Gutted

RandG

Today after 4 months of constant winter mtb'ing I took the road bike with some confidence. However, within about a mile I was toiling, thighs on fire, and felt like I had a passenger onboard

I genuinely thought that having been out at least three times a week on the mtb road riding would have been a breeze, but not, gutted.com

hipshot

Serves you right for dabbling with the other side.

Odd though, was it the difference in gearing?

adambutterwick

Could be the different positioning using different muscles

EPO Delivery Man

I think the mtb side of things doesnt match road riding for fitness, mtb is a bit more stop-start so therefore youre never quite put under constant pressure of effort and speed like you are on a road bike.

Stick with it, it will get easier.

stueyboy

I do a lot of MTB as well as road biking and I find the climbing on MTB easier than road but the gearing is completely different and I tend to climb about twice as fast on a road bike as the MTB. It is really stop start (or uphill downhill) on the MTB and I find the contrast really good between the two. I think the road bike constant spinning at quite high cadence really helps my MTB stamina

RandG

EPO Delivery Man wrote:

I think the mtb side of things doesnt match road riding for fitness, mtb is a bit more stop-start so therefore youre never quite put under constant pressure of effort and speed like you are on a road bike.

.

I have to disagree with you. up here (Dundee) we have rode thru heavy mud trials all winter, and rode pretty much every Tursday/Thursday nights in tough, heavy conditions and if anything it's physically tougher than on the road, but today I was in pain almost immediately :? and never let up.

Just so disappointed given the effort I have put in since late October.

gareth2134

RandG wrote:

EPO Delivery Man wrote:

I think the mtb side of things doesnt match road riding for fitness, mtb is a bit more stop-start so therefore youre never quite put under constant pressure of effort and speed like you are on a road bike.

.

I have to disagree with you. up here (Dundee) we have rode thru heavy mud trials all winter, and rode pretty much every Tursday/Thursday nights in tough, heavy conditions and if anything it's physically tougher than on the road, but today I was in pain almost immediately :? and never let up.

Just so disappointed given the effort I have put in since late October.

MTB is more explosive and uses the Type 2 fibers more than road cycling which is sustained endurance which uses the Type 1 fibers so you are all round using different muscle groups and spending energy release in a different way.

But yeah it's a horrible feeling ha

rstabler11

I think most likely is a few smaller muscles were neglected on the MTB, and they were the limiting factor when you changed position (and started using them) on the road bike. I'm sure after only a few rides they will be used to it again (as the small muscles are minor it shouldn't take long) and then you'll be flying

Either that or spending too long on a MTB means you only pumped your road tyres up to 40 psi... :P

RandG

I will cry like a big baby if all that hard work over the Winter has been wasted.

mallorcajeff

I know the feeling struggling like mad and we have snow in Mallorca as of tonight

jgsi

So in the spirit of a self help group what do you think went wrong with three rides a week on a mtb for 4 months... and define constant

ShutUpLegs

JGSI wrote:

So in the spirit of a self help group what do you think went wrong with three rides a week on a mtb for 4 months... and define constant

Yes, be interesting to hear.

RandG

What do I think has went wrong ? err...erm...not even sure I know what you mean tbh. We went out every tues/thrus night as I said for approx 10-12 miles of tough heavy going mtb'ing, which I thought would enhance me come time to get on the road bike, and if yesterday's ride was anything to go by, it wasn't any help at all.

As for the meaning of constant, twice during the week and a longer ride at the weekends is what I mean by constant I guess, and that's been 4 months solid now.

MattyyP

Road cycling should be hard! If it's not, you're not trying hard enough! :P But seriously, you had fun on the MTB so you haven't wasted any time, surely? You'll just now have to work on your road bike fitness, so you just have another good excuse to get out more

diy

The other way around is also problematic. I'm much slower on courses than I used to be as a result of too much road training and big hill climbs (+20%) are a problem too. You have to balance your effort rather than just power up. I find the weakness (apart from loss of jumping technique) is upper body. But it may well be due to cadence. My mtb output is usually 10rpm lower than road.

So the bad news is, when you switch back you'll have problems too.

However the biggest issue from MTB to road, is getting used to appalling brakes again.

danlikesbikes

EPO Delivery Man wrote:

I think the mtb side of things doesnt match road riding for fitness, mtb is a bit more stop-start so therefore youre never quite put under constant pressure of effort and speed like you are on a road bike.

Stick with it, it will get easier.

I'd disagree with you there. Think MTB riding does work for overall fitness as much as road riding. The difference is on the MTB your speed changing much more often with the ups and downs and your having to learn to climb and sometimes you have no choice (other than stop and walk) than to carry on, where as on a road bike you might be able to crawl along as you go through the gears.

I think MTB'ing does not help as much with speed endurance work for the road or I certainly don't find that it does. Big fan of using both as a form of cross training benefiting each other.

bianchimoon

personally i find that road riding helps me on the MTB, but less so the other way round. I now tend to use a higher gear climbing on the mtb therefore climb quicker and more traction, and very rarely use the granny gear

Hawmaw

bianchimoon wrote:

personally i find that road riding helps me on the MTB, but less so the other way round. I now tend to use a higher gear climbing on the mtb therefore climb quicker and more traction, and very rarely use the granny gear

I agree , after road riding and turbo work I can climb more easily when out on the hills and trails and use the granny much less than before but I can't say that I've noticed mountainbiking to have a negative effect on the road. Surely its better to have done some riding over the winter than nothing at all.

wavefront

Went out on my MTB on a trail for the first time in 6 months after concentrating on my road bike. I was appalled at how bad my bike handling skills have got - I was wobbling all over the place with my technique and balance completely shot. That said had much more power uphill than I ever used to!

ShutUpLegs

Hawmaw wrote:

bianchimoon wrote:

personally i find that road riding helps me on the MTB, but less so the other way round. I now tend to use a higher gear climbing on the mtb therefore climb quicker and more traction, and very rarely use the granny gear

Surely its better to have done some riding over the winter than nothing at all.

Not necessarily for fitness

sskelly

I ride mainly road bikes but I do the odd XC enduro (first one of the year a week on Sunday Wentwood 50). I don't tend to notice too much difference apart from a little bit of pulling in the back of my thighs when getting on the MTB.

That reminds me - I must service it this weekend!

saprkzz

As other have said, MTB does nothing for my road fitness, but has helped on the trails apart from the handling and confidence. Cant ride as fast offroad now, need a balance of both. Constant riding on both bikes in a weekly program is what i am doing now, so I can keep my fitness on the road and not lose my ability on the MTB.
I want to race both bikes this year