Fitness question

Ryan_f

This could be a stupid question but I'll ask it anyway...

I bike to work which is 9 miles each way, will this improve my fitness so I can do weekend rides of say 30+ miles or will I find anything over 9 miles difficult?

I hope this makes sense!

chrisaonabike

30 miles will be easier if you're doing 2x9 miles daily, than if you weren't. If you're doing 18 miles a day, 30 will probably be reasonably easy if you don't take it too fast.

However, you say 30+.

It depends on how much is the '+'. The further you go, the harder it gets, and the more you have to consider eating and drinking.

None of this is rocket science. Try 20 miles, see how you find it. Then increase by about 10% per week and take some food and drink with you. There are loads of threads on eating and drinking on longer rides here.

Ryan_f

Thanks for the quick reply!! I didn't really have a figure in mind for the '+' so I'll just try out longer rides and see how I get on! I'll have a read through the food and drink threads as well! Thanks again

displacedaussie

I started cycling to work in 2010 with a 9 mile commute. I only did it in the summer and only when it was dry and if I did it every day I was broken by the end of the week.

At the beginning of 2011, weighing 90kg, I started doing it every day and then riding on the weekends when I could. It took time, but I eventually built up to being able to do much longer rides. Two years later I'm down to 72kg, I race (as a 2nd Cat) and the longest ride I've done is 210km from Bristol to Caerphilly (and back) to see the Tour of Britain last year.

9 miles is a good start. Yes it will improve your fitness. Keep at it, listen to your body, push yourself hard when you can, rest when you need it. Before long you'll have done your first 100 mile ride and you won't even remember when 30 miles seemed like a long way.

Gizmo_

As above really... it's all miles on the clock. You can increase the 'benefit' of your commute by setting yourself sprint sections to get out of the saddle and blast for a hundred yards (choose a lightly-trafficked part without junctions) or taking a route with steeper hills: having said that I almost always take the same route for my (20km) commute.

But when you go out at the weekend for a longer ride - just ride. Plan yourself a vague loop so after a given point you know you're on the way home, but you should be able to ride for at least 3 hours without 'bonking' which is the only real concern. Stay out of the red zone as much as possible, stop and have a breather if you need to. You're not racing. Personally I'm a fan of aiming for a country pub for a pint of foaming hydration and a packet of roasted and salted fuel

inkz

Last year I started commuting about 4 miles each way, 5 days a week on my MTB. After about 4 months of doing this I bought a road bike and started doing 30 mile rides without having to build up and I don't do any other exercise.

Ryan_f

Thanks for all the replies, they've really helped!! I'd love to one day be able to do 100 milers but for now the 18 miles each day will do! I am quite tempted now to enter a 30 mile sportive round lincoln in may!

chrisaonabike

Ryan_f wrote:

I am quite tempted now to enter a 30 mile sportive round lincoln in may!

Just go and do 30 miles on your own next weekend! You don't need a sportive.

Ryan_f

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Ryan_f wrote:

I am quite tempted now to enter a 30 mile sportive round lincoln in may!

Just go and do 30 miles on your own next weekend! You don't need a sportive.

I think 30 might be pushing it, but I am going to try that idea of a smaller loop past my house and do it as many times as I feel possible!

ForumNewbie

Ryan_f wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Ryan_f wrote:

I am quite tempted now to enter a 30 mile sportive round lincoln in may!

Just go and do 30 miles on your own next weekend! You don't need a sportive.

I think 30 might be pushing it, but I am going to try that idea of a smaller loop past my house and do it as many times as I feel possible!

Doing a 30 miler by say, a 6 mile loop 5 times or a 10 mile loop 3 times will be boring. Better to pick a 30 mile loop, take some energy bars and drink, go at an easy pace and stop when you want to for a rest. If you already bike 9 miles each way to work, even now and again, I'm sure you will manage 30 miles no problem. And one big loop will be more interesting and satisfying than doing the same small loop again and again.

simon_masterson

Some good advice above.

To a certain extent, it needs to be said that you get out what you put in - if you want to be able to ride long distances then at some point you need to ride some long distances - but even a 9-10 mile commute can be really punishing if you want it to be. If you can ride that distance at hell-for-leather pace, you shouldn't find 30 miles difficult.

LittlePlums

Hi, if you are managing your commute every week day without too much of a problem, 30 miles won't be an issue for you. Before you do the first weekend ride, be kind to yourself and give your legs a complete rest from cycling. Training is as much about rest as the miles you do.

My commute is 12.5 miles and last year I did a 100km sportive without any additional training. OK the last 10 miles were tough, but I did it. So on the basis that for 50 miles (or 4x commute) I was fine, you'll be fine with 30 miles.

For the record I'm an advocate of one big loop.

Good luck!

simon_masterson

ForumNewbie wrote:

Ryan_f wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Ryan_f wrote:

I am quite tempted now to enter a 30 mile sportive round lincoln in may!

Just go and do 30 miles on your own next weekend! You don't need a sportive.

I think 30 might be pushing it, but I am going to try that idea of a smaller loop past my house and do it as many times as I feel possible!

Doing a 30 miler by say, a 6 mile loop 5 times or a 10 mile loop 3 times will be boring. Better to pick a 30 mile loop, take some energy bars and drink, go at an easy pace and stop when you want to for a rest. If you already bike 9 miles each way to work, even now and again, I'm sure you will manage 30 miles no problem. And one big loop will be more interesting and satisfying than doing the same small loop again and again.

I'm not sure I'd recommend this. If a 30 mile ride at an easy pace is a struggle, running out of energy shouldn't be the cause (unless the course is really hilly!), and I have reservations about encouraging psychological dependence on energy products.

Ryan_f

I'm really pleased with all the advice!! Thanks for taking the time to help a newbie out!

Gizmo_

LittlePlums wrote:

My commute is 12.5 miles and last year I did a 100km sportive without any additional training. OK the last 10 miles were tough, but I did it. So on the basis that for 50 miles (or 4x commute) I was fine, you'll be fine with 30 miles.

For the record I'm an advocate of one big loop.

Good luck!

Same here - my commute is the same length, did about four of those, a 60km loop one Saturday, a couple of commutes the following week and then 105km on the Saturday. Once you've got your bum used to being on the saddle (and assuming you're fitted pretty well to the bike so stiffness/numbness isn't a problem), it's just about time and staying hydrated.

Pituophis

I think it is more psychological when you are fairly new to it (like me!)
Every time I stick another few miles on my ride I get an irrational fear that I might not be able to complete the route for some reason!?
I haven't failed yet, so I'm not sure why this is, advancing age maybe? (Only up to low 40 miles yet though :oops:)

As others have said though, regular hydration becomes a lot more important after around 20 miles or so, for me at least.

djm501

I've gone from a 5 mile commute daily to 120 miles audaxing in less than six months and those early commutes killed me. You should have no worries - 30 miles will be a doddle. :-)
I'm doing a 300 km ride in March - now *that's* daunting.

Ride and enjoy. Just ride somewhere nice :-)

Mikey41

Agreed, 18 miles a day commuting means you should be fine for 30 miles and even 40 shouldn't be overly tough.

My commute totals 9 miles per day (and I don't do it every day) but rides on my days off started at 15 miles and quickly worked up to 25 miles. I've just stretched that to 31 miles with double the climbing, and still felt OK at the end (certainly not on the edge of collapse like I did the first time).

I tried the "laps of a short loop" plan and it gets boring very quickly, so now I plot longer routes so I can fit in 30 miles, but never actually be more than about 15 miles from home, so if I do have to call for rescue, it won't take too long to get to me.

Crouching Peeky

I have a quandrey which is pretty similar. I commute 30 miles a day 3 or 4 times a week. I have arranged to do a 200 mile ride in June which will be 100 miles per day over a weekend.

My biggest concern currently is having done 100+ miles during the week, my thighs feel too tired to go out of a weekend. I've only been commuting since August and pretty much had December and January off from cycling so I'm hoping come the warmer months I may be in a better position to get some good training miles in. Failing that, I'll just have to rely on MTFU!

djm501

For something like that I'd not cycle at all for a couple of days before - that way you'll have full glycogen supplies in your legs. It does sound like you have an alternative mode of transport available.
Riding a lot in the meantime should certainly build you up though - there's four months to train :-)

ForumNewbie

Simon Masterson wrote:

ForumNewbie wrote:

Ryan_f wrote:

ChrisAOnABike wrote:

Ryan_f wrote:

I am quite tempted now to enter a 30 mile sportive round lincoln in may!

Just go and do 30 miles on your own next weekend! You don't need a sportive.

I think 30 might be pushing it, but I am going to try that idea of a smaller loop past my house and do it as many times as I feel possible!

Doing a 30 miler by say, a 6 mile loop 5 times or a 10 mile loop 3 times will be boring. Better to pick a 30 mile loop, take some energy bars and drink, go at an easy pace and stop when you want to for a rest. If you already bike 9 miles each way to work, even now and again, I'm sure you will manage 30 miles no problem. And one big loop will be more interesting and satisfying than doing the same small loop again and again.

I'm not sure I'd recommend this. If a 30 mile ride at an easy pace is a struggle, running out of energy shouldn't be the cause (unless the course is really hilly!), and I have reservations about encouraging psychological dependence on energy products.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean Simon - all I was saying is to make sure he takes some food and drink with him so that he can stop for a snack if he wants. As a beginner doing 30 miles he will probably be on the road for between 2 and 3 hours - so he should take something to eat to give him a bit of energy half way through the ride. Although I said energy bars, it could be breakfast bars, a bit of cake or whatever is easy to fit into his back pocket or saddlebag. I was certainly not encouraging psychological dependence on energy products!