So long

I read many posts about going 50 miles, 100 miles, more. Mind boggling to me, the truth.

My goal is to go 25 miles. If I can get there, I'll be proud of myself. I only started biking again 1 month ago. The first rides were 2 - 3 miles. Then I made it to 5. I can go 10 now but I'm worn out by 10 miles. Well, at least today I am. We went on "C" terrain and, for me, we were trucking. That means about 13 - 14 miles on flats. I did get up to 20 on a downhill. Woowoooo!!!! lol

For those who were ever in my boat - starting again in their mid 50s - how long did it take? Why is it taking me so long? Am I being impatient? My thought was if I did this slowly, I'd have less of a chance of hurting myself. And I wanted to keep it fun. I'm just surprised that I still have to work to get through 10 miles. And I do. My breathing is okay but my muscles are tired after 10 miles. Is this normal? Should I be pushing harder? Or just keep adding a mile a week on my daily loop till I get to where I want to go?

Esther, if your breathing is OK and your muscles are screaming, you might want to add in some strength training and stretching on your off days. Nothing major, even things you can do at home if you don't belong to a gym. Look on line or check out some books for some ideas. Were you doing some other type of fitness activity before? If not, it sounds like you are doing OK for someone who has only been riding for a month. You could try to add in another mile a week, or stick to your schedule and then try to do a longer ride on the weekend. Make sure you are resting and eating/drinking enough before and after you ride!

One month???

It's not taking you that long. You're doing fine. You're going FIVE TIMES as far as you started with.

Some people jump in and take off - and usually when I talk to 'em, oh, by the way, they had been in spinning classes or they jogged 20 miles a week or they had been clinically hyperactive all their lives....

Do you feel stronger? Then it doesn't matter how fast you're going, it's worth it.

esther, you are doing well! regardless of age you say you're only gotten back into cycling a month ago and you're doing 10 miles at a good clip?

keep it up, most important keep it fun, don't neglect the whole rest, recovery & nutrition thang. You'll do your 25 and more if you want.

Cycling is a multi-year sport building up a base and endless cycles of training and rest.

So keep it fun! I'm 50, started back in about 10 years ago and this year plan to do my 3rd 585 mile (in 7 days, not one day :rolleyes: ) CA AIDS ride.

Wow, I can relate to all you said!
I used to ride bike as a kid, but then didn't get on one for 37 years!! Now I'm 52 years old.
I guess about 10 weeks ago I started riding again, on a loaner bike, and about a month ago I got my own bike. (woo-HOOO!)
Anyway... a year ago I was very out of shape (and had accumulated 30 pounds excess weight). I started walking, and over 10 months I lost 20 pounds and got a few muscles going. Then switched to biking these last 2 months and have been pushing myself quite a bit more. I've lost another 4 pounds (only about 6 more to go!) and am gaining more strength.
I bike maybe 3-8 miles a day on weekdays, and then about twice a week I'll go maybe 12 hilly miles in addition to that.
I get out of breath going up hills, I get sore and my muscles are really straining. But I do notice that each week there IS a small difference in my abilities to get up the steeper hills. A month ago there was a ride that really whipped me- and now it doesn't seem as bad. My butt doesnt hurt anymore in my saddle. I walked up a very steep hill today that I used to ALWAYS be out of breath on...and it didn't make me out of breath much at ALL this time!

So, after 10 weeks or so, my longest ride record is 23 miles so far. I'm proud of that, and I worked hard to get to that point! I also know that if I keep at it 25 miles will seem easy one day. Remember, it's the journey, not the destination. I feel so much more healthy and strong than I did months ago, and I really love my rides- and isn't that what really counts? :)

Esther, I started road biking at 47. I started out at a higher mileage than you, 37 miles (and it killed me) but about a year and a half later was able to ride a still-mind-boggling-to-me 375 miles. Actually, when I was able to ride 124 miles (200k) 375 was still mind boggling. (And I am not some skinny little person, either- FAR from it!)

But- fitness/mileage seems to increase exponentially. The higher your mileage gets, the bigger steps you can take! It used to kill me to add on even five more miles in distance, and if a Century was even two miles further than 100 miles, I'd feel like I couldn't do it.

So yes, just add a mile to your loop once a week- make sure you read up about nutrition/electrolytes/hydration so you are prepared when you start going longer than an hour- and you'll get there!

13-14 on flats is the speed I ride a lot of the time. When I do a very long ride, that is my average. it's not too slow!!

Nanci

I've been riding for years but maybe my recent experience will help.

I tore my ACL and MCL in Jan. My right leg was in a brace for 6 weeks to protect the MCL and help it heal. I rode my bike on the trainer 45-60 min. 5-6 days a week and did pt. After 6 weeks I had surgery to replace the ACL. I lost all the strength I had built up before surgery. My quad shunk to nothing, I had minimal strength but I was back on the trainer 9 days after surgery and riding outdoors 4 1/2 weeks after surgery.

However, I felt like a beginner again. At first, I couldn't ride more than an hour. I couldn't climb hills and had to drive to the park to ride (1.2 miles) because I couldn't walk or ride back up the hill near my house. I felt strong but if I pushed myself to much I be so worn out that I'd go home and take a nap. In early June I thought I was doing well so I did a 20 mile ride around a lake near Leadville, Co. There was a 3 mile climb and a 5 mile climb. I was able to climb easily but I was so tired at the end of the ride. The next day we did a 20 miler around Lake Dillion. I came home so tired that I couldn't get on the bike for 3 days. My PT said I had the cardio and strength for the climbing but not the muscle endurance.

To regain my endurance I rode 3 days a week for about 1 hr. and increased my time on Sat and Sun. I gradually increased the weekday ride to 2- 2 hr rides and 1-1 hr rides. My weekend rides increased to about 3 hours depending on how I felt.

About mid-July I no longer needed naps to recover and on longer rides I would feel tired but strong. I just finished a 400 mile tour, which I was very concerned about completing, and my longest day was 80 miles. I didn't dare attempt the century as I knew I wasn't ready for it. Because I trained carefully, listened to my body I was able to handle the long distances and most of the tough days in the wind.

My injury and recovery has taught me alot about myself, I went though a lot of frustration because I set my expectations to high. Muscle endurance was something I always took for granted and expected to be there and was surprised and frustrated when it wasn't. I learned that it takes patience, perservance and resisting the temptation to push yourself to hard to soon.

I'm still not completely recovered and won't be this season but I have 2 more tours planned, will ski and this winter and will be back on the bike in full form next year.

So my message is to give yourself time, ride frequently, if only for 1 hr at a time, stretch, nap if you need to. Challenge yourself with longer rides 1 day a week or so and you'll be amazed how your riding will progress.

Keep working and soon you will be bragging about your 1st century ride too!:)

BTW, I'm 58, so age has little to do with it!

Hi Esther!

It sounds to me like you are doing just fine!! Being able to ride 10 miles in only a month is fantastic :) ! And, 13 - 14 miles/hour on flats is great, too!
When you think of it, if you drive 10 miles, it really is pretty far, don't you think?

Everyone has given you some really good advice. I only started riding in June of this year so I'm new at this just like you.

I count miles, but I personally like to focus on 'how long I'm in the saddle & moving my legs'.

Do you bring a bottle or two of fluids with you? This is VERY important IMO.

You surely will get to your goal of 25 miles IF you keep riding :) ! Most of all, ENJOY!

Have a peaceful evening,

Denise

I've read that you should only increase your mileage by 10% a week. So, if you're riding 5 miles comfortably, the next week it increases by 1/2 a mile. However, that increases exponentially, so you'll really start to gain mileage quickly. Don't worry - it will happen.

I'll argree with everyone else here. give it time... you'll get there.

I think you are doing great. I remember like it was yesterday when I could actually ride 10 miles it was almost as exciting for me as finishing my first century ride.

You want to build a big base with miles and add to that base endurance by challenging yourself on hills and picking up your average speed by doing intervals. Well that's how I did it, years ago and I'm back at it after a couple of years off.

Now I'm doing good to do a 10 miler but the last one I did I felt pretty good after, not my usual tired self. It all takes time and mostly time ON the bike!

Hang in there you've gotten a lot of good advise and will do great I'm sure we'll be hearing stories about your first 100K soon!

Esther -
You're doing great!

Don't be discouraged - it's not taking you long. I'm 50 and have just started as well, having done really no exrecise prior to this. A few weeks ago I was struggling to do 4 miles but its amazing how quickly it builds up. I did 20 miles yesterday, pretty dead flat (nearly killed me!) but I'd never have thought I'd have made such big progress in a relatively short time. I'm going slower than you tho' - average 9mph. The important thing is to do what feels comfortable for you and enjoy it!
I was cycling along a canal towpath yesterday and when things were feeling grim I reminded myself to look at the scenery and relax - it's not a test!

There's some good advice on the thread 'Which gear?'. I was intially making it hard for my self by riding in too big a gear.

One of the most helpful peices of advice came from Geonz who said to get away from feeling like you are pedling up and down and think of it as peddling 'round and round'. This really helped me on my ride yesterday. It somehow makes it easier....not sure why.

Hey you did the hardest part, you got on the bike, and you continue to.

I have a couple suggestions for making your bike rides longer...
give yourself more time. If you've been giving yourself an hour, give yourself two!
or even a whole morning. You didn't say where you live, can you give yourself destinations?
Like you have to go to the library, or on a hot day; the Dairy Queen?
Ride your bike 4 miles to the park, get off, read a little while, watch the ducks,
after an hour, get back on, ride another 4 miles.. (or 10 and 10)

Your average on the flats is great, don't worry about it. I was going up a hill at less than 6mph
yesterday, so don't worry ab out your hill speed either.
And it took me more than 2 years to get to where i wanted to do more than a 5 mile ride
(i did longer ones, but they were miserable)
good luck

Ditto what everyone else said, and a question: are you spinning, I mean as much as possible, rather than trying to push hard gears? I only ask because you said your muscles get tired. If not, then try spinning lower gears and see how that feels. If you're already doing that, then, yes, just keep adding a mile or so whenever you ride and your distance will accumulate before you know it.

I think you're absolutely right about keeping it fun and do-able, so you'll continue to enjoy your rides and not injure yourself. Just keep at it--you're doing fine!

Try throwing in something fun--like Mimi's Dairy Queen ride idea--or even wacky once in a while. This morning my neighbor and I rode to the local Waffle House for breakfast--we wore our girly skorts and had a great time. Only 12 flat miles total, but fun fun fun!:D

I've always been active but never focused on exercise. Which means, I've never done this. Before when I was biking, I didn't have a car, so distance came quickly out of need. Once I found other women to ride with, day trips grew longer. But it just happened. And day trips were always to go somewhere - once we got to where we were going, we'd do whatever it was we went there for. We'd always eat too and then turn around and come back. So, we would do 50 miles but we weren't thinking about doing 50 miles. It just happened and I took it for granted that I would always be able to do what I wanted to do. I don't have a clue how to work at this consciously.

(None of us had a helmet or riding shorts or odometers or used gloves. I like the helmet, I like the shorts, the odometer is very cool but I hate gloves. The LBS says they are really important in case you fall but I hate them and am going to quit wearing them unless I read on this board some place that they are important.)

I am bringing water with me. I'm not great at remembering to drink it but when I'm with DH - he's good at remembering to drink his - so I'm getting better and that has made a difference. I do bring fig newtons after reading about hem here but have not eaten one yet. I don't understand about gatorade or GU. I've always heard gatorade is important if you are doing hard exercise but I don't know at what point it's important. I guess I better go read up on them.

Sounds like I should keep trying to increase my daily loop slowly and ride further on the weekends. I think next weekend, I'll try to find an all flat ride and see is I can go further without my legs screaming at me.

Hills. Inclines. (I don't know how steep an incline needs to be to be called a hill.) I just know that those are gonna be an ongoing challenge and no doubt will be what makes me stronger. Right now, I dread each one. I'm never sure when I get to the top who won. It's a toss up. I get to the top but my legs feel like lead each time. I'd love to get to the top of one and not feel like death warmed over. Time and practice, I know. I needed to know last night that others found this harder than they expected at the beginning and it really does get easier with time.

Much thanks. This board is unbelievably helpful.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Robyn Maislin

Esther, if your breathing is OK and your muscles are screaming, you might want to add in some strength training and stretching on your off days. Nothing major, even things you can do at home if you don't belong to a gym. Look on line or check out some books for some ideas. Were you doing some other type of fitness activity before? If not, it sounds like you are doing OK for someone who has only been riding for a month. You could try to add in another mile a week, or stick to your schedule and then try to do a longer ride on the weekend. Make sure you are resting and eating/drinking enough before and after you ride!

---

This is the route I took. I wanted to be able to get up hills more easily and do a tour. Last summer 25 miles was my longest ride. From Dec 'til May I did weight training (which is great for females anyway to ward off osteoporosis) and some Yoga. Note I wanted to build strength so the trainer advised me to do more weight less reps, this varies from person to person to check out what you need to meet your goals

When I got back on the bike in April, 15 miles was a snap, by May I was able to do 48, June 58 (3 days in a row on a short tour) , July a metric century and August an Imperial Century in with a 434 mile tour!

Keep it up, practice your spinning and shifting and the distance will come

BTW I am 49 years old with a couple of health issues that are a pain but manageble.

Ester,
I think you are doing great! You are being hard on yourself. I am 37 and when I started biking I recall being absolutely giddy to make it 5 miles. It takes endurance and practice. Unless you are planning to race soon, does it mater how fast you are going as long as you are enjoying the ride?

I think you are doing great. I have always been fairly active - but my partner has not - she is now walking and riding a little (50yrsold) - we have found it is better to build up slowly than to overdo it and get too sore or burned out so you can't or don't want to go out.

I have gloves but I mostly forget to put them on. I have these incredible calluses ... but I have a genetic condition that means I have them anyway.

I don't know how important they are in a crash. When I crashed big, I landed on my elbows anyway - but I think most people would have taken the fall on their hands (I automatically went into my "swimming pool entry with goggles" and did this great belly flop onto the gravel, splaying my arms to "spread out the splash," which, ahem, does NOT work as well no gravel as it does in a swimming pool!! Perhaps fortunately I was at the back and nobody saw...) They'd have been pretty torn up by the gravel... I suppose. But let's see if anybody pipes up and says "gloves saved my hands!" I do know that my totally minimalist buddies who don't even wear padded shorts most of the time do have helmet, toe clips, and gloves all the time, but I k now some people need 'em or their wrists and shoulders hurt. (I thank my piano teachers for getting me in the habit of good wrist placement...)
There are "lite" gloves - you might want to go the LBS and try some different kinds.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by esther231

I read many posts about going 50 miles, 100 miles, more. Mind boggling to me, the truth.

For those who were ever in my boat - starting again in their mid 50s - how long did it take? Why is it taking me so long? Am I being impatient? My thought was if I did this slowly, I'd have less of a chance of hurting myself. And I wanted to keep it fun. I'm just surprised that I still have to work to get through 10 miles. And I do. My breathing is okay but my muscles are tired after 10 miles. Is this normal? Should I be pushing harder? Or just keep adding a mile a week on my daily loop till I get to where I want to go?

---

Esther, As per usual, you are getting some awesome advice from the crew here. Boatloads of experience and great tips. I just wanted to chime in with my $0.02.

First....you are doing awesome. Mind-boggling distances that others are doing is great motivation, but don't use that as a yardstick to measure your own progress. Keep your perspective: you want to have fun. I don't think anyone here would be riding it it wasn't fun. Don't be so hard on yourself. You've been riding for only a month.

It's normal to feel sore after a work out. Don't forget to stretch before and after a ride - that means your quads, hamstrings, calves, as well as your lower and upper back. Stretching is very important and all to often blown off (I'm super guilty of it myself). Don't forget to eat - eat for fuel before the ride and for recovery afterwards. There are some great tips sprinkled thoughout these forums that you could read. And remember, Advil is not a crime, in fact, it's my best friend after many rides, and I'm "only" 38. :D

And I think someone else mentioned this: be careful of pushing those big gears. "Spin, spin, spin, pedal, pedal, pedal" a friend of mine used to tell me. Pedal smoothly at a comfortable cadence. And pedal circles - not up and down. Think of it like you are scraping dog poo off the bottom of your shoe. The most efficient stroke is from 3-9, if you imagine your crank as a clock, with 12 being crank arm straight up, and 6 being straight down.

Keep up the good work!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Geonz

But let's see if anybody pipes up and says "gloves saved my hands!"

---

Not from my own experience...but recently another rider and I stopped to help this woman who was clipped by the trailer being towed behind a pickup and sent sprawling into a gravel driveway. Truck kept going, of course. She had only a brief time to ride while her husband watched the kids, so she rushed out the door, forgetting her gloves. Fortunately she had her helmet, at least! But she was really cursing her misfortune, and the truck, as she picked gravel out of her scraped and bloodied palms.

Yup....gloves are a necessary accessory in my book!

When I went over the handle bars on the NCR trail in Maryland. I was rolling about 17 mph on a gravel trail. Something got caught between my front wheel and my brake. My bike stopped and I went flying. Graceful me, I stuck my left arm out when I hit the ground. I must have landed on the palm of my hand (the glove was covered with dust and tiny pieces of rock) then slid on my elbow. There was blood running down my arm from a nasty wound around the elbow. It hurt like crazy.

I ended up in the emergency room in York, Pa. My elbow had a decent size stone under the skin, which they dug out and I wound up with medial epicondalitis (golfer's elbow). I was off the bike for the rest of the summer, in pt, with 2 cortisone shots to calm it down. I still have a nasty scar on my arm from the crash.

So, yes, I can say gloves saved my from some nasty road rash on my hands.

Execpt for my last crash, I've shredded the gloves I had on at the time. I'd rather not have to deal with scar tissue, and only having to one hand. Having your arm in a sling is bad enough...

Alright, alright. I think enough of you are saying gloves are important that I need to make peace with them. Yuck though. lol

Clearly the ones I have - pearls - aren't making me happy. Which ones have any of you had luck with? I think it's the gel that's annoying me to death. Seemed like such a good idea when I bought them.

Great suggestions. I do stretch. I don't do weight training. I think it would help, it makes sense. And stay in low gears. Making circles - instead of up and down - did help today when I went.

OMG, do I go slow on inclines or hills. Miracle the bike stays upright. lol

I'll visit the nutrition threads and see what's been written there.

Again, much thanks. This would be so much harder without this forum. Like having a cheat sheet for biking!!!

I like the specialized Body geometry or the plain ones from REI

http://www.teamestrogen.com/products.asp?pID=17288

These are my current favorites. I love them so much I'll wear them after a snake musked them (they also wash well- they just have to actually make it into the house for that to happen) rather than putting on a clean pair...

I did a slow-motion tip over back in June caused by some "tricky, lazy" maneuvering without thinking through what would happen when I rode into soft ground. My right hand went skidding along about three feet of asphalt. Not a mark on it, or the gloves!

They have gel, but not great globs of it, and they have this cool breathable mesh, and no velcro, which I thought I wouldn't like, but I actually love.

Nanci

Wow, this is a great thread. I rode my bike as a kid and a little more seriously in my mid thirties, but now I'm 51 and about 90 pounds overweight. I started riding (Trek 800 MTB) for my health about three weeks ago. My longest ride to date is 3.34 miles in about 22 minutes. I'm concentrating on keeping a steady pace pedaling and learning how to use the gears. I won't break any speed or distance records, but I feel so much better.

My goal is to be able to ride 5 miles by the time the snow and ice hit later this year. I try to ride a couple times during the week and on Saturday and Sunday.

Thanks for all the great suggestions and kindness shown to "newbies". :D

Carol

1 month is not that long. I know it took me a good year until I became a strong cyclist. So, don't be too hard on yourself. Just keep working on your miles and you will get stronger each day.

Quote:

---

My breathing is okay but my muscles are tired after 10 miles. Is this normal? Should I be pushing harder? Or just keep adding a mile a week on my daily loop till I get to where I want to go?

---

Let me ask you, are you muscling through your pedal strokes? If so, you might be in too high of a gear and mashing on the pedals. What you want to do is raise your cadence (a bike computer will give you this reading), up to around 90, and then you will be spinning your pedals.

Also, if you get a bike computer with cadence, you will know when to shift into high/lower gears. For example, if you are riding and your cadence is at 70, then you know that you need to shift down, to make it easier to pedal.

Keep up the great work, and keep plugging away. It takes time and many miles, but you will become stronger each day!

Hey Carol, unless it snows soon, I bet you'll make your goal long before winter.
It is great that you are out there doing it.
My husband always said if you can do x miles, you can add another 20%
for the next ride (if you wanted to) so by his reckoning, you're just about there!

keep up the good work, hearing from gals like you is inspirational.

My son is a macho dude who has to learn everything by doing it himself.
Fortunately for us, he has always ridden with a bike helmet (from a very young age) so this was never an issue. He had taken to riding without gloves and protective glasses.
On a ride recently a large insect hit him so close to his eye that his eye teared for miles. He came home and found his glasses after that one. He told me he was glad it wasn't a bee.
Then he was horsing around with his girlfriend this year; she actually grabbed his handlebars and he went down hard on his hand, wearing no gloves.
What a mess! He had to go to the ER twice, the second time was because the first time they didn't pick alll of the rocks out of the deep wound. He has a horrible scar (his hands are already scarred up from other incidents) but
it took forever to heal. he wears his gloves now...

I try to add a little more distance each week or have a different destination in mind. I will probably try the library next week :o

Thanks for the encouragment. :o

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by biking4health

I try to add a little more distance each week or have a different destination in mind. I will probably try the library next week :o

Thanks for the encouragment. :o

---

Welcome!

Keep us up to date on your progress - I am sure you'll be amazed at how well you do and we want to rejoice with you! :D

These are my favorite gloves:
http://www.teamestrogen.com/products.asp?pID=12604
I went to a store that had LOTS of gloves, including many for women. I tried them all on and was amazed at how many were not comfortable at all. These however, felt miles more comfy than all the rest, and so I just had to get them. I have a pretty small woman's hand, and the women's Medium size fit me best.

Carol,
Good for YOU, out there on your bike!! Join the happy club here!
My method is just to increase a little whenever what I've been doing seems easy and I feel like going a bit more. What could be simpler? I keep my goals do-able so I don't get discouraged. Works for me! :D

I luckily have my husband to ride with, altho its rather frequent that he will leave me high and dry, all by myself, pushing along at my own pace (needless to say his legs are much stronger than mine so he leaves me in the dust). But what I found works for me, is that when I have crested the 12 mile mark and feel that I just can't go anymore, I slip into an easier gear and remind myself that I am not a quitter (I started at about 9 miles in an hour's time 6 weeks ago and now am about 14 miles in an hour's time). Its like I get my second wind and after that slight breather on that easy gear, I'm changing it back up and adding distance beyond my initial goal. Some nights are better than others, but I have progressed quickly, and you will too, before you even realize its happened.

Well... I have little to add to everything the other TE gals have said...

Just want to stress that it is very important with goals to make them SMART...

Specific
Measurable
Acheivable
Realistic
Time-bound

With emphasis for you on Realistic and Achievable
When we make goals too big, they become things that just disilliusion us.

Example... I started training for a 10km fun ride with my youngest children in September 2004
One of my goals in 2005 was to ride 50km
One of my goals this year is to ride 100km - so far this year my longest ride has been 83km.

The point of my post is to remind you that steady riding at steady speeds is extremely important as part of your training programme.
So is patience.

While I have no interest (at the moment - never say never, huh?) in entering a 100km or 100mile event, and prefer to focus on short rides which mean most of my training rides are 20-50km long, I do wish to know I can do longer rides... I do wish to be able to go on some of the training rides my partner and eldest son do (their Sunday rides are often 120-160km long)... so I have set my goals.

But I have set my goals acknowledging my age (41), my limited training base (nearly two years), limitations on my training (I work a 40 hour week and have five children which both take a considerable amount of energy and time).

Next year my goal will be an imperial century (100 miles/160km)...

Have fun, relax and enjoy the little milestones - added up they become huge!!!