fitness and longevity help please

[alci4]

fairly new to riding (well a few years since school anyways and am just getting back into it

went for a ride tuesday mapmyride says 17.11 miles my comp says 18.3 but you get the idea

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/dudley/750127243719834115

about the 13 / 15 miles mark i started to really feel fatigued and was wondering if there is anything i should be doing to combat this or just need to build my stamina and fitness up more

it was quite hilly for that part after 15 it seemed sweet sailing again but prob cause it was downhill again

took me about 1 hr 40

just wondering if anyone had any advice or if it's just somthing that a lazy fat 40 yr old needs to deal with

thanks for any advice offered

 

[Banjo]

I started riding again just over a year sgo and found 10 miles a challenge at first.If you keep riding several times a week you will soon get fitter and find it easier.

I think several shorter rides per week will do you more good than one or two longer ones.

On rides that take more than an hour you may need to eat something on the way around.Trouble is that if you hope to lose weight through cycling you need to ensure you arent putting the same amount of calories straight back in.

 

[alci4]

was wondering if i should have taken fruit or snack

was wondering if more fluids may have helped also

it was roasting hot and only took the one bottle which just lasted me

am looking to lose some weight but i was ravenous when i got home so prob negated any calories burned when i got home

 

[snorri]

40

What banjo said.

Dont overdo it, try to get out every day, even for just a few miles, and your fitness and energy levels will increase without you even noticing.

 

[Chrisc]

Yep. This podgy lazy 47 year old here couldn't manage but two miles last September
without having to be carried into the house and laid out for an hour to recover.
Short steady rides, lots of em and now I'm up to thirty five milers in the hills. Softly softly catchee monkey....

 

[Norry1]

I'm pretty much a newbie and I did a 21 miler along tracks etc last weekend. I found cycling very different to running, in that running feels hard as you go - where the cycling felt pretty easy but after about 70 minutes I just realised I was a bit fatigued. I was then nackered the rest of the day and just wanted to nap

I think more fluids and small snack would have helped - but we'll just have to get our fitness levels up by getting the miles in I reckon.

Martin

 

[jay clock]

what bike have you got? If it is a heavy MTB with suspension and knobbly tyres it will be harder. In any even pump the tyres up to the max pressure on the side wall

 

[PK99]

just wondering if anyone had any advice or if it's just somthing that a lazy fat 40 yr old needs to deal with

thanks for any advice offered

When i started riding 15 year ago at your age, I went from wimbledon to richmond park and round the track. 16 miles in total. Many stops and it nearly killed me.

A group of us started doing that ride on a regular basis most Sunday morinings.

Blah, blah, blah

Now:
My time round the road route (6 miles) on my tricross is 23min30s and a regular ride is to the park and three times round and back - 29 miles, 2hrs5/10mins target time.

Stick with it. It does get easier and the tangible improvements you will feel are both reward and motivator.

If you can, find some like minded mates to ride with

 

[tuffty]

am looking to lose some weight but i was ravenous when i got home so prob negated any calories burned when i got home

I had the same problem as you when I started, I'd do my ride, get home then promptly empty the fridge and thereby undo any good the cycling had done. I then found that if I either timed my rides to be approx an hour after breakfast or lunch, or alternatively ate something like a banana half an hour before going out, the hunger disappeared.

 

[Globalti]

My first ride as a reborn cyclist was a mere 7 miles home from the shop where I bough my Raleigh Maverick. The tyres were knobbly and under-inflated and the route was hilly, I was so exhausted when I got home that I didn't touch the bike for several weeks. The I started thinking: "Hang on - people cycle fifty or a hundred miles in a day, I should be able to do better than this!" so I persisted but it wasn't until I moved up North where I had the space and the routes that I started getting properly fit. Then last year I discovered road riding and started using SIS for energy on the ride and now I'm fitter than I've ever been in my life. Then I went looking for hills and stupidly mashed my knees so now I'm laid up, losing fitness and miserable. Oh well.

 

[Stevei T]

Hi.
Newbie here, joined the forum yesterday.
I started riding last year, nearly died after 5 miles, stuck at it every weekend into the summer months by which time i was cycling 13miles with two fairly steep but short hills i was averaging 14.8 mph. By October i was covering 28miles in a shade under 2hrs. Foolishly i put the bike away for the winter and had to start all over again in Feb. I hooked up with a couple of like minded 40 plus matesw who ride and by March we were all achieving a high 14 avg, but couldnt get any faster. Then someone told us about a spinning class at our local gym. Ureka, within six weeks our avg for 13 mls is now 16.2, 30 miles 15.4 and now were looking at some 40 mile plus routes.
Food wise i have had to be ultra strict with portion sizes ( a good wife helps ) No beer during the week, and always time my rides to coincide with breakfast or lunch.
Result 2 stone lost, 3.5 inches off my waist feel fantastic ended up with two really good mates and cant wait to push on further. Life began again at 45.
As everyone else has said keep it up it really is worth it

 

[Globalti]

Great story! So many people seem to be rediscovering cycling.

 

[lukesdad]

Try to ride at the right time to start with, when your not fatigued and 3-4 hours after youve had a good meal with some good carbs in, i.e oats, rice or pasta. On the length of ride your doing fluid is probably more important than food. All though a fast release energy boost would also be good remember though you need to consume this 20 - 40 mins before you need it depending on what the snack is.

 

[BrumJim]

fairly new to riding (well a few years since school anyways and am just getting back into it

went for a ride tuesday mapmyride says 17.11 miles my comp says 18.3 but you get the idea

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/dudley/750127243719834115

about the 13 / 15 miles mark i started to really feel fatigued and was wondering if there is anything i should be doing to combat this or just need to build my stamina and fitness up more

it was quite hilly for that part after 15 it seemed sweet sailing again but prob cause it was downhill again

took me about 1 hr 40

just wondering if anyone had any advice or if it's just somthing that a lazy fat 40 yr old needs to deal with

thanks for any advice offered

Join us on a Saturday morning ride in May. Or Lizard on one this weekend. It really helps you with pacing and pushing through psychological barriers.

 

[Downward]

Some good fuel before going out always helps. I find a big bowl of porridge about an hour hour and a 1/4 before hand helps a lot.