A strange thing keeps happening.....

[madm00se]

HaHa!!!
Theres a killer hill near me- Engine Hill- (well its killer in my eyes anyhoo) and my goal is to cycle up it and live!!!!!!!!! I can do it in 6 parts(ride 1/6, rest a minute, etc etc) and felt really silly yesterday when a man in full lycra everything sailed past me as if oblivious he was going up hill!! Made me realise how far iv yet to go but then iv come a long way too as the first time i did 5 miles on the straight i said never again its too far!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ill be posting news of my first ton come summer!!!

(dont quote me on that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

HA HA. LOL!!! Worst I've heard is from my husband & his mate (who was under 16 yorkshire mtn bike champion in his day), riding up East Chevin Road in Otley, when a bloke in his 70's rides past, hubby & mate on mtn bikes............ The 70 yr old's on single speed!!! The bloke said, as he rode past, come on lads, keep up!!!

 

[yenrod]

PROPER cyclist???

I think you are

Some mileage that.

 

[philr]

try looking at food intake timings, sounds strange but i am doing little trials with carb intake at different times before i set off for my commute, i am using things like tracker bars / cereal bars etc, i commute only 11 miles but i find if i time it correctly from the outset i can fly along like a mad thing on fire.

yesterday i did my 11 mile commute in 38 mins a new PB for me, not enough to raise the flag compared to even amateur cyclists but i managed to get my HR right up and it felt really good going up hills, if i dont make the effort it just hurts legs in pain like no energy syndrome and it takes up to 50 mins.

still trying to perfect the timings, hope i havent just made myself look stupid as this is just plain old common sense.

 

[stumpy]

+1 on the stretching front. If you don’t warm up properly then it can take a while to get into it. You’ll soon be flying up hills that you previously considered impossible. It just comes with practise and a bit of perseverance.
As far as riders who don’t acknowledge you go. It is THEY who are not proper cyclists. I’ve always loved the camaraderie that is involved in cycling when I’m mountain biking and even more so since I’ve go into road bikes.

 

[jimboalee]

Some call it "Second wind". It's to do with adrenaline excretions.

Someone once told me ladies don't get the adrenaline rush, but I have heared many ladies saying similar things to you.

About feeding strategies. An 11 mile commute does not warrant any special feeding. If you regularly have two Weetabix for brekky and maintain weight, that's all you need even though you ride for 38 minutes.
I say Weetabix for the reason it helps intestinal transportation.

Personally, I ride my 14 mile morning commute without eating or drinking. That's called 'Fasted Lipolysis', and is to burn fat.
I have a NO CARB breakfast of Bacon and eggs 2 hours after I arrive.

For 14 miles to work, the milk in my coffee contains enough carbs to accomplish this small effort.

 

[jimboalee]

A 'Proper' cyclist is one who informs oncoming riders of a mobile speed camera.

 

[stumpy]

A 'Proper' cyclist is one who informs oncoming riders of a mobile speed camera.

How fast are you going???????

 

[Lisa21]

if i tell you how fast i go will you all stop laughing please.............

I tend to do around the 12mph mark on the flat, dropping to maybe 9 uphill (yea yea i know, im pathetic!!!). downhill iv got up to 19 before i scared myselfand today i actually did 17.5 on the flat!!!! for a while!!!!!

If i got caught by a speed camera on bikey i would be WELL CHUFFED!!!!!
I am getting so addicted to this though, nobody warned me it was this brilliant!!!

Oh and Venrod.........thanx for calling me a PROPER cyclist-that made my day!!!

 

[Sittingduck]

Sounds pretty respectsable to me
Keep up the good work!

SD

 

[Lisa21]

Thankyou xx

As for the advice on food-iv not changed my eating habits at all(naughty!)and will prob lose weight once i start eating better. I do eat healthily but need to cut down on the rediculous amount of chocolate i scoff daily! I seem to be eating more too and will prob be the only person who PUTS ON weight as a result of taking up cycling!!!!!
Im 9 stone exactly and about 5'8 so not bad i think-ill be happy once my wobbly bits dont wobble quite as much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Lambchop]

Stuff as much chocolate as you like whilst on a ride -remember it can only give you energy!

 

[jimboalee]

Thankyou xx

As for the advice on food-iv not changed my eating habits at all(naughty!)and will prob lose weight once i start eating better. I do eat healthily but need to cut down on the rediculous amount of chocolate i scoff daily! I seem to be eating more too and will prob be the only person who PUTS ON weight as a result of taking up cycling!!!!!
Im 9 stone exactly and about 5'8 so not bad i think-ill be happy once my wobbly bits dont wobble quite as much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You WON'T be the first to gain fat by taking up cycling.

Many, and I mean MANY newbies don't realise cycling is five times as efficient as walking or running for the same distance.

So a fifteen mile bike ride is equivalent to a three mile walk. Now you wouldn't research nutritional reqiurements for an afternoon shopping? would you? Maybe a Starbucks Latte.

So a Starbucks Latte is all you need for fifteen miles on a bike.

Many, and I mean MANY newbie cyclists feed themselves with energy drink and snack bars for a fifteen miler, and then wonder why they are gaining fat

The only weight you WANT to put on is muscle mass , and that requires good protein.

 

[Lisa21]

LOL!!!

Im lucky in that i dont stuff myself full of energy bars etc for a ride-iv not fallen for the manufacturers hype about that kinda stuff yet
I take a bottle of diet coke and enjoy the ride not the snacks-however far im planning to go!

Im hoping that my saviour is the fact that i havent changed my eating habits since i started,so although i eat far too many choccies i always have done but i am now doing a LOT more excersise and hopefully as i (IF i!!) tone up and get fitter it will give me the kick up the bum i need to eat a bit healthier!!

 

[Toshiba Boy]

Lisa, welcome to the totally addictive world of cycling (I've been a paid up addict for over 30 years).

Notice the comments re stretching, certainly try this if you want, but I've always found steady first few miles to be best warm up on a bike + gentle couple of final miles to warm down (as compared to say running where stretches definitely vital).

At the end of the day, you don't actually stretch out your muscles on a bike as you do running, and as such, stretching to warm up or warm down not so useful as the steady early/final miles (recall Joe Beer - cycling and fitness expert - in Cycling Plus writing an article along similar lines some time ago).

But that's just my simple opinion, try different things and see what works best for you

 

[Mike Rudkin]

HaHa!!!
Theres a killer hill near me- Engine Hill- (well its killer in my eyes anyhoo) and my goal is to cycle up it and live!!!!!!!!!

I think we all have 'A Hill' Mine is 1 mile from my house-I live on top of a hill and have to descend into the valley then climb into the next village.
The point where I run out of breath,and my heart exceeds my limit by 30 BPM is gradually getting nearer the top I had hoped to conquer my 'Everest' this morn But there's always tomorrow-and there's always another 'Hill'