Longest solo ride

alanholden

Just completed a 42 mile ride through the Trough of Bowland, 3 miles short of my longest ride yet, which was with 3 other people.
Compared to Over Wyre those hills make these local ones look like speed bumps.
Off on a 5 week holiday next week though so wont get any cycling done then
What nutrition would you recommend for next time as i nearly bonked?

ALaPlage

Are you eating pre-ride?

For a 50 mile ride a little porridge and banana about an hour before you go. Take enough drink to stay hydrated. 2 bottles should be more than enough but keep drinking before you feel thirsty. On ride a cereal bar should be enough to keep some carbs in.

Sports drinks with isotonic are good as they replace lost salts quickly which helps keep you hydrated.

CRAIGO5000

I've dabbled in a bit of bonking and it wasn't nice being up in the hills on my own in the fog 25 miles from home and struggling to turn the crank.

That was on a 55 mile ride with 3500ft of climbing. I had 2 bottles of water and a nut bar (ill prepped but learnt!)
After that I tested the boundaries again and did a 5000ft climb over 50 mile ride but with Torq energy in the bottles, a belly full of porridge and 3 nutri-grain bars. I didn't bonk at all and felt strong to the end.

I've just done the Manchester - Blackpool and rode back which covered 133 miles and 3500ft of climbing in 7 hours.I had the usual porridge breakfast, and I stowed in my jersey 3 x ham brown barmcakes, 4 x nutri-grain bars, 2 x soreen bars and 1 x banana. I also went through 6 x 750ml bottles all with 1 x Hi-5 energy tablet. (It was warm!)

I've not bonked since the first time in the hills - You don't make a habit of it when you remember how you felt (mentally and physically). It's all about finding what works for you. Until you find that balance, I'd recommend you overstock with foods and plenty of fluids that provide slow release energy and gauge how much you use once back home. You can go out lighter next time.

daveyroids

I'm obsessed with taking loads of fluids. I use this formula http://www.webmd.com/hw-popup/rehydrati ... ar=hw86827

Agree with porridge, magic stuff. I have 3 - 4 scoops made with skimmed milk. On the ride I buy Asda's cheap nuts and raisins or the ones with chocolate buttons in. On a long ride I would probably take a wrap with me, something like the ones here http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/articl ... -go-21932/

Think proper solid food is much better than bars. And don't forget your milk after the ride for recovery http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/articl ... ink-25698/

I have also found that If I feel rough on a ride, drinking a bottle of skimmed milk helps.

Peddle Up!

CRAIGO5000 wrote:

I've not bonked since the first time in the hills...

Ah! That takes me back.

ianbar

i did 53 on sat morning which was a couple short of my longest, before i went out i had porridge, half a bagel and a banana.nice bit of water before set off.i like to have a couple of bottles with high 5 with me and a couple of gels, but really i would like to start taking fig rolls or soreen with me.i finished really with plenty in the tank.

BobScarle

Just recently I have found that toasted muffins seem to work well for me. Not sure why. Bought a pack of four Morrison's Cheese and Onion ones, cut two in half and toasted them, butter and eat. Filled me up for the 59 mile ride yesterday. I did eat a few fig rolls after about three hours but the muffins seem to be good.

Not a great fan of porridge in the (so called) warmer months although I do tend to eat it in the winter before a ride.

Good job we are all different.

Grill

Did 60 miles solo today. Had a protein shake with a banana for breakfast, oatmeal and a protein bar pre-ride, and during the ride 2 gels, 1 energy bar, and 1 750ml 2:1 bottle (along with another 750ml of water). Felt a bit tired and was in a bit of pain, but that's probably down to not drinking enough and only being my 5th ride. I had an extra gel and bar on me just in case, but didn't feel like I needed them.

CRAIGO5000

That's a bit of a silly statement. More training won't replenish the loss of 4500 calories on a 7 hour ride.

Grill

CRAIGO5000 wrote:

That's a bit of a silly statement. More training won't replenish the loss of 4500 calories on a 7 hour ride.

Is that aimed at me? :?

CRAIGO5000

Grill wrote:

CRAIGO5000 wrote:

That's a bit of a silly statement. More training won't replenish the loss of 4500 calories on a 7 hour ride.

Is that aimed at me? :?

No not at all. It was a comment made prior to mine by someone who has now deleted it - I should have quoted. It basically stated that more training is required in order to cycle far. A bit of fun to be fair, but may have been misinterpreted by some.

Since this is the beginner forum and we are talking about long solo rides - most riders here won't know their own tolerances and limits, so simply stating train more isn't adequate advice.

dazzlers82

Sorry to jump in on the thread but Im new to riding an I don't do porridge or raisins etc as I don't like is weetabix or bran flakes Any good before a ride?? I like bananas so can eat them whilst out but what else could I try instead of energy bars or gels ??

Mikey23

Weetabix is my staple breakfast before any exercise and it has served me well through many years of road running. I also have a banana and occasionally some toast and spend the morning hydrating. I'm finding as a relatively new cyclist that I need more and am starting to take more with me to eat and drink. This morning I did a fairly hilly 30 and found that I was a little dehydrated when I got back and therefore I will start to drink more and perhaps take a second bottle. I think that there is no definitive answers, just try things and see what works for you

dazzlers82

Mikey23 wrote:

Weetabix is my staple breakfast before any exercise and it has served me well through many years of road running. I also have a banana and occasionally some toast and spend the morning hydrating. I'm finding as a relatively new cyclist that I need more and am starting to take more with me to eat and drink. This morning I did a fairly hilly 30 and found that I was a little dehydrated when I got back and therefore I will start to drink more and perhaps take a second bottle. I think that there is no definitive answers, just try things and see what works for you

Ok thank you the longest ride I've done is 20 miles but I want to do 40 plus this week an maybe twice if I feel up to it and get the time

StefanP

Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato sandwich before rides, only ever eat either flapjacks or bananas during rides!

dazzlers82

StefanP wrote:

Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato sandwich before rides, only ever eat either flapjacks or bananas during rides!

I love bacon an lettuce so I'll try that too cheers

Gizmo_

Blew away my previous record (62km) today and did my first metric 100 London to Southend ride (for BHF), plus the extra 17km to get to the start... 105km total. http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=5561329

Beautiful weather, really good signage at all junctions, lots of refreshment stops (though I only stopped at two of them for a water top-up). And some very pretty lady marshals giving happy smiles to riders. Thoroughly enjoyed it, only slightly stiff knees to complain about.

Avoided the bonk by two slices of toast before leaving home slathered in peanut butter, and some sugar-encrusted peanuts at a couple of stops.

London to Cambridge next weekend... I'm very tempted

CiB

dazzlers82 wrote:

Sorry to jump in on the thread but Im new to riding an I don't do porridge or raisins etc as I don't like is weetabix or bran flakes Any good before a ride?? I like bananas so can eat them whilst out but what else could I try instead of energy bars or gels ??

Weetabix is god's own breakfast. 2 or 3 when you get up then a few more before a sportiv / 100 miler / any other big ride is good prep.

I have a couple for breakfast before the 20 mile commute and that does the job for me. That and a coffee.

Teece

Lots of good people giving good advice:

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40020&t=12838500

SBezza

Shouldn't bonked at 40 odd miles unless you haven't eaten for a few days, and did the ride bloody hard at a high effort. It was probably more likely just fatigue especially as it was close the maximum distance you had ridden before. Dehydration could have been a major factor as well.

For that sort of distance a good breakfast and a couple of bottles of water shoul;d be more than enough, as you get fitter it gets easier, but how long did 42 miles take you 3 hours max I would have thought, you have more than enough glycogen and fat for that amount of time in the saddle.

Bozman

I always make sure that i'm well hydrated from the day before, i'll have branflakes with full fat milk and a strong coffee for breakfast.
I don't usually eat anything on a ride below 40 miles(maybe one small piece of flapjack) and i'll use 500ml of water or mild electrolyte, with longer rides i'll have a small piece of flapjack every 12-15 miles and drink little and often but nothing with sugar etc, i'll take a couple of gels just in case.

alanholden

Thanks for all the responses, I normally just have some cocoa pops or a bacon butty, but will try the other options.
I normally just take a 750ml bottle with orange cordial and then a banana and bounty depending on the distance.
I also found that my drivetrain squeaked as I put the power down, any ideas as to what this could be?

rolf_f

SBezza wrote:

Shouldn't bonked at 40 odd miles unless you haven't eaten for a few days, and did the ride bloody hard at a high effort. It was probably more likely just fatigue especially as it was close the maximum distance you had ridden before. Dehydration could have been a major factor as well.

For that sort of distance a good breakfast and a couple of bottles of water shoul;d be more than enough, as you get fitter it gets easier, but how long did 42 miles take you 3 hours max I would have thought, you have more than enough glycogen and fat for that amount of time in the saddle.

I think a beginner could easily bonk in 42 miles in Bowland. It's really tough riding - I find it as hard going as the Lake District. It can be relentless with little opportunity for rest. 3 hours for 42 miles is better than a lot of people would manage there.

alanholden

The ride was 3 hours moving time but with around 20 mins resting.

smidsy

Squeaky drivetrain - have you oiled it lately?

alanholden

It was degreased and then relubricated just a few days before the ride and wasnt used between then and setting off.

smidsy

When you say degreased, how extensively? Could it be possible you over did it and now there is not enough grease in the bearings etc?

SBezza

Rolf F wrote:

SBezza wrote:

Shouldn't bonked at 40 odd miles unless you haven't eaten for a few days, and did the ride bloody hard at a high effort. It was probably more likely just fatigue especially as it was close the maximum distance you had ridden before. Dehydration could have been a major factor as well.

For that sort of distance a good breakfast and a couple of bottles of water shoul;d be more than enough, as you get fitter it gets easier, but how long did 42 miles take you 3 hours max I would have thought, you have more than enough glycogen and fat for that amount of time in the saddle.

I think a beginner could easily bonk in 42 miles in Bowland. It's really tough riding - I find it as hard going as the Lake District. It can be relentless with little opportunity for rest. 3 hours for 42 miles is better than a lot of people would manage there.

No a beginner could get seriously fatigued, but that is not bonking, bonking is the body running out of glycogen, and even a beginners body works the same as an experienced rider. Sure they might use more glycogen, but if they have eaten before going out then it is unlikely to be the dreaded bonk, unless it was done at a very high effort level. Just because there are hills doesn't mean the ride is mega hard in comparison to a less hilly ride, sure you go up the hills with more effort, but there is rest periods of down hill as well, I doubt it was 3 hours at high tempo level which would see you end up with low glycogen stores.

The OP does actually say what he ate before and during the ride, so it makes bonking even less unlikely, he had plenty of calorie intake to complete a 3 hour ride.

SBezza

alanholden wrote:

Thanks for all the responses, I normally just have some cocoa pops or a bacon butty, but will try the other options.
I normally just take a 750ml bottle with orange cordial and then a banana and bounty depending on the distance.
I also found that my drivetrain squeaked as I put the power down, any ideas as to what this could be?

Alan

Eat a more substanial breakfast, there is nothing but air in coco pops, though the bacon butty sounds nice LOL. With what you have eaten you should be fine, but perhaps try flapjacks or the like instead of a bounty bar. They have a better release of energy over a longer period of time. If you only took one bottle for a 3 hour ride, I strongly suspect you got dehydrated during your ride rather than bonked, this will impare performance alot as well, especially near the end of a ride.

simon_masterson

I use a dose of pure dextrose in some water about 15 minutes beforehand; I order it from MyProtein and I use their suggested dose. It works brilliantly. I usually use it in my water whilst riding, and I have another dose in my protein shake after. Dead simple but so effective.

Food-wise, porridge is a good one (I put powdered oats in my protein shake too), but I quite often opt for about 60-70g of oats in a glass of milk these days, just because it's that much quicker. Soaked overnight and then glugged down as soon after getting up as possible, hopefully leaving enough time for me to benefit from them when I get on the bike...

rolf_f

SBezza wrote:

No a beginner could get seriously fatigued, but that is not bonking, bonking is the body running out of glycogen, and even a beginners body works the same as an experienced rider. Sure they might use more glycogen, but if they have eaten before going out then it is unlikely to be the dreaded bonk, unless it was done at a very high effort level. Just because there are hills doesn't mean the ride is mega hard in comparison to a less hilly ride, sure you go up the hills with more effort, but there is rest periods of down hill as well, I doubt it was 3 hours at high tempo level which would see you end up with low glycogen stores.

I take your point - my point was more that I don't think you can assume only 3 hours ride time (though that is what the OP did) - and it does depend on where you go (there are easy routes and harder routes just as anywhere else) but my point about Bowland is valid. It is simply tough riding there. Yes, you can get good recovery on long descents after short steep climbs - particularly if you have a lot of flat after. This is what saves the Lakes and the Dales; the climbs tend to be spread out. Bowland is different. It always wrecks me. The climbs are endless but not so long and you aren't long rested before you hit another climb. I'd far rather repeat the Fred Whitton than re do the Pendle Predator.