newly ambitious rider seeks ideas

This past year, after 30+ years of almost daily bike commuting, I took up longer distance cycling.
I signed up to do a charity ride, and accidentally got into randonneuring. Not sure I'll do the charity ride again -- several logistical/organizational concerns about the event -- but I know I'd like to do more rando riding.
One small hitch: I have Crohn's disease. It's mostly mild, and I manage it with daily meds and reasonable (for me) diet). But I'd like to find ways to work around the symptoms (frequent bathroom trips and occasional fatigue due to body's inability to break food down fully and process nutrients).
This year I rode five brevets populaires (100 to 112km each) and finished four. I finished three within the time limit. Next year I want to work my way up to a 200km brevet.
Since I'm not experienced at "training" per se, and since I work for a living and don't have tons of free time, how can I move towards my goal in a sane, healthy and efficient manner?
I already commute daily, and try to schedule occasional weekend rides with friends. My bike fits me comfortably and I enjoy riding a lot, though I mostly ride alone because of both schedule and relative slowness of my average pace.
Additional suggestions welcome.
Thanks much.
beth
http://bikelovejones.livejournal.com

Sounds like you need to work on getting faster, partly to allow you to finish in the randoneur time allotments, and partly to get you to a bathroom quicker, should the need arise. There are lots of threads already started on training, and there are other sites that might have helpful information, too. The Bicycling Magazine site has a lot of discussion on a whole separate forum for "training". But the basic key to riding faster is simply to go out there & ride faster. You'll have to push yourself. That doesn't mean everyday, but you'll have to find time to ride beyond what might feel comfortable right now.

My husband & I both work, and we try to ride everyday. I ride in the early morning before my work day starts, so I have a chance to shower & change after my workout. I will make certain days a "hard ride", and push really hard. Other days I will back off. My husband is a commuter, so his method is similar but different because he can't get home to shower & change. He will make one leg of his daily ride a long ride, to get in base mileage. On the way home, which is short, he will push really hard to get home as fast as he can, both to beat traffic & still catch the last bit of daylight.

Once you get faster, you might want to ride with some local groups. It is a good idea to ride with a group that challenges you. It will make you ride faster just to try to keep up. And it's ok to get dropped, nothing personal, just use it as a vehicle in your training. If you finish the ride with the group easily & your heart isn't even pounding, the group is too slow for you. You want to work hard to get better for your long-distance events.

Good luck in the brevets!

Hey Beth! Welcome.

(I feel like I know you from all your posts on the iBob & Riv lists)

- Jo.

You're not alone - Quite a few list members, or their family/SO's have Crohn's disease. I imagine they'll chime in soon, but in the meantime you can search the forum for the word Crohn's, you might be surprised how many hits pop up.