Help!!! I need a training program

[bikergirl42]

I ride with a group of superfit girls. My friend and I are the ones that everyone else is always waiting for. We are the wimps, the slow ones. We want to change!!!

Does anyone have a good training program that would get us ready for the MS150 in April. We are ready to start. Its been along time since I've subscribed to a magazine. Anybody got any suggestions? I used to get training programs from mags.

Thanks I love reading this forum.

[SadieKate]

You might surf around Bicycling Magazine's website. They used to publish great training articles and some might be on their website.

www.bicycling.com

[Dogmama]

First thing, get a heart rate monitor. You need to know what is going on with your body.

Think intervals to get faster. You need to train your body to use fuel at higher heart rates. Intervals are taxing, however, so you only want to do them once or twice a week if you are not in good shape.

Base miles for longer rides are important. You would keep your heart rate at ~ 65% and just aim to get miles in. You would do this once a week.

Weight training is good for getting your body stronger. You'll be frozen in the same position (essentially) for awhile. Additionally, strong legs make sprinting and hills easier. Squats are good all around leg exercises. Get a good book or personal trainer to help you in the weight room. You'll taper off of weights as your rides get longer. Don't neglect your upper body. Your triceps get a workout and your lower back is very important.

[han-grrl]

a general training program is good, but what seems to be slowing you down...that is, where do you feel you have the most trouble? Are you slow on climbs? do you feel like you are puffing, do your legs always burn?

[CorsairMac]

all of the above?......gosh I seem to be feeling feisty today!

[bikergirl62]

Thanks all for ur responses.

han-grrl, good questions. I was a good hill climber about 20 years and 20lbs ago. Been frustated with my hill climbing since I started riding again 1 1/2 years ago. I think that part of the problem is the extra weight. I also opted for gear ratios that were not as generous on the low end and my old Cannondale touring bike. I'm thinking of changing that out to improve spin uphill. I am lifting reqularly and running as well. I just have stopped running 10k's etc since getting my bike and my fitness level has dropped. I needed something to get me serious about one sport or the other. My friend and I have decided that this event could do it for both of us, good short term and long term goal. We both ride 50 to 60 a week and run about 10 to 15. We just need a program to get us through a century by April.

[LBTC]

Hi, Ladies!

I'm glad I've found this forum!! I hope to participate in many an interesting conversation!!

Many of you have posted really good advice. I've got about 25 - 30 pounds of tips that I've kept off even during my less active seasons for, I think it's 3 years now.

I didn't diet. I refuse to make food "evil", "bad", or "the enemy". I started with small changes. The first was eat a small bag of carrots at 10:00 each morning at work, before getting hungry... made it a habit. I walk to work - about a half hour each way. I keep boiled eggs in the fridge most of the time. Excellent snack.

I listen to what my body wants. Yeah, sometimes I still snack out of boredom and enjoy comfort foods. Just not too much and not too often. I've cut back on cheese but refuse to give it up. Same thing with bread, butter, etc.

Always look for your best nutritional punch. Nuts might have a high fat content, but they have protein, lots of vitamins and minerals, and, if you buy the ones that aren't salted and don't eat too many, it's a pretty good snack!

When I eat at a restaurant I ask for half of my portion in a to go container when I order. I can rarely eat the whole meal, anyway, and this stops me from overeating, and from picking the best parts out. Most restaurants have been very helpful.

Eat more vegetables and fruit. Think you already eat a lot? eat more. I've started added zucchini and eggplant, in tiny tiny bits to everything I make with a sauce: lasagna, chilli, you name it. Split pea soup is incredibly easy to make. I make a huge batch every couple of weeks and keep frozen servings ready to take to work for lunch.

Eat spicy: garlic, ginger, cumin, pepper, they are all awesome for you and if your food is interesting and you pay attention when you eat, really savour the food, you feel fuller faster and probably won't overeat.

Yoga. A little bit every day, longer sessions a couple times a week. Makes the joints move smoothly and really does strengthen muscles, increases flexibility, balance, the ability to breathe through pain and to focus in ways that can help you get through difficult training sessions.

Crosstrain. Find something else that you love to do. I just started kickboxing. It's amazing, fabulous and super fun!!

Weights. at least once a week. squats, pushups, shoulder presses, calf raises, interesting combinations....

Listen to your body: eat more (healthy food) when you've worked harder, try to eat less when you haven't worked as hard. yes, lots of water. herbal teas, green teas. Keep your food interesting. Try a new vegetable every month.

Reward yourself for reaching small goals. Try new things like aromatherapy blends as a treat. Buy yourself new clothes to celebrate reaching a milestone. Scan the exercise mags for interesting workout ideas and cool articles. I prefere YogaJournal, Body & Soul, Fitness Rx,

Figure out your best food for fuel, by trying different things...for me potatoes and cheese are waaaaaaaaay better than pasta, any day!! And on any hard ride longer than an hour, and any race, gel packs actually help a lot. Pre and post exercise drinks can be helpful, watered down gatorade and separate water are what I ride with...

Ride with the guys. Ride with better riders. Focus on different skills on different rides. Have fun, have fun, have fun!!

That's a lot of information all at once, and it's only part of what I learned...just grab one or two ideas at a time....It took me those 3 years to figure all those things out. Form habits, stick to them...

Oh, did I mention I'm kind of a chatterbox? :D

Namaste,
~T~

[veekcee]

LBTC -- great tips! Thank you for your input. I've learned a lot since hanging out here and appreciate the experience and knowledge of everyone!

[CorsairMac]

LBTC-Welcome to the board and what great tips. If you haven't had a chance yet (I started from the bottom of the unread posts and am working up so forgive me if you already did) theres a post in the open thread called "Getting to Know You". Its got all kinds of fun stuff about us and we would love to hear about you if you're so inclined!

[doc]

I started cycling from running. Then I was doing both and doing great. Then the knee pain. So I stopped running. What I found out, was the cross training made me better at both. My cycling speed went down without the running. I just added running back in and I know it will make a huge difference. The muscles you use are very different but complimentary. Try it. People also strongly recommend weight lifting, but I don't like doing leg exercises.

PS I was running 6 miles at a 9min mile for years (like 25 yrs) When I added cycling, I got down to an 8 to 8.5 min mile without even trying. That is a HUGE improvement. Similarly, my cycling speed is currently suffering but I am working (running) to fix it!

[MightyMitre]

Great tips LBTC - thanks for posting. I notice you mentioned yoga in there. Yoga seems to get mentioned all over the place as being generally good for you but as yet I have yet to discover it's secrets.

I went to a yoga class about 5 years ago and I'm sure the leaders as qualified etc, but some of the moves we did - I seriously wondered how they could possibly be good for you. I managed to do most of them but with extreme caution, especially if they involved a lot of pressure on the lower back ( my weak area) After about 4 classes I quit.

About 12 months ago I found another group and thought I'd give it another try, after hearing so many people rave about yoga and this time, although I felt some of the positions were still a bit dubious, it was the breathing that really freaked me out. Everyone in the class seemed to do the whole lesson with their eyes shut and there was some seriously deep breathing going on . In fact all the puffing and exhaling really put me off. It was all just too hippy and weirdie for me.

Is it just a matter of trying loads of classes till you find one that suits you or am I just missing the yoga gene.:)

[aka_kim]

I'm with you, MM, in being intrigued by yoga, hearing all sorts of great things about it, but being kinda put off by the "New Age" qualities. But... based on yoga video recommendations in another thread, I bought the Rodney Yee video "Yoga Conditioning for Athletes" and really enjoy it. I've been doing it 3 times a week for about 4 weeks now, and am feeling a difference. I wanted to try yoga mainly to improve my flexibility and balance, but I'm finding I really enjoy the meditative aspects too. I would be mortified to attend a class right now, since my flexibility is nil, but a video at home works for me, and I hope to keep it up as a regular part of my exercise routine.

Just my half-cent input on the many great tips here.

[jobob]

but being kinda put off by the "New Age" qualities And you say you're a native Californian? :D

[Dogmama]

There are many different teachers & classes in yoga. Sometimes it takes awhile to find a good one. And, some people just don't like yoga. The breathing from the throat puts me off too - I can't spell it so I won't even try - but it is a type of yogic breathing.

I'm intrigued by the Yoga for Athletes video though. Are there some meditative aspects to it? I always figured it was more boot-camp-yoga.

Here, the good classes are unbelievably crowded. People's feet in my face is an off-puter too!

[LBTC]

hey, ladies! great comments on the whole yoga thing. I've never been to a class, so I wouldn't really know what to expect from one, except what I've read. Basically, there are so many different types of yoga, and so many different teachers, that there likely is a yoga for everyone!

That said, if you want to avoid the trying a bazillion classes just to find the one that's right for you, do like Kim and I both did. Pick up a Rodney Yee video and start with that. I bought a book, too, and very soon was integrating poses (asanas) from the book in addition to those on the video. 3 years later, I do yoga anywhere from once a week to every day, depending on what else is going on that week, I don't follow a video or anything - I've put together a sequence that works for me. Between those two starting out steps (the vid and the book) and buying Yoga Journal every month (great magazine, and many articles and asana instructions are posted on their site, too http://www.yogajournal.com/ ) I'm enjoying yoga tons!!

Yes, my balance and flexibility have improved, without question. I've also noticed that I'm generally a bit less clumsy and forgetful (I don't suffer as much from "where did I put that thing down that I just had in my hand?" as I used to) and I can focus better and have greater patience with myself. Great things on the mountain bike trail!! Most rides end with a very short sequence of warrior and pigeon poses to stretch hip flexors, quads, glutes, hams, etc, and, if I miss doing that I'm definitely much stiffer!!

As for the pain in the lower back concept - it's important to not cause your body pain, especially sharp pain! Low back compression is often caused by tight hip flexors, which are usually present in those of us who have sit-down jobs and those of us who ride bikes!! The best teachers, videos, books, etc, will also offer variations in poses that help you learn the best form and get you from not much flexibility to being able to do the asana completely.

Hey, one pose (peacock) tooks me 2 years to accomplish! Now I can do it in lotus position, too....

As for the breathing....the closest I get is simply trying to take longer slower belly breaths, which also helps while biking. And as for the spiritual aspects....don't stress it. You might be surprised and achieve some new insights, but I wouldn't worry much about it. Start with the purely physical aspects of the pose and really think deeply about that while you're doing and learning the poses....that process of paying close attention to your body position and your body's feedback can be helpful in so many ways!!

Hope that all helps!

Namaste,
~T~

[aka_kim]

I may be using the term "meditation" incorrectly, maybe it's more "relaxation" techniques in the Yee video. But, the calm and "mindfulness" he discusses are really helpful. Yeah, you do the "breathing through the groins" thing sometimes, but in the context of what you're doing at the time it doesn't seem quite so crazy. And I am becoming more aware of my posture, etc. I sit up straighter, stand in better alignment. Things I'd really never thought much about before.

I'm wasn't initially expecting yoga to help with cycling, other than relief from hip flexor tightness. But what LBTC mentioned about "breathing through pain" does make sense, and will help my climbing.

For me, a video, and this particular video, is a really good intro to yoga.

Kim
(a straight-laced, uptight Californian)

[MightyMitre]

Thanks peeps. I think the idea of Sports Yoga might be worth investigating, especially for the stretching and strengthening aspects.

Maybe the breathing thing will come over time. I know yoga's been around for probably thousands of years, so I'm sure it's very beneficial, but I suppose it's a bit like finding a diet that suits you. I guess one size doesn't fit all but I haven't written it off yet. :)

[Twice Daily]

Personally, I like Pilates better than Yoga...I used to be dancer, so perhaps I'm biased...

This winter I started snowboarding and holy crap! I’ve had a huge improvement in muscle strength and definition...My arms are stronger from pushing myself up off the ground...my core is stronger...and my legs are stronger and more defined! I go about 2x a week (easy to do when you live in Utah and 20 minutes from the resort...)

I've also kept up with spinning, 2- 3 x a week...

My boyfriend used to ride MTB professionally and he never "trained" in the off-season, he just snowboarded 5 x a week and did a lot of mountaineering (to snowboard)...he said he could get back on his bike in the spring without any loss in fitness...

I hate going to the gym...I'd rather just do the activities I like and let my body develop the way it needs to so I can do those activities well...

But...I do know that intervals really increase speed, especially on the flats...and a heart rate monitor is a wonderful thing to have, if you know how to use it...

And lighter bikes go faster up hills...and so do lighter bodies!

[LBTC]

Hey, TD! What a lucky guy he is - no "training"! cool. I think there's some genetics at work there...and once you reach a pretty high fitness level it doesn't take a whole bunch of work to maintain it.

I figure there's just three things that are truly necessary. Whatever you do needs to challenge you physically - it needs to be a good enough workout to give you a result.
Whatever you do you have to really like! If you don't like it you're not likely to do it enough to make a difference!
Whatever you do, you've got to change things up every once in awhile to keep your muscles working differently, once again to keep them challenged.

I'm going to try Pilates this weekend - got a free DVD in a box of cereal! :D And, if this weather holds, we'll have a light fun road ride on our mountain bikes on Sunday afternoon. (our roads are bad enough we almost want the mtb's even in great weather, but right now there's a lot of winter gravel, sand and schmutz on the road, so those skinny road tires would be lethal!!) Should work well to release the tightness in my legs from kickboxing! <grin>

Just get to it, everyone! Pick your fun activity, and keep fit!!

Wahoo and namaste,
~T~