Anyone Interested in Bike training program?

[battery]

Pankaj/Deepak/Ullas,

I think that you guys should seriously consider offering a training program for the Bangalore cyclists once you are through with your training. I am sure many would be interested in joining in.

[RNair]

Pankaj, The training program that we have followed here is 3 months and it starts NOW for you after you are done with base building!! The 1st month is all Intervals on 39 and also hill repeats on 39. The 53 is in the second month.

As for intervals on 39, you can do it at 39 x 17 -15 for a min or 2 with high intensity output with recovery of the same in between. It starts off with a set ( 1 x 2/3 efforts) and then as the month progresses you can build on it by doing multiple sets. Pay close attention to the long aerobic ride on weekends and a recovery ride soon after. I will get into hill repeats 3rd week of the 1st month.

If you hurry with this program, you will not see too much improvement, but will feel more fatigue. Also whatever you form you managed to get will either disappear or hit a plateau sooner than you think.

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

Pankaj, The training program that we have followed here is 3 months and it starts NOW for you after you are done with base building!! The 1st month is all Intervals on 39 and also hill repeats on 39. The 53 is in the second month.

Now that makes sense. I think I might have missed upon it while going through the discussion on this thread.
Thanks for the clarification. One more question though.

Do I do interval training on all days of a week? I generally ride 4 (weekdays) + 1 (weekend) days.
And for the first 3 weeks of first month (on 39) should I do the intervals on a flat terrain or a rolling one is fine?

Pankaj/Deepak/Ullas,

I think that you guys should seriously consider offering a training program for the Bangalore cyclists once you are through with your training. I am sure many would be interested in joining in.

I was looking for company myself when I started this training but in vain. The training and a lot more stuff is very nicely discussed in this thread. Maybe I can summarize it and pass it on to anybody who is interested. Or maybe put it up as a sticky here.

Cheers
Pankaj

[RNair]

Do I do interval training on all days of a week? I generally ride 4 (weekdays) + 1 (weekend) days.
And for the first 3 weeks of first month (on 39) should I do the intervals on a flat terrain or a rolling one is fine?

This is what I do! The program requires you to do atleast 4 rides a week.
Flat Intervals ( 35-50 kms)
Aerobic ride ( 35-50 kms)
Hill Repeats ( a small hill probably 1 km long is enough)
Long Aerobic ride (80-100km)
Rest day or Recovery Ride ( better to ride 25k easy)
As you progress thru the month increase kms and sets of Intervals. The entire month is on 39. Try to get that weekly mileage to 300km if you can by end of Nov.

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

Thanks Rajesh, for the detailed info.

On a weekday it is difficult to find time for 35-50 kms and I am presently doing around 25 kms. I read somewhere that duration is not that important in interval training if you can maintain the intensity. So, is it fine if I do my intervals well within 25 kms daily?
Maybe I can compensate for the distance (lost on weekdays) on the weekend aerobic ride.

Finding a 1 km long hill is going to be a problem but let me not worry about it for the first 3 weeks.
Bangalore folks, any hill you know of other than Nandi within 25-30 kms from HSR Layout? ( I am sure there are none ).

Cheers
Pankaj

[sumitpal]

averaged upwards of 39kmph on the MTB

Amazing.............well done.

Just to set the record straight, I did the weekly TT on the MTB in the reverse direction this time which has a net elevation gain and so power/weight ratio would matter and the truth would come out. I averaged 33kmph on the 15km course and I was pretty satisfied with the effort. The bike matters when climbs are involved, one more reason to get the Kona 29er .

[deepakvrao]

averaged upwards of 39kmph on the MTB

Amazing.............well done.

Just to set the record straight, I did the weekly TT on the MTB in the reverse direction this time which has a net elevation gain and so power/weight ratio would matter and the truth would come out. I averaged 33kmph on the 15km course and I was pretty satisfied with the effort. The bike matters when climbs are involved, one more reason to get the Kona 29er .

Thats fantastic Sumit. Why have you not done this on your road bike?

[kk27]

surprises me.... may be he's weight training.

[prabuddhadg]

And then when he rides his Trek 1.5, he will straightaway do the TT in 40kmph. That's why.

[sumitpal]

Deepak, I commute to office on my MTB and sneak out once every week for this TT hence TT on MTB . The average is ordinary but I like the fact that now the power output stays somewhat constant for the TT duration, I used to blow myself earlier. My avg. wattage for a 20min effort is 215watts (identified in the comfort of the gym) and weight is 74kg so power/weight is quite ordinary, and this is what this TT reflected too.

I am still trying to figure out the TT discipline so I am not thinking about optimizing on the equipment side yet.

[kk27]

Prabu, it's been long since we've tried the express way, why not go there just for a TT

[sumitpal]

Yeah, TT may not be as exciting as crits but it sure is addictive. If you haven't done them before, try couple of short ones before you try a long duration TT. I want to achieve the fitness to do an hour long TT so building up gradually.

[kk27]

Well usually our Bandra Rides are TT rides, where we go all out, & we've been able to manage 30kmph door to door on that 52km ride, which is usually 25 + 10mins break + 25 return. But the There are times when the rhythm is completely broken because of signals. Thats why I think we'll try out a TT on Easternexpress way.

I think the main issue with us was that we never thought of it & worked on it.... it was just a matter of click one day when we just shifted to large chainring & thought of giving it a go till we can last.... & that's how we've been doing this ride. but now that we know about it we'll work towards it in a gradual manner.

[sumitpal]

Kaushik, why not a two man TT with Prabuddha on your regular rides? You have to be careful that whoever is stronger that day sets up a hard but manageable pace for the other and spends more time at the front. If you then set yourself a target to chase, the hurting is supreme! The higher average speeds and the feel of riding in a paceline really gives a nice rush, you have to try it! I suppose it will be somewhat like interval training too, a two man TT gives very little time for recovery.

I used to ride this kind of TT with a 50yr old guy on a 32km loop and had to beg for mercy by the end of the ride .

[kk27]

Well we usually do it, Draft behind each other on our regular rides when we sprint for a while. But our Bandra rides are each man for himself .

But this idea of TTT is something we need to try.

[RNair]

If you draft then it is not a TT, is it? When I train TT with others, we usually start 5 mins apart from each other.

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

I did my first interval training today and it felt good but a little demanding (muscles coming out of comfort zone I guess ).
Well following are the stats.

Distance: 25 kms (relatively flat - Outer Ring Road, Bangalore)
Intervals: 1 X 3 (2 min each with 2 min of recovery)
Gear Ratio: 39/19 during warming up and recovery, 39/17-15 during intervals
Average speed: 30 kmph
Heartrate: I know this is important but I do not have a heartrate monitor yet. Going by the perception of exhausion, I think I was in normal state after 2 min of recovery each time.

Hoping to go clipless asap and see how much difference does it make.
BTW, some hard training going on the Outer Ring Road it seems .
Saw Arvind, Deepak, Murthi and few other folks today.

Cheers
Pankaj

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

Second day at intervals today and I must say that I felt a lot better than the first day. Stats are same as above apart from average speed increasing a bit to 30.3 kmph (doot to door) and I did the intervals for 2.5 minutes each.

Felt very good actually doing the intervals and the ride back home after that. Was riding on the drops after the intervals and I could feel consistent power throughout. I was feeling a little tension in my muscles after last Wednesday's ride (and it was not interval training), got some rest yesterday and I think that is what made the difference.

I sometimes see Deepak, Gaurav, Arvind and Murty coming from the opposite way. What kind of training are you guys doing and what gears do you ride in?

Cheers
Pankaj

[deepakvrao]

Hi Pankaj,

We should meet up sometime. I try and do at least 4 rides a week [mostly 5 though]:

1. Tempo
2. Long ride
3. Intervals
4. Recovery
5. Fooling around easy ride some days

Saw you the other day but I had to stop at Mhalli and wait for someone who had started late. I dont keep a track about the gearing but try for a cadence of 90 and try to reach above LT levels for shorter intervals, and sub LT for longer intervals. Dunno if this is right but its what I gathered from some books that I have been reading. Tempo - I try to keep it in upper zone 3 to lower zone 4.

Today I just did a 10km TT and then a zone 1-2 ride. PM me your number [and e-mail], and we can add it to our morning riders group. We start from TGI at 5:45am, pass by Marathhalli at 6:05am and we turn left, but we could just as well turn right and meet you at ORR-Sarjapur rd junction. Time may be about 6:25am or so. Else, if yo are starting earlier, we could all meet up on top of Mhalli bridge at 6:05am. That might be better as we will have fewer stops then.

Actually we only meet up for the warm p and frequently split up after that, as everyone has a different plan. So, in that sense its not really a 'group' ride. Sometimes Arvind, Gaurav, Murthy, Ravi do a paceline. You might like to join them.

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

@ Deepak

Hi Pankaj,

We should meet up sometime.

Yeah, I would love to ride with you guys sometime. Living on the opposite sides I think it will be difficult to coordinate on weekday rides but I will surely want to ride longer distance on a weekend (though I am not sure if I can hang on with the faster lot). And it will be a good opportunity to check out some pedals and shoes I am planning to get .

PMed you my number and email-id. Please let me know if you guys have any weekend plan.

Cheers
Pankaj

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

The last week (second week of my interval training) was rather sad with only two days of riding .
So, I was all set up to compensate some of it with the weekend long ride I was looking forward to. Now as the weekend approched it started raining non stop since Friday and I was cursing the rain gods when it did not stop even on Sunday morning. Went back to sleep and got up at around 9 to see that the rain had stopped. Generally, I do not ride that late but then the weather was very nice and with no possibility of it getting hotter I started out for the ride at around 10 AM.

Did a new route with half of it mostly downhill and the remaining half mostly uphill. For folks who know, I did the following route (~ 90 km).

HSR Layout - Banashankari - Kanakpura Road - Harohalli - Left turn to Jigani - Bommansandra - HSR Layout

Till Harohalli it was all descent and from there it was all climbs. This was my first serious uphill ride on my road bike and although the climbs did not match up with the last part of Nandi Hills, I think it was very steep in some sections. From a log of somebody following are the elevation figures.

Min - 2267 ft
Max - 3127 ft
ascent - 1165 ft
descent - (-1191 ft)

I did all the climbs at min 39/21 (39/23 is the min on my bike) with riding off the saddle at many points. I felt it was a lot easier than riding a lower gear on the saddle. Regulated my breathing and I think I did not go very high on the HR zones (though I do not have a HRM). In the end I was covered in mud and slime but it was a very nice ride.

Any suggestions on the riding off the saddle part on steep gradients?

Cheers
Pankaj

[prabuddhadg]

Great riding in the rain and all the mud and slime, don't you think? I just love riding in the rain. Even when it is actually pouring. About riding off the saddle, while I personally have this habit of getting off the saddle every once in a while, I think that remaining seated is better training for climbing, since your weight does not help out in pedalling and its only your muscles doing the work.

By the way, if you slide back in your saddle, you will find you are generating more power.

[Pankaj_Chuladhara]

The ride was really awesome. Now I will have to see how my bike is riding after all the mud and grime. I do ride shifted back on the saddle when I am on a good incline but then I guess some of the parts were really steep for me to ride like that. Had to get off the saddle.

Cheers
Pankaj

[prabuddhadg]

The answer to mud and grime is to hose it down. Afterwards, dry the bike under a fan and then oil the chain and the derailleurs. That's all. For climbing, foot retention will definitely help, cleats more than toe clips.

[RNair]

I felt it was a lot easier than riding a lower gear on the saddle.
Any suggestions on the riding off the saddle part on steep gradients?
Cheers
Pankaj

Training on climbs MUST be done seated. You develop your climbing strength by riding seated at all times.