Include 30min commute in weekly hours?

Herbsman

There's not a lot you can do in 30 minutes, and I just see it as junk miles... It's on busy main roads so I can't ride slow enough to do recovery rides, but as it's only 5 miles I can't ride for long enough to call it 'training'... How should I regard these 5 hours of weekly cycling? Are they just 'junk miles' or will they give me any benefit other than 'exercise'? Should I drive to and from work instead?

schweiz

extend your commute and turn the 'junk' miles into 'real' miles.

I record all my commuting miles whether it's the 30 km to one site where I work or the 8 km to the other site, but I record them as commuting and not training.

My annual total includes both though.

SBezza

Why can't you do them as a recovery ride?

I just use my commutes to work as gentle recovery rides, in the summer I extend them and do proper training, and in the winter I just use them as a warm up for the turbo session that follows the commute. I commute 6 miles each way.

okgo

I commute for an hour each way, it burns calories, above that its pointless pretty much. I go through Richmond Park both ways, but I don't like doing laps in the dark, or on my commuter bike.

so just see it as burning off your breakfast

amaferanga

okgo wrote:

I commute for an hour each way, it burns calories, above that its pointless pretty much. I go through Richmond Park both ways, but I don't like doing laps in the dark, or on my commuter bike.

so just see it as burning off your breakfast

This. A commute like that just means you can eat more without putting on weight.

glasgowbhoy

8 miles each way, quite hilly on the way home. Burns off my breakfast, saves me a fiver on the train, having to sit (normally stand) next to people on a packed commuter carriage and lets enjoy big lunches without thinking about what I'm eating. On good weather nights I'll extend the run home by 10/20/30 miles . Also use it as a warm up to a turbo hour in the late winter/ early spring.
I enjoy my commute miles.

Herbsman

schweiz wrote:

extend your commute and turn the 'junk' miles into 'real' miles.

I do.... on training days.

E.g. ride home from work, quickly drop backpack off and put baking potatoes in oven on timer, quick espresso and a piddle, then do 2.5 hours before dinner. does that count as a 3hr training ride, or just 2.5 hours training after a half hour non training ride.

SBezza wrote:

Why can't you do them as a recovery ride?

I just use my commutes to work as gentle recovery rides, in the summer I extend them and do proper training, and in the winter I just use them as a warm up for the turbo session that follows the commute. I commute 6 miles each way.

It feels dangerous to go slow enough not to stress my legs due to cars coming past at a relatively higher speed.... and also I end up getting overtaken and stuck behind queues or between a car and the pavement more often - riding so slowly seems to make drivers more willing to overtake and cut in front just before they get to the back of a queue. At a decent pace I can hold them off....

SBezza

Herbsman wrote:

schweiz wrote:

extend your commute and turn the 'junk' miles into 'real' miles.

I do.... on training days.

E.g. ride home from work, quickly drop backpack off and put baking potatoes in oven on timer, quick espresso and a piddle, then do 2.5 hours before dinner. does that count as a 3hr training ride, or just 2.5 hours training after a half hour non training ride.

SBezza wrote:

Why can't you do them as a recovery ride?

I just use my commutes to work as gentle recovery rides, in the summer I extend them and do proper training, and in the winter I just use them as a warm up for the turbo session that follows the commute. I commute 6 miles each way.

It feels dangerous to go slow enough not to stress my legs due to cars coming past at a relatively higher speed.... and also I end up getting overtaken and stuck behind queues or between a car and the pavement more often - riding so slowly seems to make drivers more willing to overtake and cut in front just before they get to the back of a queue. At a decent pace I can hold them off....

The speed you go on a bike whether it be 14/15 mph or 20/21 mph is normally slow for a car and they will overtake no matter what. When you get to a queue of cars just sit behind them, rather than alongside them, that way you don't get pinched between the curb and the car.

Alternatively try and find another quieter route if that is an option even if it is longer.

Herbsman

You're right, I have been riding a lot more gently to work lately and it hasn't really taken any longer - if anything I've been arriving earlier than usual! The benefit of this is that I don't sweat, thus I could wear my commuting clothes for the whole week without washing them (apart from bib shorts and base layers obviously!).

Setarkos

Herbsman wrote:

E.g. ride home from work, quickly drop backpack off and put baking potatoes in oven on timer, quick espresso and a piddle, then do 2.5 hours before dinner. does that count as a 3hr training ride, or just 2.5 hours training after a half hour non training ride.

Why does that matter if it "counts" for 2.5h or 3h? Who is keeping score?
But to give you an answer, a 3h ride will be L1 or L2 anyway and if you keep your interruption as short as possible you can count it as a 3h ride.

If you can incorporate your commute in a longer workout great. If not ride it as recovery.
I probably spend 3 hours on my commuter per week and I don't regard them as training nor do I record them. They don't exert a training stress, they don't hinder/affect recovery. They are no different from climbing stairs or having to walk from A to B here and there.

However if you want to use that time productively, 30mins is not to little for a small interval session, especially if you do two in a day.
Eg. 5min Warm-Up, 20min 30/30, 5min Cool-Down
Or 5min Warm-Up, 20min Threshold, 5min Cool-Down
Admittedly not ideal during Winter.

Should you have a powermeter, record your commute once or twice and see how many TSS they are worth and then decide if you want to include them in your training record.

dawebbo

My hour commute is about 30-35 TSS if I go really easy.

I include it for my CTL/ATL, though I would agree with others on here that all they really seem to do is burn a few calories and keep the legs turning. I don't really notice any difference for evening training sessions whether I've commuted that day or not.

Nack

My commute is about an hour long every day (30 min each way) and includes a couple of bumps (would not call them hills!) with 3 to 4% average gradients.

I generally have issues riding slowly so I tend to go flat out (certainly on the two hills) every day, every month of the year. The two hills mean uninterrupted 4 to 5 minute efforts.

I started commuting in July last year and my times at sportives have improved dramatically this year : I am not saying this is due to the 5h commute per week but it certainly contributed a great deal. During warmer months (April to September) I also ride for 4 hours on Saturday morning for our club run (about 120 kms) and ease up a little in the winter (the Saturday rides are about 2h30 long). Sometimes turbo sessions during the week or on Sunday but very irregular.

‘Fast’ commutes certainly worked for me – both in terms of weight loss and power.