I think starting my weight training over winter helped my weight loss (pretty much all body weight exercises, plyometrics, some using TRX and KBs). Plus I feel so much stronger on the bike too.

No point doing it without a plan and way to progress IMO. FWIW you need to MFTU and lift heavier weights or up the reps/sets – i can easily squat the 24kg KBs you having been doing and i’m a girl! 😛

Can’t wait to get onto my race bike, my winter bike weighs over 3kg more than my race one.
I used to only ride 2-3 times a week, then last May started 6-7 days a week. The difference is amazing – at the start of my training plan, i used to feel better for complete rest, now my legs feel better with a recovery ride and pretty rubbish after total rest. If i really struggle in the morning, i eat a couple of energy chews on the ride out of town – its enough to give me a bit of a kick start and when the chaingang gets going, i’m usually fine (but then i’m only talking about a short fast ride compared to your 5hours so it might affect how you ride/eat later in your ride)

I’m never on great form in the mornings either, usually my legs feel rubbish for the Sat chaingang, then averaging 23+mph for a few hours = legs feel great when i finish. Nothing worse than my legs feeling great on the ride back into town!
I don’t think its my diet, I’m just not great at exercising in the morning but playing around with the amount and type of training i do has some impact for morning rides – ie complete rest = horrible feeling legs/ages to warm up, recovery ride = better, ride with some efforts = best legs.
Like you, my evening sessions are good.

Very interesting stuff, bear in mind though that (it seemed to be anyway) to be firmly aimed at professional athletes/very serious amateurs (e.g. he recommends training at least 6 days a week in the off season!)

My training plan has me training 6-7 days a week all year round, lots and lots of hours in the off season (18hr week) as its just building base (z2). Even Joe Friel says these days in base you don’t necessary need a recovery week.

I’ve still not finished the book, but its interesting. I started eating clean last year. Lost 2.5kgs only Z2 training. Now i’m upping the intensity, i can cope without the need for high GI around exercise time as my body had long enough to adapt to eating clean without stressing it with higher intensity work. When I initially lost 1kg, i noticed the difference straight away when riding with the fast guys on climbs.

To get faster, going out and thrashing yourself every ride isn’t necessarly the most effective way of getting there – i went from cat 4 – cat 2 in one season, i was surprised at how easy a lot of my sessions were…long recovery in between intervals etc.

1,100km for me. Would have been nearer 1,600km if i’d been able to train more this week.

What’s with the rolling eyes Solo? My statement can apply to all things roller related – none of its tricky once you have learnt how to do it.

+1 for the rollers with resistance. You can do everything on them that you can do on a turbo. Out of the saddle on rollers isn’t tricky when you have learnt how to do it. Because of the snow/ice, i’ve spent the last 2 weeks training on rollers with weeks of 11hours and 10.5hours and i’ve done everything from threshold, tempo, TT efforts, recovery spins, seated hill climb efforts, easy rides.

Mr 8% body fat TSY would love this thread. 😈

I’m still reading racing weight. Its good but I got a bit of a shock when it suggested 5kg weight loss based on where i wanted to get to in that chart! I’ve given up anything bad for me, so I’d better smash this years ramp test and race PBs!

Rollers everytime for me over the turbo. Haven’t watched TV on them though, mostly because my sessions are structured so no time to watch TV.

Have the Tacx ones (never had any issues with them) and the Elite Arion with resistance. Love them….mostly look forward to training on them (except at the moment when i’m on day 13 of being stuck inside due to ice/snow)

Hitman, i’ve got the blue tacx rollers (but on monday my elite ones with resistance will be back, yay)…I can hit Z5a (out of 7 zones) on the tacx ones in 53:12, rpm of 100-110. So yes, its possible, just need to spin faster! Ones with resistance much better though.

I did 2hr 15mins today, 2 x 30 mins at threshold plus warm up and cool down. Was brutal! 3hrs to do tomorrow though…

I did nothing but rollers for about 10wks, learnt all the tricks plus my pedalling technique / efficiency is tons better. I love them!

I’ve had no niggles since my fit, despite a huge amount of training and racing. I can ride on the drops for 100miles without any issues/pain. There must be a good fit near you, look for one that covers flexibility as well rather than just your measurements as I think this is the key thing. If your in edinburgh with a bike, Hardie Bikes is easy to get to if you have some free time (but he is booked up quite far in advance!). But please get it done before buying a new bike, just in case – a friend had a fit done and turns out both her bikes are too big for her, so she had to buy 2 new bikes!

The problem is, if you have a typical women’s build ie long legs, short torso, finding bikes that have the right length TT is the hard part. If you have a longer torso and shorter legs, WSD geometry isn’t so much of an issue/a must. I’ll always go WSD on the road – my winter bike (a giant) is a 43 to get the TT as near as possible to my fit.

Sue, here’s my thoughts on the bike fit. That was one of the best investments i made last year (and wheels). When my madone is built up i’ll let you know the weight of it if it helps.

http://pescetarianrevolutions.wordpress.com/2012/06/19/bike-fit-a-whole-lot-more-ooommph-with-no-extra-training

Are you rested enough/have you upped your training recently? Could be a cause.

Otherwise i find i get too hot (even with the window wide open next to me) which affects my HR. I am off to buy a fan now!

If you lose weight very slowly, and start doing strength stuff in the gym (if you don’t already) you should be able to lose weight and not power. But IME, you’ll know when you get too light – i train anything from 8.5 – 18 hours per week depending on where I am in my programme and lost 3kgs over 3 months. But there was a noticeable difference in my energy levels / perceived effort when i hit the 3kgs (ie it felt harder on the flat when going fast, i didn’t feel i had as much power etc) compared with 1-2kg of weight loss. I put on 0.5kg and I’m feeling much stronger and training is going really well.

Sue, not sure tbh. The madone 5.5 was a warranty replacement so I didn’t have any choice in the matter. Had I been buying new, it’d def be a Trek, not sure which one though – guess it would depend on my budget at the time. I don’t want to look at the Domane’s to give you an opinion incase i have a hankering for a new bike! 😀

Before the warranty, I’d wondered about up-grading my frame but didn’t because a) i loved it b) i’m of the opinion that i can get a lot fitter/faster/stronger for a lot less £ than a new bike, and a bling frame would be the reward for my cat 1/elite license, or when i felt i was at the stage where every gram counts.

Investment wise, I’d go for getting a proper full-on fit like I had. Good wheels/hubs are a must – i got Bontager Aura 5s which I love. I think I’ll prob go for Di2 at some point.

Buying frame and building up will prob be more expensive, unless you already have your own bits to go on it, or want to invest in a light frame and up-grade components over time.

IMO, weight loss to improve power – weight (on you, not the bike), better fitness and leg strength, choosing the right gear, good wheels and tyres, plus mental determination – love the pain. Also breathing is important – sounds silly but my weakness last year was climbing hills at 19+mph. Deep breaths rather than short shallow ones lowered my HR by around 5bpm, taking me out of the feeling sick zone into “hurts but i can survive” zone.

not on drugs here and i spin at 100 – 110 (having spent last year working on my max cadence), it now feels slow to spin at 90. Track riders spin even faster. I tried dropping off the back of the chaingang last weekend and spinning a bit faster to get back on rather than changing gears, worked a treat.

I love my Trek – have had a 5000 and now got a 5.5 Madone with 50m deep sections wheels…lovely! Both in a 47 (wsd). Getting a proper fit also helped as its set up to my flexibility and measurements.

When I was there in December, i booked accred 3 for end of Jan. They didn’t have any timetables/sessions sorted for after Jan. Accreditation is probably booked up about 4-6weeks in advance, not great for those of us who want to race.

looked at all the obvious makes, but nobody makes a tourer in a 16”.

this was my problem too, even for road stuff but with touring add-ons (ie discs, mudguards, rack etc) I opted for a kinesis tripster for touring (the TT is too big for me with drops on it but it works for me with risers and mtb wheels). Might be worth a look into as its good on and off road?

My experience of touring was a baptisim of fire with a month long trip in Spain and Portugal, including camping for the 1st time since i was about 10! Loved it though. 🙂 We toured on road so i can’t offer much advice on the bike, but i am the same height as your wife and i struggle to find bikes that fit me and meet the tick list of requirements.

How often are you riding compared to weight lifting? Just not used to riding? FWIW, in winter when i’m in the gym as part of my training, riding is much harder work for the 1-2 days after a weights session, whereas in summer when my training is riding/racing 6-7 days a week, it feels totally different. You could still be feeling the effects from the gym/not recovered from it when you go riding?

I’ve been doing similar, and need quiet roads because my hill work is either over geared and therefore slow or max effort sprint up the climb/time to recover after it.

Currie Kirk and Kaimes Rd seem best for closest to town and quiet. AS doesn’t really work for my training. On Sunday I did the wee yak and big Yak out Haddington way several times, over-geared. Big Yak is pretty good for that (actually, i’ve never done any worse training than doing the big yak over geared!) but no idea how steep it is, plus riding time there-back.

BTW, I doubt very much you can train effectively to PE. PE effort (for me) varies day to day. I couldn’t hold Z2 (which has a range of 11 beats) without a HRM.

Z1 = recovery
z2 = endurance
z3 = tempo
z4 = sub threshold
z5a – c = can’t remember off the top of my head.

Zones are based on threshold, not max HR,

Z3 is the one most people train in – too hard for endurance/recovery, not hard enough for other kinds of training (ie takes too much out of you/more recovery time needed and therefore eats into the next training session). A recovery spin is Z1 – usually has to be on the rollers for me, unless you live somewhere flat/no wind as it needs to be easy enough just to turn over the legs and no more. I recover from harder intervals in Z2, unless its hill sprints in which case its Z1. Don’t ask me why, i don’t ask my coach why, i just do as he says. It works, i get results so i don’t really care about the why.

I personally cut down on long miles because my races are no longer than 60miles so i focus on speed, handling skills, hills and sprints pretty much once I’m out of the build period.

Friel’s book is pretty much the principles my coach follows. It explains it well.

Stayed in the Azul this year because that’s where the club had booked. Never ever again. Beds uncomfy, walls so thin you can hear people talking, minging mass produced buffet food.

The duva looked a lot better.

It depends on when you want to feel at your fittest and where you are just now. I’ve got (road racing) goals, and training is very structured with 3 weeks building and an easy week ie 12, 13.5, 16, 8.5. I’ve spent the last 10-12 weeks in Z2 only and now building on that with some Z3 (tempo), threshold and hill efforts for racing in 8 weeks. I hate to admit it, but the Z2 stuff has done wonders for me.

You need the base first but its not a quick fix, then add in the top end stuff ie intervals.

Passing the club’s ramp test when I was untrained which resulted in me making the race squad and getting coaching.
Going from 4th cat to 2nd cat in my first season of racing.
Getting into a break of 8 riders in a race, going onto place 3rd, missing 2nd by a centimetre (have never been both so happy and disappointed in one go!)
Loads of other achievements this year, was a great year 8)

Looking massive for me too, kicking off my season with 8 road / crit races in March and have 37 races planned so far. Think my cat 1 licence might be in sight with that much racing (well hope it’ll be in sight!).

For the last month i have ditched wholewheat pasta/noodles, cous cous, chocolate, and biscuits. For the record, I’ve only ditched the pasta because it makes me crave sugar, sugar keeps my weight stable but i’d like to lose weight so cutting out chocolate/biscuits = stopping eating pasta to remove the cravings.

My training just now is in base much like you (Z2) but a lot ie 12-18 hours a week. I’m almost in build period with my 8 month race season starting in March. So far I’ve lost almost 2kgs, my mood and energy levels are very stable, and recovery is perfect. Interestingly, i’m not hungry in between meals any more nor starving when i wake up first thing in the morning. I’m unsure what my recovery will be like and performance when i up the intensity but i’m hoping by then that i will have forced my body to adapt. If not, i’ll eat pasta again as racing is too important to me to have rubbish performace for the sake of being a little lighter.

A typical day for me is oats with skimmed milk, lunch veg/bean soup (todays was red and green lentils with black beans) with some rye bread, tea quinoa or roasted squash / sweet pots / veg with fish / eggs…a current fav is spicy quinoa with poached eggs, smoked salmon, kale and courgette with sunflower seeds. I drink cherry juice as soon as i finish exercise and if its a ride of over 2 hours, i’ll have either honey stinger energy chews or lunar bars (depends if i’m getting dragged along at 25mph or just hungry) If I need to snack, its on peppers/cucumber/nuts/cheese. It seems to be working for me.

I love all veg, and we keep it interesting by adding spices/herbs to roast veg so its rare we have a meal that tastes the same. I recently read Eat and Run, about an ultra mara runner on a vegan / raw diet, was very interesting. I’m also reading Racing Weight – not yet at the chapter which talks about timings for consuming the right kinds of food at the right times, but might be worth you reading?

I don’t have any motivation problems – due to issues with both my road bikes, all I’ve done is ride on the rollers for the last 5 weeks, up to just over 2 hours at a time for between 8 and 16 hours a week. I’m following a training plan for racing so maybe that helps.

Rollers are much more interesting than a turbo so might be worth looking into some? Can you run for cross training instead? Weights in the gym will keep your legs strong too.

swedish chef, a question for you! I’ve now got the elite arion rollers with resistance. Tried them last night and they seem great but a) v noisy compared to my blue tacx ones b) there’s a kind of bumpy sensation at certain points in the rollers (feels a bit like going over a rougher section of tarmac – its coming from the front wheel and i wonder if its connected to the poorly put on label in the middle of the front drum and i’ve been using the tacx ones for months without having had anything like that) and c) I put the resistance setting to 1 and set off to what sounded like a cat screeching.

Have you noticed anything like this or have i managed to get faulty ones?

Oli no i don’t – decided i don’t need them since i can stand up now on the blue tacx ones. Need to lose my death grip on the bars though 😀 Was considering the free motion ones over the rest, but there’s no need for them now, so i’m getting ones with resistance instead as I’ll still be able to stand up on them (hopefully!)

Mulletus Maximus, I shall let you know very soon but fine i think, esp if you are happy on them. The ones i’ve got have no bits to stop you falling off on, and i’ve only fallen twice. Once when the bf distracted me when i was mentally tired. The 2nd time was when i was learning to ride standing out of the saddle. I’m using mine about 2-3 times a week (soon to be more since its the only way i can ride, so 6-7 times a week) and feel so happy on them compared to using once every now and then. I’m working up to one legged and no handed. No handed is a bit scary tho, one legged is a case of convincing myself to unclip which isn’t easy! But as I said, once you are happy on them, I assume you can do HIIT fine with resistance ones as Swedish Chef does.

Thanks, will go for those ones 😀

Why would you go for resistance? I’m interested. I though rollers were about getting a cardio workout….

Because there’s no resistance on my rollers, and in my hardest gear and cadence of 100-120, I dont think i can get into low Z4, never mind higher zones. Much prefer rollers to turbo.

<hijack> swedish chef, what kind of rollers do you have? I have now mastered standing out of the saddle on mine, and going to get ones with resistance, but don’t need the free motion ones anymore. Torn between cycleops aliuminum ones w resistance, or the elite arion mag w resistance.

Molly, riding hard isn’t fat burning zone though is it? I’m doing kind of similar, but Z2 which is definately not hard. I do get that you’ll have burnt more calories than just bimbling though, but Z2 (for me) seems to result in less sugar cravings, steady energy etc. But i fail to see how im going to be fast come start of race season in March atm 😕

molly, what other ways you losing weight with at the moment?

I was going to ask this too, but beaten to it by my purple shoe loving buddy 8)

Well done Ton.