new bike - if you want it, can afford it, and think that the pleasure you derive from cycling justifies it (to you), then go for it. If you'd rather wait until you feel you've "earned" it, that's fine too. By no means is there an arbitrary measure of riding ability or skill where you are "allowed" a new bike.

andy81

As the others have said, keep riding and aim to increase your mileage by around 10% each week. You'll be surprised at how quickly you improve.

On the new bike, if you've got the cash, go for it. The new bike may help to keep your enthusiasm up which will help reach your goals quicker.

hotspur

Get the bike mate, it will reinvigorate you, and I bet it'll look good as well. You'll be cycling with a smile, rather than the grimace described in this thread.

Takis61

I agree, get the bike - just got a Ribble Sportive after riding a 2003 Specialized Allez with Sora since 2004.
To be honest I could NOT BELIEVE the difference - not that it makes me any better, faster whatever, but soaks up the vibrations from the concrete "tarmac" around my normal training route, cornes & brakes better, follows the line, etc. etc.

galaxyboy

The bike might make a difference. I went for a run with a club a while back on my galaxy and felt i was slowing them down although I thought I could maintain a good pace. Had a run recently on a mates racing bike and felt i was flying along - got back on my galaxy and felt i was cycling in treacle again.
My sportive is on order or will be as soon as my cycle2work voucher comes through.