Love the look of the zipps. I’m getting some 50m deep section wheels soon, cannot wait, so so so fast! 8)

I just enjoyed knowing I’d been right all along

So you were right twice in one day then?! 😀

we rode from Lisbon – Madrid (basically along the coast of portugal, crossed into spain, took a few trains to miss v busy cities, granda, sierre nevada, cabo de gata, sierra nevada, granada, train to madrid). Was 35-40 degrees for almost a month solid…so could do with that this year after this ‘summer’!

Its all personal pref obviously, but another option to consider is electrolyte tabs in water and energy bars…i’ve been using lunar bars (ok they are for women, but the cliff bars are quite nice). The thing about high 5 4:1 is it makes your mouth all furry after long days in the saddle and i just can’t bring myself to have any kind of energy drink these days so i rely on bars, nuun and chews. Also, you’ll prob still want to snack as well, unless you can have a massive lunch (but then that’ll be uncomfortable to ride on) so that’s more to carry. Just a suggestion, sorry am prob making things more complicated for you! 🙂

the zip fit stuff seems to be quite good

ps, best multi day tip is to drink choc milk asap after riding…we lived on it touring and i never woke up thinking that i couldn’t ride the next day!

Lee, fwiw when i was touring for a month last year, i didn’t have any energy drink/gels during the entire time. I had nuun tablets with me and just had plenty of proper food/regular cafe stops for espresso and cakes! I did have two emergency packets of honey stinger chews in my panniers though, just in case but they were never needed.

I used to use high 5 4:1 but have gone right off it and prefer honey stinger chews as and when needed (but mostly for racing).

Do you really need/want the extra fuel? How far/where are you going?

Why are 32h a must?

Have only tried my normal ultegras and 50m deep section wheels. Deep section ones amazing and i’m buying some asap!

I got some carbon soled shoes (Giro) this season, for a massive bargain. I noticed a huge difference and my ‘old’ shoes won’t be getting used again, except for commuting.

I went to paris a few years ago for the final stage. Not worth it imo, not unless you get there super early to get a good spot. All i could see was the saddle of the bikes on top of the support car. Mountain stage would be much better i reckon.

JAMIE!! I’ve been waiting for you #specialguy to cheer me up. You didn’t appear so i’ve had to resort to a kitkat instead 😐

dirtygirl, when you’re famous… can you wear a jersey that has #specialguys on it?

yes, yes phil i will. 😀

I’ve got a crush on dirtygirlonabike. wow, your training schedule is amazing

Sssshuuh. Yeti will get jealous 😉

I’m seriously impressed with my coach and his training plan for me, and how far he has brought me on. It took me a while to settle in but i now trust him to get me there. Its bloody hard work but i’d not have it any other way now! On the flip side, i had a rubbish race last night, my legs were dead from my ride on tuesday and i got dropped, chased back on, got dropped again. I’ve got a long way to go yet!

1) I feel good and fast all race long and don’t fade
2) I place higher than previously
3) I don’t get fed up half way through and think ‘this is shit’ which is related to 1) and 2)

learn how to pace yourself and how deep into the red you can go and get away with, and fuel properly too.

You’re yet to enter a race, yet you’ve set winning as your aim. Just enter a race, enjoy the satisfaction of finishing. See where you come against your peers… then aim on improving.

It’s what I’d do. It’s what I do.

+1. I’ve now scooped cat 3 in my 1st season of racing but haven’t won anything (yet!). Whilst there’s nothing wrong with an aim of winning, setting realistic goals to get there need to be a priority. Yes I want to win but i have so much to learn and my lack of experience is holding me back from winning. Work out from the races you do what you need to work on to improve, and set aside sessions specifically to work on your weaknesses. Its taken me 10 weeks of hard training to get this far and a lot of WTFU riding in torrential downpours when i’m knackered. 10 weeks ago i sat down with my coach and agreed my goals for the season: cat 3 and finish top 10 in races. He wants me to win, and I do too, but its not that realistic yet, esp when i’m up against pro riders and world champ sprinters who have way more experience and bike handling skills than i do. Enter as many races as you can do, set out which ones you want to prioritise and which are hard training sessions. I’m going into weekly crits tired with training in my legs but come a priority race with a taper and rest, i’ll be flying after racing when tired! Do the same.

Mr Yeti is right, hadn’t had coffee before i read this thread and didn’t read it properly! yup, mine was worked out on a ramp test. Should have been more but i mucked up the gears at the end of the test which ended it a bit early 😕

Shoe/pedal combo is personal. Stiff sole a must, i’ve gone for a carbon soled shoes this year. I will never go back to anything else now! I like my new-ish giro’s but for years I had specialized. And I use shimano 105 pedals.

Like bikes, shoe makes are all different so she’ll need to try stuff on…ie giro come up small so i’m a size bigger in them, i hate shimano shoes etc.

When I bought my trek, i had never been on a road bike before. I sat on a few in the shop and the trek felt ‘right’ and it was pretty much spot on for me. Its good she can try a demo bike first.

I doubt strava is accurate. You need to get a ramp test or similar done. Mine is 5.27w/kg but i’ve recently lost a bit of weight and i’m much stronger than i was when i was tested in April so I reckon it’ll have gone up by my next test.

You might have a point, I am not a very good XC racer. However I would have thought it much quicker to sprint up a short steep 30s climb knowing you have a rest on the other side than to twiddle up it in the little ring…

If you are talking training here, then there’s two sessions to hills: sprinting up them for 30secs then 2min+ recovery until hr is below zone 1. The 2nd session is over geared climbs which is as it sounds. Do these often and your climbing will come on loads.

My road bike has a power meter, which I’ve had for about 5 years. I’ve got a pretty good idea of where my anaerobic threshold is and how long I can go above it and how often.

Are you still using the same watts/zones that you set 5 years ago when you 1st got your power meter or have you tested yourself regularly and changed these since training or not will affect your watts? I would suggest you get a proper ramp test done to get your zones and power set properly and train to that. Having had mine done properly has made a huge difference.

Track racing is hard to find out about but not impossible. Join a road club and look on British cycling for road races – they aren’t hard to find, there’s loads out there – i’m racing once a week atm!

FWIW, i’m on about 13 hours a week of training on the bike atm, plus 2 hours of weights, and around 3:45 hours of commuting per week. I eat biscuits as and when i want and my weight remained stable since my ramp test in April. I’ve cut back on the biscuits and have so far lost 0:8kgs in under a week without feeling hard done by. I want to increase my power to weight on the bike, so losing a bit of weight is easiest way to do this although i don’t have an awful lot that i want to lose – but i want to win and will pretty much do anything i can to help me!

If you are racing or genuinely want to go fast, then aero.

+1. I tried some 50m deep section wheels the other day. They were amazing (compared to my ultegras, which i now don’t want to ride anymore) 🙄 I’m now ordering some asap but they are ££, even at trade price. I would def go aero over lighter (but then i’m racing and want to go faster too).

Unless my lack of roadie experience means you are telling me non of that will make me much faster ’cause its a question of man over machine.

Wheels will help a bit, but you need to train better/smarter to get faster.

Mol, I’m not going to comment on the food stuff, but i will say from a training point of view, that to get better/win, the thing you need most of all, is the one thing you don’t have: time (as philly pointed out) I’m now about 9 weeks into my coaching, i’m 1 point away from becoming cat 3 in my first season of racing and i’m closing the time gap between me and the winner, now down to about 5 seconds or so in a sprint finish. The one thing i’m ‘giving up’ for this is my free time…during the week its basically work, train for 1-3hours almost every night, dinner, bed and repeat. The weekends are racing/recovering or training. But that’s ok for me as my bf does this too, i have no other committments and i want to win badly enough to give up my time. You have a family and young kids and clearly can’t devote the same amount of time to training as i can. I would guess that if you wanted to win, it would involve some sacrificing some of your family time or training at anti social hours. I know a bloke who won lots of RRs during the 1st year his kid was born, as he had a v understanding wife but i know thats not for everyone. I would also guess that if you had more time to train, you’d lose more weight. How old are your kids, can you wait until they are older to focus on your training?

OP, like you I’ve been doing a lot more cycling this year too. I’ve actually found the opposite though – i’ve not got any more musclier, in fact i’m less so these days, nor has my weight changed either – that’s despite me eating way more than i normally would to fuel me for so much training!

Its not something i really worry or even think about, but then i have quite a small build anyway. I like how my legs look and they do me good on the bike too 🙂

IME a crit seems like a constant sprint, brake for corners, sprint, brake and repeat for 45/50mins of hell. The speed off the start line (where the sprinters usually are) is incredible. I take a few energy chews before a crit – not that i need the fuel for 45/50mins i’m racing for, but i like the quick hit energy chews give me for that sudden blast off the start line, and it focuses my mind too.

Experience is everything – i’m new to road racing this season and have done more road races than crits so I’m better at road racing (helps that i prefer road racing too). I’m able to keep up with the bunch but my lack of experience shows ie i lose energy trying to work out where to be in the bunch, getting squeezed out of my line by blokes who don’t like a girl getting in front of them etc. Ride on the drops, pay attention to those around you and expect crashes if its a tight circuit. Warm up well – i rode out to my crit race last night (about 30mins) plus i did a good 10-15min warm of sprints to get my hr up properly.

+1 daverambo and cynic-al.

Set your zones properly and you’ll get better/more accurate results than generic machines. I’ve got 7 hr zones, and about once a week have to stick to zone 1-2 for active recovery rides – the reality of this means unless there’s no wind, i’m on the rollers or riding slower than a granny on a shopping bike outside! 130 for me is zone 1 so miles off what your machine said is a danger zone!

+1 for asking her what she’d like to do. I have friends who hate outdoorsy type exercise but like zumba and the like (zzzzzzz).

During winter, the bf and I run, road ride and climb together, plus i do weights at the gym on my own. Its different in summer as i’m training hard and have no time for anything other than cycling 😕

Climbing is a lot of fun and a good workout too when you get onto harder grades.

welcome back! how was your hols, and how did mrs yeti get on with her ride?

Even if you ask for an extra shot!!! Nero’s it is from now on then

Aye, says on the blackboard menu something about always using 2 shots and if you’d prefer a single to ask. So if you ask for an extra shot you are getting 3 😀

while im on the road, unless i find a nero’s and then i drop it down as they seem to be that bit stronger?

Nero’s use double shots of caffeine if that’s what you mean by stronger.

There’s different sizing between makes as well as body differences. I’ve had my trek for around 5 years and recently got a bike fit (5 hours of measuring, taking my flexibility etc) so i know mine fits me 100%. If the fit was just done on leg length, i’d have been given a 51 frame but chances are the TT would be far too long given my small torso. As it is, during the bike fit my stem went down from 90 – 80, along with a host of other changes to the bike.

I tried a 52 tripster which was far too big for me so i’d be wary of a 51 if she’s got a small torso. Even a few cms too big in the TT won’t be fun.

Edit:

Well if it’s any further help… I’m 5’2 with 29″ legs,

I suspect we aren’t going to help matters as I’m nearer 5’3 with 30.59 legs!

If she’s serious about taking up road riding, get a proper fit done and chose a bike from that!

At 5’3, i would recommend going for women’s specific. I’m 160cm and have long legs/short torso so the TT on men’s bikes is too long for me. Also, i’m running 165m cranks and my bars are 36s AND an 80m stem after a bike fit. My Trek is a 47 (fyi if you are considering Treks)

*waves at Molly* sounds like you had a nice holiday 🙂 I have been training hard whilst you have been away so I’ve made some gains for our race 😆

Do people who train ‘seriously’ always keep track of mileage, or are there people out there who really do ride ‘as much as possible’ and don’t worry about the numbers?

Although i’m training for road races, yes to keeping track of mileage etc. You’ll want to record your hours, RHR, sleep, hydration, fatigue and soreness etc down as you’ll notice trends, progress etc that way. Also writing up any weaknesses is a good thing to note and look back on. As your jobs physical, you’ll need to watch your recovery carefully which again, logging training etc will help with. My training is done in hours not miles too.

I would have thought you’ll want to target a few other events/races in the run up to MM, to work on things like eating/drinking, treating it like a pracrise run and just to give you something different to do in training.

And again, although this is based on my experience on the road, training for an event is very different to just riding your bike. Its not always enjoyable but you do it because you have a goal and want to succeed. Build in things you enjoy to ensure you don’t do all your training on your own and get bored. My training plan is currently 13.5hours on top of work so sacrifices have to be made too. I don’t think i’d want to do much more than this per week (longest ride is 3 hours though). Although i’ve not raced 24s, i’d also recommend higher intensity workouts rather than just long slow miles.

Work on core/lower back etc too.

That’s why I stuck with 700, plus having 700 wheels on my nice bike isn’t an issue and it wasn’t an issue touring for a month either!

My first touring/cx bike had discs and i decided it was a must for any future touring. The bf and I travelled pretty light anyway, but having discs meant I could descend as fast as I wanted without worrying about stopping power when ladden. I was also thankful for discs when descending Pico Veleta in the coldest/wettest/foggest weather ever – we had to stop half way down for hot chocolate to warm up. I was only able to brake properly because I had discs as I couldn’t feel my fingers! Discs were part of the reason I went for a custom build. I’d say go for it if you can.

I had a power to weight test to see if i could make the clubs race squad. It was interesting to compare my results to the bf – not far off the same power to weight ratio but the watts he was putting out were way over what i was! I would actually say its not so much about the bike unless your current one is very heavy – but about training. Before I started getting coached, i was thinking of lighter bike/getting a power meter but have realised the improvements i’ve made so far and PBs I’ve set are down to training properly, good recovery and eating enough. I’d say good wheels would be a better investment – i want some carbon tubs for racing on!

You could get a proper bike fit then a) your road bike would be set up properly for your flexibility and b) you can get a TT set up done at the same time so you know what components you need to buy/where the saddle etc should be.

For me, having a bike fit has meant that i’m on the drops 100% of my riding time in chaingangs/races/TTs and I’m way more aero/powerful than I was before. I’d probably use them the whole time if i didn’t feel so small/not visible enough in traffic. If i was even vaguely interested in doing well in TTs (i’m not, find them boring compared to racing) I’d get a bike fit done for a TT position with tri bars.

Otherwise i’ve seen friends add tri bars and move their saddle forward.

have you got your new bling bike yet?!?

Not yet, approx 4-6 weeks. I’ve changed my mind on the use of it to more of a winter road bike with touring being secondary use, and had another bike fit to make sure it was all going to be 100% and to see what worked for me. The fit was interesting as I now feel really upright on the hoods (now spend all my time in chaingangs or races on the drops) which means that I don’t need / want a typical touring bike set up. Should be seeing revised designs this week, its basically the same set up as my race bike but with clearance for 28/30m tyres for touring/35m studded tyres, mounts for mudguards/panniers, discs and longer stays to allow panniers to fit without heel rub on them. Interestingly the frame designer floated the idea of 650 wheels to me. My response was a big NO, but hadn’t ever really thought i was *that* small at 160cm! Just need to come up with a paint design/colour scheme (purple and black) 🙂

Enjoying road riding is nothing to be ashamed about! I love road riding/racing and haven’t touched the mtb since March.

Embrace full lyrca, it is good.

I bought the 4hour body for my kindle after seeing it recommended on here so many times. Think the hard copy would be better as the kindle doesn’t really lend itself to dipping in and out of chapters easily and comparing sections etc. I read a bit and wasn’t that impressed so it hasn’t been touched since.

No imolly or isolo on this thread?!

Yup I have lazy days fairly often, although I’ll usually make it as far as the sofa! Does me the world of good too, more mentally than physically. I’ll also try to plan one following a busy week of training or in prep for racing 🙂

We have a dishwasher, it’s great! 8)

Any tips for reducing fat on left legs anyone?

Maybe when you give up the fags, you’ll eat a bit more and it’ll be stored on the right leg to balance it up? What else did you find out from the scan then? *ponders moving to oxford for a free scan* 😛

had a DEXA scan this morning

A what now? What does that involve?

Something to do with software iirc and polar only having the accurate stuff. Its been ages since i read about it. But i don’t log or pay attention to calories burnt when exercising as it isn’t going to change how much / what i eat. Even logging my ride stats on training peaks for my coach to see gives me different calorie burn so its pointless imo.

I won’t even start on discussing what ‘type’ of calories you’re burning

😛 I’m not in zone 5 at 20mph though.

I don’t see why only is strong…garmin over estimate calorie burn by around 10-15% iirc. How many calories you burn depends on how hard/much effort you put in so if we were both riding at 20mph but say i’m in zone 5 and you are in zone 3, I’ll be burning more calories surely because i’m working harder to maintain that pace?

The other thing to remember though is just because you burnt off say 1,000 calories in an hours ride, you’d have burnt some of those calories anyway.

My basic metabolic rate is something like 1,300 before exercise, with exercise it takes it up to something arond the 2,000mark per day but i have no idea how many calories i consume in a day but doubt that 1,300 would be enough.

+1 for yr.no.

But no point looking at far ahead as sunday yet, as Druidh says.

Using a polar hr strap is the only accurate way to tell how many calories you are burning. In a two hour road race, I can burn 1,400 odd so unless you are racing on the mtb or spend an hour climbing solidly, I doubt you’ll be hitting near the 1,000 mark in an hour.

I actually can’t think of anything worse than a tandem for riding together/getting started riding. 😐