How can i get my speed up???

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07-25-2010, 09:10 AM
przc

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
07-25-2010, 09:15 AM
EasilyLead

everyday is gonna feel different. take a couple of days rest and then you will be more refreshed.
07-25-2010, 09:23 AM
KnottedYet

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.
07-25-2010, 10:30 AM
przc

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.
07-25-2010, 10:38 AM
KnottedYet

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.
07-25-2010, 10:48 AM
BikeHN

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.
07-25-2010, 10:57 AM
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??
07-25-2010, 11:05 AM
KnottedYet

Quote:

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??

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.
07-25-2010, 12:09 PM
XMcShiftersonX

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.
07-25-2010, 12:32 PM
nscrbug

Quote:

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

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
07-25-2010, 04:49 PM
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 ;)
07-25-2010, 09:01 PM
marni

improving speed

Quote:

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 ;)

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

marni
07-26-2010, 01:25 AM
Catrin

Quote:

Originally Posted by marni

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

marni

Same here. I have pedaled as high as 19.8 mph - but that was during intervals and not sustainable for me - as yet.
07-27-2010, 06:52 AM
TrekTheKaty

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!
07-27-2010, 07:21 PM
aicabsolut

Quote:

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??

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

* "spin" being relative to your comfortable cadence...what Knotted said
07-27-2010, 10:53 PM
smilingcat

just keep riding at a pace where you are breathing a little faster than usual. Speed will come naturally.

As for cadence, someone suggested higher than 60rpm. It's a good advice. Normal people will keep their cadence between 60 to 90 maybe 100rpm.

Don't fret and just keep riding.
07-28-2010, 04:04 AM
przc

Thank-you all for your responses. When i rode yesterday i tried keeping my bike in a higher gear and since i am used to feeling the lower gears when riding i kept switching back and forth. I actually felt i went slower than usual in high gear but then i had felt the same when that guy told me to switch to lower gears and spin more. His words were spin to win and it will keep your legs tone not bulky from higher gears.
07-28-2010, 06:02 AM
KnottedYet

Quote:

Originally Posted by przc

His words were spin to win and it will keep your legs tone not bulky from higher gears.

Keeping the legs toned not bulky. That's a new take on high cadence I've never heard before.

Heaven forfend a woman should have visible muscles. Or be able to use a larger gear than a man and pass his sorry butt...

Pedal at your happy cadence, change gears to change speeds.

"Drop into a lower gear and spin to win!" I'll have to remember that next time someone is going too fast for me to keep up and I need to make her slow down. (Your current speed is already awesome, and if you keep riding you are going to get much faster.)
07-28-2010, 09:32 AM
przc

I just have to say i have very muscular legs ( I think he was itimidated) LOL.
I bumped a old post back to the top i thought it was helpful.
07-28-2010, 09:41 AM
Aquila

It's also worth remembering that the guy who passed you could be a Cat 1 racer or something, or doing intervals, or whatever. Even the best bikers get passed on occasion.

17mph sounds like a GREAT cruising speed. If you're smiling and having fun, you're doing well.