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Base Miles

Jun 9, 2009
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I'm 37yr male, 6'1, 214lbs riding for two years. I like most of us want to improve my cycling & drop down to 185lbs. My diet consits of protien for breakfast, peanubutter and honey sandwich with fruit for lunch and protien/carb and veg for dinner.

I bought a book called the cyclist's training bible. I have been reading up on base miles. The book says that I should work my way up to 500miles per week for 4 to 6 weeks. I was able to do 250 miles my first week and I'm feeling good on the rides, keeping the ride aprox 18-20 mph. My heart rate monitor shows me at 122 avg.




If anyone has any advice for me please send it.

Thank you and safe riding to all!!!
 
Ser0tta said:
I bought a book called the cyclist's training bible. I have been reading up on base miles. The book says that I should work my way up to 500miles per week for 4 to 6 weeks. I was able to do 250 miles my first week and I'm feeling good on the rides, keeping the ride aprox 18-20 mph. My heart rate monitor shows me at 122 avg.

Wow. That is some serious base mileage. Do you plan on quiting your regular job?
 
Jun 9, 2009
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I actually lost my job 2 weeks ago

Yep with the way the work status is going, I'm just trying to keep myself foucused in a positive manner that is increasing my fitness level.
 
May 12, 2009
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Ser0tta said:
I'm 37yr male, 6'1, 214lbs riding for two years. I like most of us want to improve my cycling & drop down to 185lbs. My diet consits of protien for breakfast, peanubutter and honey sandwich with fruit for lunch and protien/carb and veg for dinner.

I bought a book called the cyclist's training bible. I have been reading up on base miles. The book says that I should work my way up to 500miles per week for 4 to 6 weeks. I was able to do 250 miles my first week and I'm feeling good on the rides, keeping the ride aprox 18-20 mph. My heart rate monitor shows me at 122 avg.




If anyone has any advice for me please send it.

Thank you and safe riding to all!!!




500 miles a week seems really steep (thats nearly four hours a day at that speed). I have been riding for 22 years and I max out at around 400 miles per week for a couple of weeks in the summer when I'm on vacation. When I start up in the spring I'm at about 250 per week then build up to 300-350 for most of the summer.
I would suggest shortening that to 350 per week and increase your intensity.
What's your caloric intake?
 
Mar 19, 2009
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I've seen many friends of mine lose their jobs in the last several months, and most of them couldn't be happier for the simple fact that they have time to rack on the miles, and they're also content with the fact that they are smarties who'll eventually pick up where they left of career-wise. Although the phone calls from these people have to stop during the week trying to get me out of the office for a 4 hour ride.;) Kudos Ser0tta! I say keep doing what you're doing, I would if I could.
 
Jun 9, 2009
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intake

I'M taking in 2800 calories a day, I have noticed my appetite is groing. Every meal I'm craving more food. I have been adding an extra snack in the day, I dont want to crash. As for the 500 miles a week my cousin said the samething. He told me to work my way up to 350 for aprox 4 weeks then to start mixing it up.

Thank you for your input
 
Mar 19, 2009
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Well......I didn't say I always shot them down for those rides.:) I'm a sucker for a little suffering. Ser0tta, don't forget to rest! The most important thing about all those miles and good food you're eating is to get plenty of rest.
 
Jun 9, 2009
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thanks for the input bro

Ive never pushed for that many miles so I figure it's better sitting around watching TV


RDV4ROUBAIX said:
I've seen many friends of mine lose their jobs in the last several months, and most of them couldn't be happier for the simple fact that they have time to rack on the miles, and they're also content with the fact that they are smarties who'll eventually pick up where they left of career-wise. Although the phone calls from these people have to stop during the week trying to get me out of the office for a 4 hour ride.;) Kudos Ser0tta! I say keep doing what you're doing, I would if I could.
 
Jun 9, 2009
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Taking Advantage of the time off

I hear you, I just dont want to look back after I start working again and think I should of put those miles down.
 
Mar 19, 2009
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"my office" is a loose term, as it is actually my garage. Riding really isn't that big of a problem. But ride when you can, and keep well rested and well fueled, that's the best thing ever.
 
Hey Mate

Sorry to hear about your change in circumstances - I lost my job at the start of the year - not the best way to kick off 2009. So I have some idea of how it feels - although it's different for everybody.

It's great that you are getting stuck into something positive. I assume that you are doing all the other things you need to do to start on the next chapter of your career - I looked at a great book called 'What colour is your parachute' - a really good self help book to finding a new direction.

In terms of what you are looking for by way of a cycling program... 500 miles seems like a lot to me. I am not sure what miles you have done in the past but I might try and ease into it a little and think about mixing up the training a little. A couple of long rides a week and a couple of shorter rides - on the road. Maybe find some hills to mix it up on one of the shorter rides. I would also look at some more intense interval training - it seems to be really effective in terms of kick starting adaptation - there are some great maximum effort intervals that will take your mind of anything!

There is a ton of information and example programs on the web - I am sure some fellow posters can suggest some great resource sites. (There is a training section to the forum that may have some good stuff to look at)

My personal tip for success: If you have an indoor trainer or have access to one but one or two sessions a week (60 - 90 mins) augmenting miles on the road can make a huge difference.


Good luck and keep us posted on your progress
 
Jun 9, 2009
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Thanks

Yep, going from working to not working puts alot of stress the mind. I have learned that it is out of my control, dont get me wrong I'm still looking for new work. I'm just leaving the worry out of it.

I really appreciate the advice, thank you and have a great day!!!!

:D
 
Mar 19, 2009
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Ser0tta said:
I'M taking in 2800 calories a day, I have noticed my appetite is groing. Every meal I'm craving more food. I have been adding an extra snack in the day, I dont want to crash. As for the 500 miles a week my cousin said the samething. He told me to work my way up to 350 for aprox 4 weeks then to start mixing it up.

Thank you for your input

Holy sh$t you need to eat way more than 3,000 kcal per day at 20 hours per week on the bike. SerOtta, I race cat 1 and I'm on 8 hours a week right now. :)

a week from now take 3 days completely off the bike. DO NOTHING! Buy a powermeter (preferably an SRM doesnt matter which model) and by "Training and Racing with a powermeter" the book. This will help your cycling like going from a twin turbo prop to the space shuttle. :)

Base is building FTP (all out 1-hour TT watts.) this means 100% of what you can maintain in an all out death effort for 60 minutes nonstop. This is what you want to improve with "base." Do long tempo efforts of 45-90 minutes at 77-85% of FTP power once you know what it is by doing an all out TT for an hour. This will help. You do not need to ride longer than 2 hours at a time to see huge HUGE gains in FTP. Its FTP that wins all bike races longer than a few minutes. Albeint, for the 3,000 meter TTs pure V02 max and some anaerobic work capacity comes into play.

FOCUS for starters on "tempo" which is slightly below FTP. Do not do long easy rides because it will kill your testosterone and sex drive. DO NOT STARVE YOURSELF either. Slowly cut back on your food intake and keep carbos coming in after you ride (within the 30 minute glycogen replacement window post ride.) Do your sex drive a favor and cut the 5 hour slow rides! Modern day science shows the long rides dont do jack unless your a Grand Tour pro JACKED on HGH, insulin and corticotrophic hormone doing super hard moutain climbs building threshold for 180 minutes a pop (180 minutes at 95% of FTP power broken up during a 5-7 hour ride!)
 
Apr 28, 2009
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BigBoat said:
Buy a powermeter (preferably an SRM doesnt matter which model) and by "Training and Racing with a powermeter" the book. This will help your cycling like going from a twin turbo prop to the space shuttle. :)

Seriously you're recommending an SRM to a guy who doesn't have a job?

I'm going under the impression that the OP is aiming to lose weight first and get in good enough shape to be able to hang with those tough group rides, and not necessarily become a Cat 1 racer. This based on the fact you want to lose 30 lbs. With that said, long base rides are a much better to cut fat than shorter, higher intensity rides, though those high intensity rides are what will allow you to stick with the big boys. But I'll give my $.02 on the weight loss guidelines:

If your HRM tells you calories burned, use that as a starting point and add that to your basal metabolic rate (you can find decent calculators by googling), which is how much energy you use if you do nothing all day. Keep in mind these are estimates which vary a lot based on the individual. Now it's recommended that for weight loss you shoot for a 500 Cal deficit per day, while not exceeding a 1000 Cal deficit; in other words, you expend 500 more Cal than you intake per day. At that rate your expected weight loss is around a pound per week (a pound of fat being ~3500 Cal), but at the same time you won't be overwhelmed with the munchies 3 weeks in and your body will be able to adjust to this. 2-3 pounds a week is definitely doable though, and you seem to be well motivated. Obviously, your weight loss goals might not happen over the summer, but you can definitely take a large chunk out.

Number one thing to remember is that refueling after a ride is more important than stocking up before a ride. At the same time don't skimp on breakfast. I recommend getting some whole wheat and fiber into your breakfast so you won't feel as hungry through the day.

Good luck :)
 
Apr 2, 2009
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Those are all great responses. One thing I see that was left out was STRETCHING. I don't know how much of that you do, but post ride stretching is very important to help the muscles lengthen and keep limber.
There are a variety of books around. Just remember to do it slowly, you don't want to hurt yourself. If you can find a partner to stretch with it is more fun and can be helpful on certain stretches.
Also stay away from swimming while you are training hard, it does something to the muscles. Technically I don't know what it does, but it is not good.
I wish you well on your training journey. :D
 
Mar 19, 2009
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I'd dump the hr monitor or sell it if its new. Go by perceived effort over heart rate if there's no power meter to use due to budget... Get a feeling for what an hour ALL OUT feels like and do threshold 20s just under that pace.

Find some club rides or group rides that are about 3 hours long and very hard. High intensity will help you DUMP body fat as long as you eat less than you need to maintain your weight. Guys, I;ve gone though periods where I was riding more than this guy and I was over weight. Super long rides help with fat burning but not a ton. The looong miles are not fun after a while and it can drive people insane unless your a pro racing in a pack 4 hours per day. :)

Him going close to all out 2 hours nonstop would burn the same amount of calories as he would going "JRA" (just riding around) for 4 hours.... Its a lot funner to FLY on a 30 mph groupie or race. Why not try some crit racing (criteriums.) Do you have a license, are you racing? Its FUN! Nothing like flying in the pack and slingshoting around dudes, and JACKING your ego with some wins. Even if its just stop ahead sprints. LOL

MON > OFF
Tues> 2 time 20 minutes very hard but not all out for the 20s. 15 minute warm ups and cool downs.

Wed> Super hard group ride! 3 hours
Thurs> slower group ride of 2 hrs
Fri> OFF
Sat> 2 hours with 45-60 minutes at "tempo" or just below FTP.
 
I agree with BigBoat - you don't need to do really long zone 2 rides, instead do a bit shorter rides at a zone 3 tempo or "sweet spot" pace. 3 or 4 hours max time on the rides. I don't know if you're familiar with these "training zones" I'm referring to, but for reference zone 4 is basically your time trial pace, your hard sustainable aerobic pace that you could hold all out for an hour (functional threshold power). Therefore zone 3 is a good steady, moderately hard aerobic pace that you could probably hold for 2 hours (and really start to hurt at the end).

Buy Hunter Allen and Andy Coggan's book "Training and Racing with a Powermeter" even if you have no plans on buying a powermeter at this time. This book is short, concise, and packed with a lot of good training information. I also have Friel's book that you refer to, nowadays Friel is considered "old school" and Coggan's book is the "new school."

Anyway, the long and short of it is that for both losing weight and increasing aerobic "base" zone 3 "sweet spot" riding is your friend. A good way to get a lot of time in this zone is if you have long climbs near you just go and do a ton of climbing and let the mountain dictate your pace; you will naturally ride in zone 3 while climbing as long you don't try to drill the pace.

I have personally done tons of zone 2 hours before in the past as per Friel's advice in "The Cyclists Training Bible" and I can tell you that I've seen much better results and they've come much faster when riding less miles and spending much more time in zone 3 than zone 2. Everyone is different though, but you should definitely try to mix it up and throw in a good amount of zone 3 tempo riding and see how it works for you.
 
May 12, 2009
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Listen to bigboat on this.
Intensity is more important than mileage (though you still need distance too)
When I mentioned my mileage I should have noted that I sit on my computrainer once a week(more if the weather sucks). I hate the damn thing but its important because its all about intensity. I spend 50-90 minutes pushing at almost a full effort for me(HR above 170, wattage 255-265). Other than racing (or riding with a competitive group) that helps my form more than big miles.
 
rapistwit said:
I spend 50-90 minutes pushing at almost a full effort for me(HR above 170, wattage 255-265). Other than racing (or riding with a competitive group) that helps my form more than big miles.

I totally agree - that's the "sweet spot" you're hitting right there, zone 3 just below your functional threshold power.

What's really funny is that most "old school" coaches used to tell us to avoid zone 3 tempo like the plague, the old myth of the "no mans land" or "junk miles zone." After I took Coggan's and Allen's advice and started doing efforts similar to what you describe here often I saw huge improvements in my aerobic capacity and started performing much much better in road races, which made me happy because I thought I was a criterium dawg only. ;)
 
Mar 18, 2009
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In terms of increasing you base mileage on a week by week basis...never increase your miles more than 10% over the previous week. This slow and steady increase is better. Also, there is great advice above, however, base miles are needed in good supply before you start hitting any FTP or "sweet spot" training program. This is expecially true if you are a beginner. Also, I am a huge proponent of intensity vs. time on the bike. I work with junior riders and there are so many talented riders out there who train too much and burn out. Short intense rides will increase your power!! Actually, the science says that you should begin with base miles, followed by short sprint workouts and then move toward the more intense or longer power intervals. Good luck!!
 
Mar 20, 2009
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BigBoat said:
FOCUS for starters on "tempo" which is slightly below FTP. Do not do long easy rides because it will kill your testosterone and sex drive. DO NOT STARVE YOURSELF either. Slowly cut back on your food intake and keep carbos coming in after you ride (within the 30 minute glycogen replacement window post ride.) Do your sex drive a favor and cut the 5 hour slow rides! Modern day science shows the long rides dont do jack unless your a Grand Tour pro JACKED on HGH, insulin and corticotrophic hormone doing super hard moutain climbs building threshold for 180 minutes a pop (180 minutes at 95% of FTP power broken up during a 5-7 hour ride!)

Bigboat, question—training related. I am going to do L'etape du Tour this year. I'm 53 years 6' 165 lbs. Have a decent base. I really want to improve my finish this year. In previous L'etapes, I've finished in the middle. Finishing is not the problem. Riding at higher speeds than I'm used to has killed me. These are very competitive events. I've got about 5-6 weeks to really improve my aerobic level. I don't have a powermeter. I come from the old school of doing all those LSD rides mixed with some fast stuff. L'etape this year is the Ventoux stage of the TdF. 100 miles +/- with the Ventoux at the finish. Recommendations? Thanks in advance.
 

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