have you got an HR belt for your Garmin?

Google Karvonen method, work out your resting HR, set the HR zones on your Garmin, customise display on your Garmin so you have a ‘turbo’ screen with HR data on it.

See if you can do all that without asking any questions on it 🙂

Then: Do your intervals.

5×3/4×4/3×5 need to be hard, above threshold, heading into zone 5 towards the end and getting it all out. I prefer to do these on the road, on an incline with a ramp at the end, so you can sprint for the top and really max out. But that’s me and being fortunate to have plenty of suitable ramps of varying length and steeps a nice warmup from my house. Others prefer to do intervals on the turbo eg if you live in a town with traffic and lights, junctions etc. Music and Sufferfest help a lot when you’re on the turbo IMO

When I worked in London running a studio half full of fixy bike polo hoxtony yoof a Bob Jackson was definitely the frame they all wanted.

1. dont know
2. should be OK

flange – the days of cheap gatorskins are long gone – they cost more than a **** High Roller ❗ £30+

A lithion or cheapest Vittoria for £12 will be fine.

I have the cheapest Tacx thing, it works fine. It was £70ish new a few years ago, I would have thought they are cheap on ebay or your local clubs s/hand list.

When you are 11st 10, 32 kmh avg, looking at an office full of potential heart-attacks and most importantly, dishing out some hurt to 20 and 30 somethings on training rides you will know why

Im still shit downhill on a MTB though 😳

what flange said 5/6 posts above.

i cant stand the turbo personally. I used it for a bit after the crash when I could not clip out because my ankle was borked and I was desperate to do something and even with sufferfest I find it hard work. There is no skill, bike handling element to it.

It can be hard to get the kind of structure you need for interval training in on the road though, I am quite lucky living in the sticks in that regard, there is always a suitable interval hill or dig I can spin to.

Winterfold by Alderbrook, then Barhatch, then Ride Way, then Houndhouse is a good one 😈

hipsters from that London want them because they are considered to be cool but Yorkshiremen love them because they are 1) tight bastards and 2) the bikes are made in Gods Own County 😆

Are Oranges uncool then? I like them in an ‘ugly as **** and dont give a shit’ way – like DMs.

Is Kryton down our way then njee?

you improve your FTP by pulling it up from above and pushing it up from below. So a combination of base miles (your zone 2 rides) and supermaximum intervals.

‘thrashing’ up successive climbs sounds about right. Just riding along at 80%/mid zone 3 the whole time is not particularly effective when you are time poor. Strava is a massive help here as it encourage focused effort.

Dont get too hung up on your average speed, focusing on that is a good way to end up riding at 80% the whole time. Once in a while, do your route you want to do at 32kmh and see how you are going against your target.

Philip Gilbert is your height (5’11”) and looks reasonably built for a cyclist (ie he could beat my daughter in an arm wrestle) and is 67kg. Barking! They must disappear when they turn sideways.

mrblobby – yep my musculature basically rebuilt itself over a year in a cyclist shape rather than a ‘rugby player who took up cycling’ shape. My thighs got thinner but are way more powerful (I am about 4.5-5 W/kg for 5 mins on a good day). Either I had a lot of visceral fat or there was a load of muscle there that felt hard but was just dead weight on the bike. Still got my hookers ribcage though so will never get down to a true ‘race weight’, which I reckon would be 62kg-ish at 5’8″.

Kryten – work a set of nasty supermaximum power intervals into your week.

5 x 3 mins on 3 mins off. They need to be done above threshold, as hard as you can go for 3 minutes. Be properly warmed up.

that will get your 5 minute power up (and your lunch) 🙂

That is a good set for keeping up with a group and being able to put some hurt on when necessary 😈

mrblooby, agreed a kilo here or there really doesnt make a lot of difference to 40 something recreational riders and amateur racers.

10/12/15kg does though.

this is as good a resource as anything: http://www.joefrielsblog.com/ if you are a bit of a geek and need to know/worry about everything <scratches chin to think of anyone who might fit that description> then look at Andrew Coggan’s blog/academic papers. Then think ‘did I eat a massive bowl of porridge this morning?’ before going on a hard ride.

In part due to circumstances borne out of near death (totally my own fault from driving like a tit) I have had to look hard at my diet/exercise/priorities but is really **** satisfying at 46 to be as fit as I’ve ever been, pretty skinny and looking forward to doing some racing this Summer knowing I wont be straight out the back. But it isn’t rocket science.

The hard bit is working out how to balance work, life and family – I took the decision that hard work and being hung about status and career was killing me and then post-rationalised that by reading all the research that said more money doesn’t make you more happy once you have what is really quite a modest income (except the £4k I need for a new Foil Di2 😉 )

yep its hard to combine with any kind of life and why full-on roadies are wierd

It can be quite hard dropping that rugby weight. I had to crash my car and have half my guts cutout to do it. I don’t recommend this path.

make sure you eat while you’re riding if you are learning to hang in with the fast group on your club ride, you will be eating into your glycogen store pretty quickly if they are testing you out or just like riding hard. If you are doing 28 kmh solo then you should have the power to ride with a 34-36kmh group, but maybe havent got the nous yet? It will come.

It is wierd but it is long steady rides that build your base power. Put the miles in at endurance/moderate level, then you will find 30kmh becomes a tempo ride rather than balls out 😉

br – fair do’s – that is a decent ride and sounds liek you are in good nick. I would need to eat a decent amount on an XC or trail ride like that.

I find with MTB you ride at high tempo/threshold a lot more and dont have the option of knocking it off into the fat burning zone but still keeping an OK average like you can on the road.

Kryton – 13st doesnt mean much on its own – how tall are you? do/did you play rugby etc. 28kmh for that kind of ride is not bad at all if you were riding solo, but if it was all that threshold you will be starving afterwards and your daily intake would need to be ~4000 cal.

Anyway, I just had a cup of tea and nana and my weight went up 250gm. I’m going to write a book about it.

ride more.
eat porridge.
and bananas.
get some protein
avoid chemical shit.
stay hydrated.
dont become a diet bore.

that will £6.99. Or it would be if I didnt get that advice free from the NHS dietitian* after my op and feel honour-bound to share, and she has 2 degrees, a masters etc

at the start of the session, before you get in the middle and meet your instructor, go the highest point of the banking and look down this will get you in the right frame of mind

more the bike of a man who has arrived and is comfortable with his lot than a midlife crisis bike IMO

this is a midlife crisis bike

b r how far and fast are you riding? a typical (not bradley wiggins) body is storing 50-100,000 calories, but only 2-3000 are instant access.

a whole lb – a decent shit will weigh that 😕

19lb is pretty good IMO, the weight isnt what you get a frame like that for anyway, I was just curious

I would be torn between silver or black athena given free reign.

Grifter

more properly a black Kona – 1990 Lava Dome I think 😀

good answer – had it on the scales yet?

very nice – not tempted by the enamelled head badge?

Major intestinal surgery (39 staples) on May 3rd last year.

http://app.strava.com/athlete/calendar/2012#May

listen to their advice, then find your own path – gradually 🙂

take care

637 of Her Majesty’s miles. I would say about 150 of those are commuting as I’ve been wfh 3 or 4 days a week 🙂 but only about 30 on the MTB due to swamp like trails 🙁

“chiefgrooveguru – Member

We’re a pro audio manufacturer, we started out with high-end bass cabs and are gradually branching out from there. “

Good for you – the cost of transporting large empty boxes halfway around the world will always be on your side 🙂

Rational economics? Soooo last century :roll:.

I buy Exposure Lights (even though I know I can get the same lumens elsewhere for less, sort of) mainly because the provide real jobs making things in a part of the sticks where the choice is be a farmhand or move. And its very near where I live so I care about it.

I cant explain that rationally, its an emotional choice that just makes me feel better.

commuter – yes
FS and road bike – no

that’s carboncycles.cc?

they look just the job

cheers

I was thinking more £100-150.

I see a decent choice of light carbon ones for £££ presumably for racing, and a good choice of cromoly gmarr dirt jump ones but not much in the middle.

Are carbonzone or similar ripping off anyone?

<quick check>

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/26er-rigid-MTB-fork-tapered-steerer-full-carbon-Mountain-fork-DISC-brake-/170965915725?pt=Cycling_Parts_Accessories&hash=item27ce5cd84d

anyone used those? I need 1 1/8, those look tapered only?

while we’re on the subject I have a Whyte 905 frame I was thinking about build into a rigid bike so I can use it for commuting when the roads are icy and come home cheeky when if the weather gets better and things dry out. And for the odd XC blast.

any rigid fork recommendations? The cheaper end of the spectrum looks a bit dirt jump gnarrr

(OP I have a Bandit for trail riding and cheeks as soft as a baby’s bottom so no Luddism here 😉 )

i dont see this kind of thing helping the cause long term – even if it makes you feel good the first time you wear it

the more normal you look (in a jeans and chuckers way) the better IMO

dressing up like you are on a club run or racing when you are going to work makes you look like a bell at best, then confirming it with an aggravating slogan which is not applicable to most drivers, only cofirms any cyclists = bellends ideas drivers may have had.

(manky flouro jackets are not ‘normal’ unless you dig roads or fix railway lines)

Awesome sportsperson ‘is difficult’ shocker.

She successfully sued 4 teams for unpaid wages. I wonder where that rumour came from?

And Lizzie – if you want to contest the sprint, try not to fall off…

I have always admired her because I bet she is an utter pain in the arse to race against, if shes like that a bit in real life, I can deal with it because winning the Olympics and Worlds in the same year was a huge step change in GB cycling success. And she did a lot of it on her own, I expect because she is ‘difficult’…

in the rain, practical, otherwise, guilty of trying too hard.

Someone dig him up and tell him he’s doing it wrong.

1’54” for the difference between a superbike and a 9kg one – that’s a lot, out of sight.

more usefully…

Levi’s 511 commuters – skinny at bottom (too skinny for old fatties), stretchy round thighs and knackers, reflective bits in the turnups and a water resistant coating.

get them at a levis store and you get 20% student discount if you are young and beautiful rather than a fat old IT biffer like most on here…

“One guy said he “had done it in 1.5 hours” for 29 mile commute, mostly outside of central London. But he had only done it once to test the route and be did it the Sunday before Christmas. ” 😆

While riding in a bunch, drafting an army convoy, with tribars, following wind etc

If you are riding into London, through RP, down Castlenau etc then 25-27 kmh 15-17 mph is doable total dist/total time kind of avg.

I wouldnt plan a meeting round it though, nor ride like that all week.

Back to work tomorrow, cant say the thought of it fills me with joy, although Parliament Sq in the dark is a thing of beauty. For those with families and lives it is a good way of getting the miles in.

Also – if you’re self-employed dont forget its 20p/mile 😀

Canyons come with nice wheels as everyone else said.

I’d always expect to upgrade the wheels and haggle when buying a new road bike.

It is pretty shocking the wheels you get on a 2-3k eg Shimano 500s which I dont think are great value at 70 from Ribble and are alright for commuting wheels on the station bike and not much else.

High 5 is good – especially the protein stuff (4:1?)

However Ive had a fair chunk of my guts cut out so every moment can be a bit explosive if not careful 😯 and much prefer bananas and oaty bars (Mule are the best by miles) and water or weak salty squash/zeros these days.