At this point you have your bike, you have all the equipment you need and you are happy with you riding position on the bike, what is the next step? First you have to work out when you have time to spare for your cycling.

We all have busy lives and we can all find excuses to do anything but go take some exercise. So, set a time aside for your cycling, if it’s when you get up in the morning, before work, or at lunch break, or after work in the evening, whenever it’s going to be that’s THE time you’re going out on the bike, NO EXCUSES!

How Much Time?

How much time can you spare for your cycling? This is also how much time do you want to spare for your cycling? If you want to do an hour a day then you will find the time and if you can stretch that to two hours then that’s better, basically the more the better.

Here is the Warning!

If you have not ridden your bike much and you are unfit or you are over weight or have been ill or suffered from chest pains, head aches or any other ailment or taking medication or not had a medical check-up lately, if you are over forty or got any medical worries, then make an appointment at your doctors and discuss what you are considering doing and make sure he thinks this is a good idea.

At this point I also need to tell you to take it easy, start easy and work up, don’t go at it hard, especially at first, not too long and not too hard, slowly and easy, enjoy it, don’t push it.

How Long and How Hard?

If you can do half an hour at a reasonable speed without getting out of breath then that’s a great start, from there build up by doing a little more every day until you are doing an hour, from there you can do more if you have the time, if not, don’t worry, an hour every day is enough to bring your fitness on in a progressive steady way.

Once you are riding for an hour a day (5 or 6 days a week) then you can change the program a bit to the next step.

Start to Ramp It up a Bit

So you have built up your riding to an hour and it feels easy and you want more, OK do you have the time? Yes, great, with the next move you will not actually do more time, but will do it differently. Instead of doing an hour every ride every day, now do two hours on alternate days, two hours on Monday, two hours Tuesday and two hours Friday or Saturday. On the other days take it easy and spend time with the family or do the thing you should have been doing when you were out on your bike.

What’s the Next Step?

You should be getting pretty fit by now if you have sticking to the plan, remember an hour is enough, don’t feel guilty if you cant move up to two hours, keep at an hour, but try to get out every day for that time and you will notice a difference, if you have moved on to the two hour rides then great, we can only do what we can in the time available. You should still be riding within yourself and not getting out of breath, but you should be fit enough to start trying a little harder.

Pick one day a week, preferably a day you will be able to rest after your ride or be able to rest the next day, on this day you are going to try harder, on the little climbs ride hard, so that you are out of breath by the top, start by doing this on one or two climbs on the first hard day, building up to riding hard on all the little hills and resting in between.

If you live in a flat area, pick lamposts or bus stops to ride hard between. You can step up your training like this if you are riding one hour or two, but be careful not to push too hard, make sure you have warmed up properly and remember you only need to do one hard ride a week and remember to enjoy it.

How Do I know if I am Improving?

You should feel that your ride is getting easier or you should be doing the same ride faster and you should be recovering quicker and feeling fresher after the ride and the next day and the world should be looking a nicer place. It’s a good idea to take your pulse in the morning, average resting pulse rate is around 72 beats per minute, take a note of yours and it should be getting lower as you get fitter, if you are tired or have a cold or flu then it will usually go up and it’s a good guide to not go training that day and have a day off.

The Scientific Method

The best way to train scientifically is by your pulse, you can’t take your pulse as you are riding as this is dangerous, much better idea to have a pulse monitor.

You need to know what your maximum heart rate is, this can be measured exactly in a laboratory, but an approximation is 220 minus your age, so an 18 year old would have a maximum of 202 beats per minute and should train at 70% which would be 141 beats, so on long ride he would ride at around 140-150 bpm. If the 18 year old or any of us was to ride at a higher pulse we would get tired quicker, but to ride at this higher pulse for short time is interval training and once you get fit this is the best way to improve.

To ride between 50% and 60% is the best fat burning rate, on a normal ride you will find you cover all these pulse ranges, but a pulse monitor can be used to fine tune your training and keep a record of your rides.

Four Season Training

If you want to move on then read our “Four Season Training” article and start from the autumn easy section through to the harder sections, but you will have to adapt this information depending on whether you want to race or do endurance rides or just ride for fun, and that’s the most important thing, HAVE FUN!

In previous years you just trained, trained and trained, this meant miles, miles and more miles, you got fit, tired and eventually over-trained and probably didn’t get any faster than the other riders you would be riding with.

These days riders specialize, they train specifically for certain events or certain times of year, so when we talk about winter training we really mean the time of year when your not racing, but building up to a decisive time in your training, spring training will be your big build up to summer time and a full race program, autumn time is the time to wind down, you cant stop riding but there is no pressure on for quality training and top race performances.

Depending on where you live you will race at different times, for instance, Northern Europe you race in the middle of summer, but further South, racing in the middle of summer would be impossible in the heat, in which case you might in fact have two seasons, one in spring and another in autumn, with a break for the heat, then if you live south of the equator everything is all back to front, so read on, but adapt what you read to suit your season and weather conditions.

Autumn Training or Wind Down Time

This is the time to take it easy, you have to ride your bike or you’ll just seize up, take a holiday, recharge the batteries and feel like a normal human being again. Then start riding your bike for enjoyment, go for long rides with your friends, maybe even take your partner for an easy ride, it might get you some space later in the season!

Build up the miles, don’t go at it too hard, start slowly on easy roads and short distances with the emphasis on pleasure, then as you start to feel stronger lengthen the distances and build in a lunch stop, but keep in mind that you are not racing for quite a long time and you have a lot of work to do before then.

Winter Cycling Training or Build Up Time

Now some proper training starts, longer rides, harder rides, but not top end speed work, that’s for the final section of full training in the spring. This part of the year is very important, it’s the basis of all your training from now on, longer rides, depending on what kind or racing you do and how long you will be racing.

If you only raced for an hour then there is no point in training for five to six hours, but then if you are racing over those sort of times then you will have to train long hours, obviously younger rider should not be training as hard or as long as a older more experienced rider. Build up to between four to six hours, but be careful not to over do it, as this is the time of year that you could get run-down and catch a cold or some other virus.

Start with long flat rides and then add in some more hills, but not too severe, then as before when you feel stronger put in good long climbs. At the start of this section you should feel fresh, but knowing that you have been for a good ride, if you feel like you have done nothing then you are not doing enough, step it up another notch.

Coming to the end of this faze you should be feeling the effort, this means you have to rest more, maybe a sleep after your ride, this is the best time for recovery, get in from your ride, shower, a hot drink and some toast and a nice “siesta” before dinner time. This long distance training gives you the foundations to build the rest of your house of training.

Spring Training or Full Training Time

Now you have to start introducing speed work into your program, there is three main ways of doing this. First, training with others always makes you ride faster and if ridden at near race speed then this is the best way to get your speed up, simulating race conditions also makes you aware of tactics, and if you introduce some sprints, for town signs or lampposts this helps the speed and sprinting ability.

Secondly, interval training on your own, this can be done by sprinting for short or long distances, but the best way (specially for road racing) is to have a mix of distances of sprints and different rests in between as this is what will happen in races, you never know when you are going to have to try hard or how long you will to rest in between. Pick a route that you use regularly that has lampposts or phone line posts all round the course.

Once you have warmed up properly start to sprint between the first and second lamppost and resting between the second and third, this is better if they are spread unevenly, so changing distances of the rests and sprints. For time trailing or solo Triathlon riding you could use a set distance, a quarter, a half or a full mile and build up to doing full mile intervals, remembering to rest when you feel tired or stop and go home if you just cant get going, but you must be riding flat out when doing them.

Thirdly, racing, this is a great way of bring on your speed, race hard for half the race or more, but understand that you will not finish the race, but do as much as you can without going to deep into your reserves. This is a great way to train but can work out to be expensive with traveling etc. also it may annoy other riders as you will be riding hard early on with no intension of finishing. All the above methods can be done with the help of a heart rate monitors, this is a big subject of its own that we cover in another article.

Summer Time or Peak Race Time

You are now fit and ready to race, picking your races to suit your abilities and talents. Between races you need to rest, training will depend on how much you are racing, a hard race on Sunday will mean doing an easy ride on Monday, a good ride with friends on Tuesday (with a little speed work), Wednesday could possibly be a short race or a good hard ride if you are not racing till Sunday, Thursday should be like Tuesday Friday shouldn’t be too hard, not to much climbing so the legs are not to heavy. Saturday you should spin the legs and think about Sundays race.

The training you should be doing at this time of year is if you need to improve a part of your cycling, sprinting, climbing, solo riding or even your bike handling skills, it will be obvious from your racing what you will need to look at for improvement. Massage is something you should also consider as it helps recovery from racing and training and also any injuries will be picked up sooner rather than later.

To Sum Up

To put it all together, build up slowly, don’t do too much too early and remember to rest, if you feel tired don’t go out, if you are starting to feel that you must go out, even when you don’t want, this is time to take a rest and start again, over training will ruin your season, take it easy, go for some nice easy rides and remind yourself why you are doing this, the main thing is to enjoy your riding, be it racing or just training.

Now it is possible to train in your country and have your coach on the other side of the world, you can send him all your daily training data, distance, duration, altitude, speed, pulse and power output in watts, all from your bike via the internet, your coach can tell if you are training properly or going to the coffee for too many cakes.

Pulse Monitors

There are many different pulse monitors, some cycling specific and some only read your pulse, and these are good but are an extra thing to clutter up the handlebars on your bike or wrist.

Cycling specific heart rate monitors give much more information at the touch of a button.

Polar, and specially its triathlon heart rate monitor, the Polar S725x is perhaps the most known brand for fitness rate monitors. Most give you information on how far you have gone and how long it has taken you and what speed you were doing, as well your pulse while doing it.

Spend a little more money and your monitor will tell you your altitude, the steepness of the climb, the temperature, pedal revolutions and will work out approximate power out put and you can download all of this too your computer for you or your coach to analyse later.

Power Cranks
These are very expensive piece of kit; you replace the existing cranks on your bike with this special chain-set.

The read out from these special cranks tells you all that the pulse monitor does, plus your power out put and with some power cranks the difference between the left and the right leg. It’s mainly used on cycling high intensity training.

How To Train

The old ways of training as much as you could, made you strong, possibly fast, but definitely tired. These days’ people make more of there time training. You still have to do the miles, but after you have the basic fitness you can turn to specialised training methods.

This is where a pulse monitor can come in helpful. Interval training has been around for years, the best way is to go with a group of others and take turns to ride hard at the front and rest behind, the smaller the group the more times you have to ride hard and less places to hide from the wind.

On your own you can do the same, but you have to pick points were to ride hard and when to rest. With a pulse monitor you have it to tell you when to try hard and when not to and when to go home because you have done enough.

The main thing is to enjoy your cycling, when it becomes a chore that’s when to stop and do some thing else until you want to ride your bike. Pulse monitors can take the guess work out of training, but you must listen to what you body says, rest when you don’t want to do it and ride hard when you do, but have fun.

There are also some kind of accessories for warming up and body care.

• Warming Oil : If you are racing or going to be training hard you need to prepare the muscles for the coming efforts, the warming oil helps that preparation for physical activity by increasing blood circulation and oxygenizes the muscle thanks to the presence of Ozonides
• Reskin BioRacer cycling patches : protecting inner-thigh/buttock areas from irritation and friction

The best way for a successful season is setting a proper training plan. This could be done simply by having a four season cycling training program . However, if you are new on cycling, or have just started riding bikes, and don’t know how to train with some kind of improvement, we HIGHLY recommend reading first our beginners cycling program .

We received an e-mail from a reader who feels that his age (48) is slowing him down and what can he do to combat it. Read what we have to say about age and cycling training.

Winter and Indoor Bike Training

Vartan (one of our newsletter readers) wants some pointers on training on rollers, the do’s and don’ts. We give him and anyone else contemplating home training some help with how you should go about it and warn about the boredom and the heat read more here:

Indoor Cycling Training for the Winter

Hi,
I’m looking for a review of POWERCRANKS,
Thanks
Carlos Mendoza

Hi Carlos,

Here at www.bike-cycling-reviews.com we have not managed to do a review on Power cranks yet, but I hope to be able to do one eventually.

A review on Powercranks has to be done over a long time so that improvements can be noted and logged and compared to previous years training and racing, you don’t want to spend all that money to discover that you are doing the same training as before and not improving.

If you want to spend money on improving your training and racing, I would suggest getting in touch with a coach, either local or on the internet.

A coach can help you in many different ways, you may still want to buy a set of Powercranks, but your coach will be able to tell you what all the numbers mean and what you have to do to improve your performance.

If you are looking for an on-line review there is many on the cycling Internet, I’m sure I’ve seen reviews on pezcyclingnews and cyclingnews, check those out and good luck.

Question:
I am getting a set of 404 cyclecross/pave wheels built onto some 240 DT Swiss hubs.

I have heard that these wheels are fast.What’s the possible fastest have anyone ever clocked them on the flat? I’m putting my on a sirrus pro flat bar with a dura ace drivetrain.

Hi van sharp,

This is a difficult question to answer as we don’t know everyone who is riding the same wheels as you, but I’m sure the wheels are fast, don’t worry about it.

Its more than the wheels that help you ride fast, the tires and inner tubes make a big difference, latex inner tubes and expensive tires and remember to pump them up hard, proper pressure makes a big difference.

Aerodynamics are very important for speed, go out with one of your training partners, going down a hill one of you get in as much of an aerodynamic position as you can and the other sitting up more, then see what difference it makes, you will see aerodynamics can affect speed more than wheels.

Send us a picture of your bike for our Bike Gallery when you’ve built up.

The Cyclo-CORE Complete TRAINING and NUTRITION

I had noticed that I was struggling near the end of a ride with my training buddies and knew I needed some outside help with my training plans. The Cyclo-CORE Program is not complicated, but a simple step by step guide to cycling improvement.

As I became more involved with my new training system the first thing I noticed was the improvement in my climbing, previously I was last up the hills, it was embarrassing, I would tell my training partners not to wait, I felt as though I was holding them back, then I would finish the ride on my own, depressed and dejected.


As my climbing improved I managed to stay with the weaker riders, then I managed to stay with the strong riders and eventually I was battling it out with the best of them.

This all came about due to my weight loss with the Cyclo-Core nutrition plan which combines fat-loss and healthy eating, climbing has changed from drudgery to a pleasure as I’ve dropped a few lbs in less than six weeks and due to this I have more suppleness in my lower back and more strength to push on the pedals.

As well as weight loss the Cyclo-CORE works on my bike handling skills, my training mates have remarked on not only my climbing but, also my descending and cornering, my confidence is sky high.

Yoga, stretching, cross training is all part of the Cyclo-CORE Program. My suppleness and strength has multiplied beyond recognition as has my pedaling efficiency and my average speed on training rides has gone up by 2 mph or more.

The work outs have extended my endurance, hard work is not something I’m scared of, but it has to be efficiently done and the Cyclo-CORE Program has shown me the “method” to train properly.

So what is my next move? I’ve gone from no-hoper into an aspirant Ironman;

My improvements have given me the confidence to compete in duathlons,  and a triathlons.

All is going very well and I’ve entered my first full Ironman event by 2009.

I’m not worried and I cant wait to get on the start line for my first hard swim-bike-run, last season I couldn’t even have dreamt to be able to stay with my ride mates, but now I’m a strong, confident athlete, thanks to the Cyclo-CORE Training Program.

More about the cyclo core training programs at their website:

http://www.bikecyclingreviews.com/adtk/go.php?c=cycloclore

Massage is a very important part of preparation for effort and having smooth legs is a necessity for good massage. Comfort in the saddle is of utmost importance; here we go through our experiences with Ozone’s Body Care products.

The Depil Mousse Revisited

Matteo gave me some really useful advice, first I thought the Mousse had a bad smell, but as Matteo pointed out it does have a slight Ozone scent because the Ozone is not odorless, and if you want it to be real effective you must have Ozone, also I used it in a confined space which is also not advisable. Also I left the Mousse on too long which caused the warm feelings I had, so basically follow the instructions, not like what I did!

So to the second shot at the Depil Mousse, this time I followed the instructions and only left it on for the advised time and no longer, the smell isn’t so bad and I didn’t get any burning of the skin, most importantly the hairs where gone, much easier and quicker than wet or electric shaving. The smoothness is wonderful for massage and the look is great and I have learnt two lesson, how to get perfectly smooth legs and to read the instructions first.

The Warming Oil for Before Activity

Warming Oil

If you are racing or going to be training hard you need to prepare the muscles for the coming efforts, the warming oil helps that preparation for physical activity by increasing blood circulation and oxygenizes the muscle thanks to the presence of Ozonides. When used as a massage oil before a race it can be rubbed well into the skin giving a warm feeling without a burning sensation and leaving a nice shine to the legs.

Here are some tips on self massage. When massaging the legs you should start with the thighs, sit with the leg muscles relaxed with your feet on the ground. Start with the muscles on the front of the thighs, skimming the skin to spread the oil over the muscles. This should be done from the upper part of the knee in the direction towards the groin, for ten cycles, in total 15 to 20 seconds. Then a rubbing movement with open hands rising towards the groin, repeating for 6 to 8 cycles. Then use a light beating movement, this tones the muscles, again towards the groin. The action will be fast and when you almost get to the groin go back to the top of the knee and repeat everything, every cycle will last about 6 to 8 seconds, repeating for 8 to 10 cycles. Then do the same to the muscles under the thigh.

Then the calf’s, in a sitting position again, start with the light skimming continuing with a rubbing for 4 to 6 cycles, finishing with a faster, light beating action. Since the muscles are smaller than the thigh muscles use only the fingers, starting from the ankles and rising to the knee, 8 to 10 cycles per phase lasting 5 to 6 seconds.

If you want to learn more, get your hands on Ozone’s Sports Massage Manual.

The Chamois Protect Cream

Here at Bike Cycling Reviews we have tried a few other chamois protectors and we have liked them all, they all do what they should, but in different ways. The Ozone-Elite Protection Cream feels very comfortable and rubs into the skin and gives protection on the longest days ride without any discomfort in the saddle area, you don’t need much as it seems to spread and a tube of the Protection Cream will last quite a long time. The Ozonides has an anti-bacterial effect which helps the recovery process of the skin avoiding any painful problems, also useful for after riding to soothe that area of any chaffing, reddening or soreness.

Protect Cream

The Ozone-Elite Body Care Products

As well as these three products, Ozone also manufacture ThermoGel Forte for cold and wet conditions, Energy Oil for energizing and oxygenating the muscles, Refresh Oil and Tone Cream for after effort relaxation. For the other parts of the body they produce No sweat for Feet, which speaks for itself, Feet Relaxing Gel containing natural menthol and mint, and for very cold conditions; the Toe warmer Heat Mate and the Hand warmer Heat Mate, to heat the extremities. Then for in the shower there is the EnerGel Shower Body & Hair for washing and refreshing the body.

What Do We Think?

Trying the Depil Mousse again was the best thing I could have done as this time round it worked perfectly, giving a perfectly smooth leg with out any discomfort, the Chamois Protection Cream must be good as you forget you are using it, so it must be working well. The Warming Oil invigorates the muscles without irritating them and prepares the legs for the coming effort whilst protecting them from the elements. Based on the three products we have had the pleasure to review we are sure the others are well worth using.

Our Marks out of 10; 9, Top Care for the Body

Complete Body Care