Running and cycling

phil s

Guys, advice and anecdotes appreciated. The last couple of years I have found myself in a situation where I can't train and race like I used to in years gone by - mainly because of unpredictable freelance work and foreign trips this entails. I have toyed with the idea of quitting cycling, which is really hard to accept, but I hate the feeling of not being at the level I used to be, and likewise I find it hard to train like a beast through the winter if I can't properly schedule any race time come spring/summer... what's the point?
I have found some satisfaction in running (though nowhere near my passion for cycling and racing a bike). It fits neatly into an hour-long chunk of time and gives good bang for buck, plus it's great when travelling... but the bike still calls out to me.
Question: can I mix the two and still be reasonably competitive, or is it all over for me cycling-wise? Those of you who have mixed the two, if there are any out there, what kind of balance worked for you? What advice can you give me? When running should I target volume or brisk 10k efforts?

imposter2.0

What level are you racing at? I know a few people who travel with work on a near-weekly basis, but they still find time to train - either they take a turbo, or pack a bike, or something else creative - and they still manage to race at a reasonable standard...

phil s

I was a perennial 2nd Cat, can comfortably say I would've been 1st Cat with more races, I'd be happy to get back to 2nd Cat and be in the top 10 most races if I could do it again. Taking a bike/turbo on my travels is absolutely not an option for me. I typically travel with DSLR kit, television camera and all the associated crap that requires, tripod, lighting kits, editing kit and all sorts of other nonsense. There's no way on earth I could ever travel with a bike. Stuffing a pair of running shoes and some shorts into my luggage is about as much as I can get away with.

jimmythecuckoo

I didn't ever think running and cycling were compatible until Bryan Steel of Olympic fame came to give a speech at our club dinner.

He mentioned coaching one of our clubs star riders and how he got him to do more running at the start of the winter as part of his base training.

I quite enjoy running but always feel guilty about wasting cycling time if I ever choose to don my trainers instead of cleats.

I will be interested to see how you get on.

okgo

phil s wrote:

I was a perennial 2nd Cat, can comfortably say I would've been 1st Cat with more races, I'd be happy to get back to 2nd Cat and be in the top 10 most races if I could do it again. Taking a bike/turbo on my travels is absolutely not an option for me. I typically travel with DSLR kit, television camera and all the associated crap that requires, tripod, lighting kits, editing kit and all sorts of other nonsense. There's no way on earth I could ever travel with a bike. Stuffing a pair of running shoes and some shorts into my luggage is about as much as I can get away with.

Quite a few guys I race with manage to race at a good 2nd cat level on very limited hours, one chap who is an airline pilot still is competitive despite limited training. Obviously talent will come into it, but if you would have made 1st cat then you must have some talent!

You mention "you get good bang for buck in an hour running" - you also can get great bang for buck in an hour of cycling providing you are aware that in order to get the benefit, you will have to push yourself quite hard!

markhewitt1978

I'm no racer and doubt I ever will be, but I'm trying to get into running a little bit. Reason being that I have a lunchhour at work that I have no other use for; for various reasons bringing my bike is not practical. I've found that it's improving my overall fitness, but it doesn't half make my legs feel strange when I get back on my bike at the weekend.

phil s

okgo wrote:

You mention "you get good bang for buck in an hour running" - you also can get great bang for buck in an hour of cycling providing you are aware that in order to get the benefit, you will have to push yourself quite hard!

Totally! However, there are occasions I am away for three weeks at a time (like Qatar and Oman in February) where I have to run if I want to stay fit.

jimmythecuckoo wrote:

He mentioned coaching one of our clubs star riders and how he got him to do more running at the start of the winter as part of his base training.

Interesting! I'd love to hear what he had him doing and how much/how fast he was running. In my experience I've encountered a couple of guys that used to run competitively at 800 and 1500m and they had amazing engines even on the bike... but they are super-talented guys.

cougie

I see Gethin Butler coming in the top places in local marathons - he's converted to running but I don't think he races bikes any more ?

Just be careful with your running - your cardio system will be strong - but your legs won't be. Going at it too fast too soon is a recipe for injury - get fitted for good shoes and take it easy to begin with.

phil s

Cheers, cougie. I've laid the groundwork for a bit of running base and am currently doing about 45-60km a week. Am well aware of the injury potential from a strong cardio system and muscles that aren't trained/used to the specifics of running, but I'm over that phase.

me-109

As a former racing-cyclist-turned-triathlete I would say that it does help. It works opposing muscles and helps build a solid core, so you are more stable on the bike and less susceptible to injury. The time spent running is more productive aerobically, so is ideal where time is a limiting factor.

markhewitt1978

Cheers; I personally (can't speak for OP) was thinking in terms of doing a ride at the weekend and running lunchtimes vs a ride at the weekend and nothing else (except perhaps a bit of walking) through the week. In that case running has got to be better than nothing?

dw300

Set's of bodyweight squats (get your form right) for short intervals might simulate above threshold work. It'll produce lots of lactic and you'll be able to do them for anything up to 2 minutes id guess. Some lightish weight (<20kg), an equipment box maybe, would simulate efforts under 30s.