OK this is obviously not MTB related but I've been doing a fair bit of road riding recently due to the weather partly and wanting to get fitter (lose weight). So I've been doing rides of 50-60 miles a couple of times a week but wondered if this is considered low or not. I reckon with a bit of MTB thrown in I'm averaging 120 miles a week.
What kind of distances do you ride and how regularly ?
I can leave the house with my road bike and two bottles of drink and a bit of food and go off and do a 60 mile ride fairly easily. 70 miles and I start to die usually. Never really been interested in doing huge distances, so the most I've ever done was about 80 miles, which included the tourmalet and aspin.
If youre doing 50-60 miles a couple of times a week thats pretty good training. Although of course it depends on how fast you do it. 62 miles (100km) takes about 3.5 hours for me, but I'm not that fast.
I hear whats really good for losing weight is just a quick ride (20 miles?) before breakfast (ugh, hate early starts..). Keep it around an hour or two, then come back and have your breakfast.
If you want to get fitter, maybe start time trialling. Just do a few 10s, and really push yourself. You might even enjoy it.
Also, what I find is great for fitness, is going out with a club or just a few friends. Then attack on every hill. And win. Managed to get my heartrate up to 211 doing that, which must be good for fitness.
Maybe I'll up it to 70 miles next, though that may well be a litle too much as I ride in the dales and it's quite hilly. I've read the riding before brekky thing so that might be worth trying.
60 miles seems to be the typical run for the club I've just joined. It's not considered a long ride, just a ride. Usually takes about 3 hours.
Solo 60miles takes 30-45 minutes longer.
It's a lot easier cycling in a group than solo. A long ride for me would be somewhere around 80 miles a very long ride a century and I've never done any epic rides.
