Which area needs the most work?

ziglar · April 2013

Just done the London the Reading this morning in 2hrs 27mins. Did 10 miles to get there + 40 miles on ride at an average of just under 16mph. 55 yrs old, 75kg, total cycling < 500 miles since starting Aug 2012 (illness, work commitments, etc). Longest ride before today was 33 miles with only 3 other rides > 20 miles.

I was really knackered on any uphill section and crawled the last few miles at about 12-13mph. Average gradient was 1.4% with maximum 12.4% (walked up that).

Average ascent 11mph (7.2 miles), average descent 19.3mph (6.8 miles), average flat 17mph (26 miles). I have a Powertap (not used today) and my average for 1hr is 180W.

Does this data help pinpoint any specific area that I can work on? Ascents, for one, were a real problem.

Any help greatly appreciated.

lc1981 · April 2013

If you've done less than 500 miles since August, I'd just try to get more miles in before trying to pinpoint anything more specific.

imposter2.0 · April 2013

lc1981 wrote:

If you've done less than 500 miles since August, I'd just try to get more miles in before trying to pinpoint anything more specific.

^^ this.

ric/rstsport · April 2013

regular, consistent training. you don't need to go nuts doing hours everyday, but regular work maybe 3 or 4 times a week. in all training programmes, the most important aspect is consistency. with such a low mileage since august you can't really expect anymore than what you did/what happened. i hope it was enjoyable (apart from maybe the last bit) and it motivates you to become a more regular exerciser.

ric

ziglar · April 2013

could decent progress be made on say 2 evenings @ 25 miles each plus Sat and Sun @ 35 miles each? I find recovery a bit of a problem (knocking on a bit) so need a day off quite often or would I need to do more miles?

ric/rstsport · April 2013

ziglar wrote:

could decent progress be made on say 2 evenings @ 25 miles each plus Sat and Sun @ 35 miles each? I find recovery a bit of a problem (knocking on a bit) so need a day off quite often or would I need to do more miles?

quite possibly. but also bear in mind that you may not need to be smashing it in all 4 sessions such that you can't ride for another day?

imposter2.0 · April 2013

ziglar wrote:

could decent progress be made on say 2 evenings @ 25 miles each plus Sat and Sun @ 35 miles each? I find recovery a bit of a problem (knocking on a bit) so need a day off quite often or would I need to do more miles?

the fitter you get, the better you will recover...

ziglar · April 2013

how do you measure 'smashing it' - my max HR is 170 but I averaged 151 over the entire ride (80-90% 16miles, 90-100% 23miles). My heart & lungs seemed OK it was just no power in my legs on the inclines.

ric/rstsport · April 2013

you'd really measure it with a power meter (which i think you said you had, but didn't use). i'd also hazard a guess that your max is actually higher (but you perhaps haven't measured your HRmax correctly). either way i think with a reworking of your training and being more consistent you can make significant gains to your fitness. other than ride more, train less hard (which is somewhat relative) it's a bit difficult to say what you need to do exactly. a forum doesn't really provide the opportunity for that (because you really need to know quite a bit more). feel free to give us a shout.

cheers
ric

Setarkos · April 2013

"Ride lots" - Eddy Merckx :P

ric/rstsport · April 2013

+1

Which area needs the most work?

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