How can i get my speed up???

I rode 33 miles yesterday and it took me 1hr47min and today i went out on a 23 mile ride and it took 1hr19min. I thought i was going a good pace average 15mph then today this guy rode past me and just left me in the dust dust dust and killed my confidence that i was doing well.lol I ride 4-5 times a week 20-25 miles average and average speed is 15mph and sometimes i do go lower. What advice can you give me to pick up the speed?? Because the next time i see him coming i want to leave him behind.lol

everyday is gonna feel different. take a couple of days rest and then you will be more refreshed.

Shift up one gear higher than you generally cruise in, and make yourself catch your cadence back up to your usual rpm.

It's very tiring at first, but once you get the bike up to speed it is easier to keep it going there.

When you feel you are getting fatigued, drop back down into your customary gear.

Keep working your way into the higher gears and soon you'll be using them more, and going faster, and passing folks without really feeling the effort.

Gears are magic tricks you can play on your legs!

If you are already at your top gear and getting passed, then you might want to look at chainring options to get you higher gears.

Can you please explain the gears to me. Are the hard gears the higher gears and low the easier? I never thought to ask i just change them as needed.

Yeah, the high gears are the harder gears. The bigger chain (front) rings and the smaller cassette (rear) cogs.

Sheldon Brown (RIP) has some great articles about gearing: http://sheldonbrown.com/gearing/index.html

Sheldon wrote great articles about everything, really. Grab a beer and a comfy chair and you could easily spend hours reading his stuff.

I'm glad you brought that up przc, I feel the same way. I feel like my cadence is high and I'm at a good pace then ZOOM!! I'm just left peddaling in awe. I have the bad habit of getting lazy on the flats too, which doesn't help my avg. speed at all.

When i went riding with a experienced rider he told me. The more spin you have the better (stay in low gears). Is thre any truth to this??

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Originally Posted by przc

When i went riding with a experienced rider he told me. The more spin you have the better (stay in low gears). Is thre any truth to this??

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Totally depends on your physiology.

Some people's bodies are more efficient at higher rpm, some people's aren't.

Generally, whatever rpm you feel good at is where you are efficient, and you change speed by changing gears. The range of gears lets your body pedal at its happy rpm regardless of the speed of the bicycle.

To go faster, you get into a higher gear.

Caveat on the rpm: in general, to be good to your knees, you probably want your rpm to be 60 or higher.

Also, when you're training in the fall and winter, work on doing intervals - so riding at a comfortable pace for a certain amount of time, and then spending a short amount of time sprinting, and go back and forth for your entire work out. There's videos like "spinervals" that you can use while on your trainer when inside, and then you can apply those same principles when you get outside.

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Originally Posted by przc

I rode 33 miles yesterday and it took me 1hr47min and today i went out on a 23 mile ride and it took 1hr19min. I thought i was going a good pace average 15mph then today this guy rode past me and just left me in the dust dust dust and killed my confidence that i was doing well.lol I ride 4-5 times a week 20-25 miles average and average speed is 15mph and sometimes i do go lower. What advice can you give me to pick up the speed?? Because the next time i see him coming i want to leave him behind.lol

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Hmm...perhaps my math is off, but 33 miles in under 2 hours equates to something like a 17mph average...that's pretty darn impressive IMO. Heck, a few weeks back I rode 38 miles and it took me almost 3 hours!!! :eek: Now granted, I was riding in a hellacious headwind...but still...3 freakin' hours!!!! Today we rode 85 miles and it took us 5 hours, 50 mins. Again...a strong headwind for 42 miles can really sap the energy right out of you. Even with a 20mph tailwind on the way back home, I still felt totally gassed.
You should be proud of the speed you're riding at...keep up the good work!

Linda

You're doing fine ! 17mph is very respectable....speed comes with time in the saddle be patient you'll get to where you want to be ;)

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Originally Posted by ctdancer

You're doing fine ! 17mph is very respectable....speed comes with time in the saddle be patient you'll get to where you want to be ;)

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I would love to be able to average 17 mph anytime over more than just a short sprint.

marni

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Originally Posted by marni

I would love to be able to average 17 mph anytime over more than just a short sprint.

marni

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Same here. I have pedaled as high as 19.8 mph - but that was during intervals and not sustainable for me - as yet.

I find it's just like running. The more hill rides and long distance rides I do, the better my average speed on the shorter rides is. Just keep riding. I've been trying to catch my husband for year's. Unfortunately, he is increasing in fitness as fast as me!

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Originally Posted by przc

When i went riding with a experienced rider he told me. The more spin you have the better (stay in low gears). Is thre any truth to this??

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but to go fast, you must learn to "spin" a high gear.


* "spin" being relative to your comfortable cadence...what Knotted said